Auckland Hotel, Calcutta – 1840 aka The Great Eastern Hotel and now The Lalit

The Auckland Hotel  was established as a rival to Spence’s hotel, which was the first hotel in Calcutta.

The 100 room, Hotel was established in 1840 by David Wilson as the Auckland Hotel, named after the Governor General of India then. Before he opened the hotel ,Wilson had a bakery in the location. Post expansion in 1860 it becsme the The Great Eastern Hotel.ln 1883, it was the  first hotel in India to be electrified .  The hotel has housed many famous personalities including  Mark Twain,Queen Elizabeth II , Nikita Khrushchev ,Dave Brubeck and  Ho Chi Minh. It is now called The Lalit , with total renovation of the interiors but the exterior facade remains almost the same.