I’m planning to spend a week in Calcutta with my husband and teenage son. I’m looking for a clean, reasonable place to stay.
Examples of Indian hotels I like are the Nilgiri’s Nest and New Woodlands in Chennai. Nilgiri’s and Ballal Residency in Bangalore are also good. They all offer rooms that I consider clean enough (uncarpeted, which makes a big difference) for INR 3000 or less per night. Does anyone know of any similar spots in Calcutta? I haven’t yet found anything that sounds appealing. It’s also important that the hotel be in a decent neighborhood, because my husband will only be with us for part of the trip.

It's been a couple of years, but last time I was there I stayed at the Hyatt, which was really fantastic. It's probably not the style you're looking for, but I don't remember seeing or hearing about many other hotels.

Thanks very much for the suggestion. Normally, I'd say the Hyatt was a bit out of my league, but at this point I have to consider all the possibilities ... I'm usually pretty good at finding the kind of hotel I like, but Calcutta's proving to be a challenge.
It looks like the Hyatt is out in the Salt Lake area. Is that right? If so, is there anything interesting around there, or will I need a car to get into the city each day?
Thanks again,

Well, you could look at the Fairlawn. I think my (single) room there had once been a verandah, but other rooms were nicer. Sutter Street has a fair population of street people, rickshaw and taxi drivers and beggars, but it gives you practice at saying no. It also gives you easy access to transport, in addition to the drivers waiting outside, I seem to remember there was a metro station just down the road.

Also take a look at www.sawdays.co.uk/titles/ind/index.html

Thanks. The Fairlawn might well have been OK, but it is booked for the days I need. I would actually prefer to be in the thick of things and to keep the driver/traffic issues to a minimum... I visited Calcutta years ago, as a teenager, and the only thing I remember is being stuck in traffic. I'm hoping to give myself a much nicer experience this time. Also, living temporarily in S. India, I find that drivers are sometimes (but not always!) commission-seeking missiles, which can make for an unpleasant kind of day, so I don't want to negotiate with more drivers than absolutely necessary.
Anyway, I'll see if I can find that book. It looks as if it might be helpful, if not for this trip than for the next.

Hotel Hindusthan International near Minto Park is just a notch below the top end hotels like Taj Bengal / Park / ITC Sonar Bangla / Hyatt / Oberoi Grand. You might try that.
Travelling from one end of the city to another is actually not such a big issue anymore, with the Eastern Metropolitan bypass running the city's length. Even then, it's a much better idea to live within a short distance of Park Street. It gives you a few more options in the evening.
You can ask a guard to hail you a metered taxi at any of these hotels.

Metered taxi? What luxury! But will they actually USE the meter?

Strangely enough, the Park is giving me a better rate than the HIndustan International, so I may end up going with that. Before I commit, does anyone have experience with the Radisson?
Thursdaysd, you ask a legitimate question. In Chennai and the smaller town where I'm living, meters are merely decorative. In Bangalore, they're generally used, though the location of the pickup and dropoff, the hour, and a few other factors seem to impact whether or not the meter is, in fact, used. I'm curious to know what the situation is re. meters in Calcutta.

jujuma - interested to hear that meters aren't being used in Chennai. When I was there (in 2001), they were being used, but there was a tendency for the driver to try to take the long way. Same problem with rickshaws in Aurangabad, and in Mysore the rickshaw drivers flatly refused to use them, even though they were installed.

Calcutta cabbies generally go by the meter. If you still feel otherwise, yu could call for a 'blue arrow' air conditioned taxi - ask your hotel for the number. The metro rail is useful for travelling longish distances.
A week in Calcutta would be an overkill, unless you're researching the Raj.

We stayed at the Hindustan International as part of a small tour group in February 2007. It is at the southern end of central Kolkata. The hotel is quite nice, seemed clean, and the location is pretty good, but the rooms face out onto the very busy AJC Bose Road, which has incredible levels of traffic at all time, with everyone honking at least every few seconds. (It also has a newer causeway built on top of it, but the causeway has a lot less traffic than the street below.) I, in particular, was very bothered by the noise all night, and for that reason I do not think this hotel was a particularly good choice. But none of the 6 other tour members seemed to have any complaints about it.

Len