There are more than 110,000 hotel rooms with three stars or above in London — more than anywhere else in Europe.
Which means the traveller has their pick of some of the best accommodation on the planet.
The city has everything from the sprawling chain hotels (efficient but dull) to the tiny B&B’s of Kings Cross (choose very carefully).
But at Metro Travel, we think a hotel in a major city with cut-throat competition should serve up excellent value with lashings of style and customer feel-good factor.
Here’s five of our current favourites.
No. 10 Manchester Street
10 Manchester St.
Handy for: The Planetarium, Madame Tussaud’s
Tube: Baker Street
Lovely, ever-so-British boutique hotel seconds from mega-busy Oxford St., but somehow tucked down a sleepy side street that feels a little bit Mary Poppins. Lovely quality inside. Elevator is a bit pokey, but the rooms are fresh and airy, the restaurant is excellent and there’s an outside terrace for cigar smoking.
The Kingsley
126 Southampton Row, Bloomsbury
Handy for: Covent Garden, British Museum, West End, Eurostar
Tube: Russell Square
Actually owned by mega-brand Thistle, this is a foray into the boutique sector. And it’s highly successful. Good position a stone’s throw from the British Museum in the Bloomsbury of Dickens and Woolf, and great rooms. Good value too.
thistle.com
Calico House
42 Bow Lane
Handy for: St Paul’s Cathedral, Monument, Tower of London
Tube: Mansion House
Not really a hotel but a serviced apartment in the heart of the city. The closest thing you’ll feel to actually ‘living London’ rather than just being a tourist —and for hotel prices. Hidden down a tiny lane which feels fantastically Dickensian, the concierge-governed apartment is modern yet homely. And you get a fridge, not a mini-bar.
chevalresidences.com
The Cadogan Hotel
75 Sloane St., Knightsbridge
Handy for: Harrods, Buckingham Palace, Natural History Museum
Tube: Knightsbridge
Okay, this is a pretty big hotel, but it’s just a bit fab. This 1887 gaff is Oscar Wilde’s old hangout — he was arrested for gross indecency here — and the mantle has been passed on to the city’s more contemporary celebs. But ignore that and drink in the wonderful interiors and, if you can afford it, the brilliant Langtry’s restaurant.
cadogan.com
Charlotte Street Hotel
Charlotte St.
Handy for: Theatres, West End
Tube: Goodge Street
Ultra-trendy London media hangout, with suitably cool (if pricey) bar. Flash the credit card though and this is a properly chic hotel. Restaurant is good rather than genius but the buzz is palpable and properly exciting. Generally great rooms and wonderful drawing rooms downstairs.
