Of the luxury hotels in London, I have chosen a few, each for a different trip. Claridge’s is for tea in the Foyer and the classic London of Bond Street; The Langham for a Victorian grand hotel between Oxford Circus and Regent’s Park, with tea where it says tea began; The Connaught for one of the world’s most decorated bars; The Ritz for tea and the Saturday dancing, though in 2026 it is under works; Rosewood for walking between the British Museum and Covent Garden, with the dog and Scarfes Bar; The Ned for the City, with 8 restaurants in a bank’s great hall; Raffles for Whitehall and the spa, in Churchill’s Old War Office; The Savoy for the West End theatres and the Thames, with tea under Gallery’s dome; The Dorchester for a grand hotel on Park Lane, facing Hyde Park; Shangri-La for the view, from levels 34 to 52 of The Shard above London Bridge.
All of them are luxurious; what sets them apart is the trip: a tea booked months ahead, a grand hotel to spend the day in, or a bar that takes no bookings.
| Hotel | Suits | The trip | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Claridge’s | Classic London | Tea in the Foyer and Bond Street shopping, 4 minutes on foot | Tea is booked online only, up to 90 days ahead, with no waiting list |
| The Langham, London | Couples, families and business travellers | Tea in Palm Court, where the hotel says it began, and Artesian at night | Entry rooms measure 28 m²: for 2 comfortable nights, take the Club |
| The Connaught | Couples and celebrations | A trolley Martini at the Connaught Bar and dinner at Hélène Darroze | The bar takes no bookings and is closed on Sundays; entry rooms are 29 and 30 m² |
| The Ritz London | Celebrations and lovers of ritual | Tea in William Kent House and the Saturday dinner-dance | In 2026 the hotel is under works, and tea and the restaurant require jacket and tie |
| Rosewood London | Walkers and dog owners | The British Museum and Covent Garden on foot, then an evening of music at Scarfes Bar | Entry rooms measure 29 m²; at Scarfes only residents and groups of 6 can book |
| The Ned London | City workers and lovers of a lively night | Lutyens’ banking hall, from tea at Millie’s to jazz at The Parlour | The rooftop pool is for members, and the hall is loud at night |
| Raffles London at The OWO | Spa lovers and institutional London | Horse Guards and Westminster on foot, then the 20-metre pool and dinner at Paper Moon | The price: a February 2027 night started at £679, and Booking.com sets 18 as the minimum check-in age |
| The Savoy | Theatre and the river on foot | Tea under Gallery’s dome and a cocktail at the American Bar, open since 1893 | Wellness is a skylit pool with 3 treatment rooms: anyone after a large spa should look elsewhere |
| The Dorchester | Grand-hotel London by the park | Tea in The Promenade, then dinner at The Grill or China Tang | No pool in the building: guests swim next door at 45 Park Lane |
| Shangri-La The Shard, London | London for the view | A room chosen by the side it faces and a swim on level 52, above London Bridge | The pool and sauna work by booked slot, and a discretionary 5% is added to the room |
10 addresses, 10 ideas of London: Claridge’s 1898 building with its art deco wing, Europe’s first grand hotel, opened in 1865 at the top of Regent Street, a Mayfair house since 1815 with its bar, the 1906 Ritz on Green Park, Pearl Assurance’s former headquarters in Holborn, with its courtyard, Lutyens’ Midland Bank at Bank, the Old War Office on Whitehall, the Savoy of 1889 on the Strand, the Dorchester of 1931 on Park Lane, and the upper floors of The Shard above London Bridge.
Mayfair, London
Tea among the Foyer’s striped china, the art deco bars and 203 rooms behind Mayfair’s red façade.
Food and drink: Claridge’s afternoon tea
Discover Claridge’sRegent Street, London
Europe’s first grand hotel, of 1865: tea in Palm Court, Artesian and a pool in an old bank vault, 5 minutes from Oxford Circus.
Food and drink: Langham afternoon tea
Discover The LanghamMayfair, London
The Carlos Place hotel with the Connaught Bar, 10th in The World’s 50 Best Bars 2026, Hélène Darroze’s 3 stars and an Aman pool below the street.
Food and drink: The Connaught Bar
Discover The ConnaughtPiccadilly, London
The 1906 grand hotel on Green Park: tea from £95, since June 2026 in William Kent House, a 2-star restaurant and a refurbishment still under way.
Food and drink: Ritz afternoon tea
Discover The Ritz LondonHolborn, London
The former Pearl Assurance headquarters on High Holborn: in through a courtyard, dogs stay free and Scarfes Bar is one of London’s most decorated bars.
