London is huge. And its sprawling streets are filled with some of the most varied accommodation options around. From your typically bourgeois centrally located Ritz right through to the tiny micro-boutiques in dark corners of the hipster’s East End. London is where it’s at, at any time of day, night or even year. So, before booking your super-saver flights with Cheapflights.com, take a minute to peruse these little beauties…
Best for that smaller, family-run feel: 22 York Street
London can be tiring with all the trendy tit bits that pull at you from every corner. So what better way to get some real R&R at your home-from-home than by checking in to this well-located B&B (that’s bed and breakfast for Brits). Set in a Georgian townhouse with a rustic French-farmhouse themed interior – think wooden white furniture, creaky floorboards and quirky antiques – Liz and Michael Callis’ Marylebone abode has that warm, friendly charm that’s all too often lost among the bigger brands and chains.
Best for splashing that cash: Claridge’s
This is the most sumptuously, lavishly, luxuriously, decadent – you get the picture – pad that you’re going to find in London. Everyone from Queen Elizabeth II to Winston Churchill has graced the boudoirs of this venerable institution. Its stunning, Art Deco lobby, complete with a vast Dale Chihuly chandelier (made of 300 hand-blown glass pieces) is the jewel in what’s already an utterly opulent offering. For a big blow-out, book yourself into one of 20 Diane Von Furstenberg suites, dine daily at the Gordon Ramsay restaurant and allow the hordes of doormen to cater to your every whim.
Best for a heritage hideaway: The Egerton House Hotel
Step into the Egerton time machine and allow yourself to get transported back into Victorian London. With its old-school service, chilled glasses of champers ready for your arrival and a butler only to happy to unpack your bags (should sir or madam wish), this five-star townhouse really is vintage boutique at its best. Lavish, rich patterns adorn fabrics and the furniture is all antique. Even the walls come enriched with their own pieces of history – engravings and lithographs from Picasso and Matisse, no less. Of course you do have access to necessary high-tech provisions (video-iPods, flat screen TVs etc) should you want them, but with Harrods, Harvey Nichols and many of London’s most famous museums just a short stroll away, you’re unlikely to.
Best for a budget boutique buy: Hotel Indigo
You kind of know what you’re going to get with a Holiday Inn but this one has that little something extra. Located near Paddington, its setting is central enough for any sight-seeing itinerary, though it’s the plush, boutique-like adornments that make this stand out from the company’s less, well, trendy provisions. With just enough style to satisfy budget but beautiful leanings and a more than palatable all-day bar-come-restaurant, this is definitely on our hot list for that, keeping it cheap, London city break.
Best for a quirky, old-world taste: Miller’s Residence
This is, actually, someone’s home. And not just anyone’s home. It’s the home of antiques enthusiast, author and sybarite, Martin Miller. And his collection of objets d-art decorating every corner of the 18th-century-style den. The anonymous red doorway leads to a candlelit staircase and on into a spectacular 40-foot drawing room, complete with reams of red velvet and, of course, more of Miller’s curios. Sit by a roaring fire, sip as much from the well-stocked bar (including Martin Miller’s own gin) as you desire and then slip up into one of the English Romantic poet-themed suites. This is the absolutely perfect place for those seeking refuge from 21st century life. Unless, of course, you’re Stella McCartney and use the unique site for a party.
