Very nice hotel, pleasant staff, great breakfasts, and reasonably well located. The only reason that I didn't rate this hotel four stars is because they charge for WiFi.

The Gateway Hotel is a very beautiful taj group property at Varanasi. The hotel is located in the Nadesar Palace Compound and is huge and spacious. One can take the travel desk assistance to visit the various ghats and temples in and around Varanasi. The hotel is situated at a distance of about 5 km from the holy Kashi Vishwanath Temple and at about 30 kms from the Varanasi Airport. The hotel offers some mouthwatering global cuisine and the signature taj hospitality and service. The Spa offers good relaxation for the weary traveler and one can also relax taking a dip at the swimming pool or a walk in the beautiful lawns. The hotel is a should not miss stay for all the TAJ loyalists.

Good hotel we were upgraded to a suite food and service very good - location excellent - short trip to the Ganges for the early morning boat trip - really interesting town worth a visit - had a fantastic guide - if you want his name let me know!!!

My wife and I enjoyed the Gateway hotel very much although it is no Taj. If you are expecting a luxurious Taj Hotel experience this may not be your hotel but if you are here to see the Ganges and Sarnath the hotel will suit your needs. We stayed two nights and everybody that works there was incredibly nice and always available to help or assist with a smile. The grounds are very large which is nice because we were able to take a nice stroll in the garden and enjoy some quiet time outside. The rooms are a little dated and yes the shower will probably leak onto the floor but it has a charm and coziness that makes up for its flaws. This place really does have character and for two nights I would strongly recommend staying here.

Now for the food... Not so great. It was the worst food we had during our visit to India where we stayed at all taj hotels except for the gateway in Agra and their food was better. Food was mostly buffet and if you ordered off the buffet it was probably taken from the buffet anyways. Not terrible and certainly some dishes were better than others but it was not the quality one would expect.

We asked the front desk to get us a car to take us to the river ganges as we wanted one last venture on the river, just the two of us with no guides to protect us and no boat ride. It was a highlight of our trip and the car was incredibly clean and the driver waited for our return, all for about $40 US.