It's official. The first guest checked into Mumbai's most luxurious penthouse on Wednesday. Furnished with a swank 42" home theatre system, imported Persian carpets, satin upholstery and gleaming gadgets, it's not surprising that the 5,300 square feet apartment at the Taj Wellington Mews in Colaba is priced at Rs 10 lakh a month. The Rs 216-crore project, which has been under construction for the past two and a half years, has been styled by London-based hotel design consultants Richmond International.

The firm's previous projects have included the luxurious Dorchester in London and Peninsula in Hong Kong. "Expatriates, consulates, diplomats and senior business executives is the clientele we envisage," says Rajiv Kaul, vice-president, Taj Mumbai Hotels. Three of the four penthouses are already booked. The Taj Group stresses this property is positioned as a "luxury residence" unlike other service apartments across the country.

The only other five-star service apartment in the city is the Renaissance Convention Centre in far flung Powai. The most expensive room here is priced at around Rs 3 lakh a month. "We have a separate identity unlike our competitors whose apartments are associated directly with the hotel property," says Kaul. Wellington Mews will also have a mezzanine Connecting it to a grand recreation area with a swimming pool, jogging track, gym and spa. 

"The pool is operational now, but we are going to introduce the spa and gym by early next year. It's definitely going to be one of its kind," promises Kaul. The hotel will target long-staying guests for a minimum duration of 30 days and stretching up to 33 months. Taj officials say this property will not cannibalise the top end users of the Taj Mahal Hotel, which is located a stone's throw away. But as Anuj Puri, Managing Director of Chesterton & Meghraj Consultancy, a real estate firm, points out, "Hotels too, often have a number of long-staying guests who are given great discounts. Such a property will target those guests."

Puri says the new hotel is unlikely to hit property rentals in the neighbourhood. "Such properties, though residential in approach are mainly competing with similar sectors in hospitality and will not have any bearing on real estate pricing," he says. Besides the pricing, starting at Rs 1,50,000 for a one-room studio apartment, is significantly higher than current real estate rates in the surrounding area.