OUR STORY
Hotel Gables, Mashobra, Year 1866
The Gables group has a rich history dating back to the British Raj. The name “GABLES” comes from an estate in Shimla, originally owned by the Hotz Hotels (P) Ltd, developed in 1866. The Hotz Group of Hotels came at a time when five star concept was unheard of in India.
Mr. Robert Hotz and Mary Hotz
Hotz family was not just the first family to own luxury hotels like Gables and Wildflower Hall in India, but they were the first ones to have a hotel chain in the country.
Mr K.S Karai -
Last Manager of Hotel Gables
The last manager of Hotel Gables, Mr. K.S. Karai, facilitated transfer of property from Mr. R.C. Durrant of the Hotz Hotels Pvt. Ltd. to the present promoters in the year 1985.
Mr. K.S. Karai was a Parsi who led his life as a bachelor and lived in Mashobra. He fell in love with this picturesque little town and was finally laid to rest alongside his mother’s grave in Shimla.
Hotel Gables also finds a mention in the book, “Shimla Past and Present” by Sir Edward John Buck. The excerpt reads:
“Close to the quaint little bazaar are the buildings erected in 1866 by Mr. Gilbert Campbell (afterwards Sir Gilbert Campbell Bart) in which he resided for several years. Later on the property passed into the hands of Mrs. Martin Towelle and was known as the “Gables Hotel”. It was regularly rented by Lord Lutton, (Governor General and Viceroy of India from 12th April 1876 to 8th June 1880) who with his family made it constant summer resort, and it has always been a favourite house of call with Shimla Public."