Food and drink: Scarfes Bar
Discover Rosewood LondonCity of London
Lutyens’ Midland Bank at Bank: 8 restaurants in the hall, a spa with a 20-metre pool for direct bookers, and a rooftop kept for members.
Food and drink: The Ned London restaurants
Discover The Ned LondonWhitehall, London
Churchill’s Old War Office on Whitehall: 9 restaurants, Paper Moon among them, and a Guerlain spa with a 20-metre pool included with the room.
Food and drink: Paper Moon London
Discover Raffles London at The OWOStrand, London
Tea under Gallery’s dome, the American Bar of 1893 and 263 rooms between Covent Garden and the Thames.
Park Lane, London
Tea under Liberace’s piano, Alain Ducasse’s 3 stars and 241 rooms and suites renewed opposite Hyde Park.
London Bridge, London
Levels 34 to 52 of The Shard: 202 rooms to choose by the side they face, and an infinity pool at the top.
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At all 10 in the guide. At The Langham Palm Court serves tea from 12.30pm, from £85; at Claridge’s the Foyer serves it daily from 2.45pm to 5.30pm, from £95, booked online only up to 90 days ahead; at The Connaught it is taken at Jean-Georges, from 2.30pm; at The Ritz, since June 2026 in the rooms of William Kent House, from £95, in 5 sittings from 11.30am to 7.30pm, with jacket and tie. At Rosewood the Mirror Room serves a Monet-inspired tea from noon to 5.45pm. At The Ned tea is taken at Millie’s Lounge, Monday to Friday 2pm to 5pm and on Saturdays from noon. At Raffles tea is served in The Drawing Room daily from noon to 5.30pm. At The Savoy tea is served in Gallery from noon to 6.45pm, from £90; at The Dorchester in The Promenade daily from noon to 5.30pm, from £95; at Shangri-La at TĪNG on level 35, daily from 12.30pm to 3.30pm, from £78.
Claridge’s: from its door on Brook Street, Bond Street station is 4 minutes on foot. From The Connaught, on Carlos Place, it is 9 minutes on our route; from The Langham, Oxford Circus is 5.
7 of the 10 in the guide. The Ritz has neither spa nor pool; Rosewood has Sense spa with sauna and steam rooms but no pool; The Dorchester has no pool of its own, and its guests swim in the 20-metre pool at 45 Park Lane next door. Claridge’s has the pool in André Fu’s spa, with families from 8am to 10am; The Langham a 16-metre pool in a former bank vault, open 7am to 9pm, which a review describes as closed on 6 September 2026; The Connaught the Aman Spa pool, open 7am to 9pm. The Ned has the spa’s 20-metre pool, free for direct bookers and over-18s only; the rooftop pool belongs to Ned’s Club members. At Raffles the Guerlain spa’s 20-metre pool is included with the room. At The Savoy the heated pool under the skylight opens 7am to 9pm on weekdays and 8am to 8pm at weekends; at Shangri-La the Sky Pool is on level 52, for adults from 6am to 6pm, in a slot you book.
The Connaught Bar, Monday to Saturday 4pm to 1am, no reservations, with the trolley Martini at £30; The Langham’s Artesian, which takes bookings and admits only over-18s after 6pm; Claridge’s Bar, open noon to 1am, to midnight on Sundays; The Ritz’s Rivoli Bar, daily 11am to midnight, with a £30 minimum spend. Rosewood’s Scarfes Bar opens daily at 4pm, with live music, and takes bookings only from hotel guests and groups of 6. At The Ned the Nickel Bar takes no bookings and has live music in the hall.
It depends on the date. On the dates read on Google Hotels, The Langham started at £367 on 31 January 2027, The Connaught at £708 on 10 August 2027, Claridge’s at £751 in autumn, The Ritz at £937 on 6 January 2027, Rosewood at £431 on 8 January 2027, The Ned at £284 the same night, Raffles at £679 on 17 February 2027, The Savoy at £575 on 14 January 2027, The Dorchester at £861 on 7 December 2026 and Shangri-La at £450 on 7 January 2027, for 2 adults and without saying for which room.
Of those in the guide, Rosewood welcomes cats and dogs free, in its restaurants and bars too, on a lead; they stay out of the spa and the gym. Claridge’s takes one dog per room, with a final clean of £160 plus VAT. The Ned takes small dogs only, and only in the bedroom. Raffles welcomes pets too, at no extra charge according to Booking.com. The Savoy takes dogs for £100 a stay, though not in its bars and restaurants; The Dorchester up to 2 small dogs of no more than 7 kg each, at £35 a day.
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