A city where centuries of history meet cutting-edge modernity, London offers an unrivalled choice of places to stay, from grand icons steeped in royal heritage to sleek, boutique hideaways.
Whether you’re drawn by the allure of Mayfair’s timeless elegance, Soho’s creative buzz, or the serene views along the Thames, these London hotels deliver experiences as diverse as the city itself. Each of these properties caters to the most discerning guests, and has set a new standard of style, comfort and service in the capital.
Here are fourteen of the best hotels in London according to the Citizen Femme team, who have tried and tested them all.
Mandarin Oriental Mayfair
Brand new to London’s ever-growing hotel portfolio, Mandarin Oriental Mayfair shines bright from its prime position on Hanover Square. The luxurious abode offers a modest selection of 50 bedrooms and suites (in comparison to the 181 pads at Mandarin Oriental’s Hyde Park address) each ornately decorated by Studio Indigo in a swoon-worthy palette of neutrals peppered with dusty pinks and subtle golds. After a morning spent racking up your step count along Bond Street, you’ll want to carve out some downtime at the serene spa, anchored by Mayfair’s longest indoor pool – before heading to the hotel’s intimate 14-seat chef’s table, Somssi by Jihun Kim for the seven-course tasting menu.
Read Gina Jackson’s full review here.
11 Cadogan Gardens, Chelsea
Flock to the red brick, Victorian-era facade of 11 Cadogan Gardens to enjoy a luxury home-from-home experience, ideal for city dwellers and visitors who seek a quiet place to relax. To add to the home-like feel and reflecting the offbeat combination of quirkiness and elegance that the neighbourhood is so well known for, no two rooms in this boutique hotel are alike, varying between four-poster beds to marble bathrooms. The hotel is also a member of the prestigious Iconic Luxury Hotels group and is the first of its London properties to open its doors to pampered pooches, making for a memorable staycation.
Read Ina Yulo Stuve’s full review here.
Shangri-La The Shard, London Bridge
Every Londoner – as well as anyone who has visited the city even once – has no doubt stood still to peer up at The Shard. The Shangri-La The Shard offers the rare chance to stay inside it. Each room (and bathroom) is an impressive space – but you’re unlikely to notice at first: the sweeping views outside of its windows take centre stage. Peek out of them for your first glance of central London (and beyond) unfurling like a toy town below you. As the sun sets, sip on a cocktail at Champagne and cocktail bar, GONG on level 52, before heading down 17 floors to the main restaurant, TING, which leans into the hotel’s Asian roots across the menu.
Read Katie Silcox’s full review here.
The Berkeley
Frequently hailed as the belle of Belgravia by those in the know, The Berkeley commands a prime West London address, holding court over Hyde Park and Knightsbridge’s swish boutiques. You’ll find much more than is possible to enjoy within 24 hours at The Berkeley: with high-octane suites designed by a slew of acclaimed architects, and a medley of restaurants and bars overseen by world-famous chefs – each drawing a steady stream of visitors clamouring after Cedric Grolet croissants or a martini at The Berkeley Bar.
Read Gina Jackson’s full review here.
1 Hotel Mayfair
1 Hotel Mayfair is modernising the scene with its clean-lined, neutral aesthetic and keen sustainability efforts – a huge statement to make in a capital city. However, this hotel is rising to the challenge, from the greenhouse gas-absorbing front door to the natural materials of stone, linen, and canvas across the interior of the property. Inside, 181 beautifully-considered, naturally-lit rooms span the hotel, 44 of which are suites, each topped with sleek, natural colours and textures, and Daylesford products in the bathroom. A stay here isn’t complete without dinner at Dovetale, the two-Michelin-starred restaurant downstairs where chefs work with ingredients sourced from regional providers: farmers, fishermen and bakers, each chosen for the regenerative ways their products are grown.
Read Sarah Leigh Bannerman’s full review here.
The Ned
Sashaying past the smartly dressed doormen and through the colossal wooden doors of this central London landmark almost feels like stepping back in time. Originally built by Sir Edwin Lutyens to house the Midland Bank, this architectural masterpiece was brought back to life by hospitality titans Soho House and Sydell Group. Now, the glamorous heyday of the Roaring Twenties rings through in both design and spirit across each of the 250 bedrooms. Plus, there’s multiple places to wine, dine, and make merry, with most of the hotel’s restaurants spanning out across the ground floor, under the vaulted ceilings of the former bank hall.
Read Gina Jackson’s full review here.
45 Park Lane, Hyde Park
45 Park Lane has a storied past. Designed by Bauhaus architect Walter Gropius, the curved grey concrete structure was a magnet for the city’s rich and famous in the 1960s: the building’s hedonistic past takes on a more sophisticated look in the present day but there’s still a sense of drama about it. It’s intimate in scale, with just 46 rooms, designed by Thierry Despont to balance warmth with this allure. Alongside the impressive art collection (including a Damien Hirst) scattered about the hotel, you’ll find food is taken seriously here, with CUT serving up prime beef and omakase at Michelin-starred Sushi Kanesaka.
Read Millie Walton’s full review here.
The Chelsea Townhouse, Chelsea
The Chelsea Townhouse offers the ultimate luxury – space – in one of London’s most-desired neighbourhoods: rooms average a luxurious 27-square-metres, and many overlook a leafy garden. Every room at The Chelsea Townhouse is furnished with the same pieces found in the original (Draycott) hotel rooms, before Iconic Luxury Hotels took over in 2023 and helped elevate the interiors, while still celebrating the building’s history. Come evening, enjoy the casual, all-day dining menu in the garden-facing drawing room.
Read Katie Silcox’s full review here.
Ham Yard Hotel, Soho
For a girls’ weekend in London, we can’t resist Ham Yard Hotel. Find it on the edge of Soho. Inside, Kit Kemp’s maximalist vision for design carries through from the lobby to the library, up to the rooms. Speaking of rooms, Ham Yard is home to four luxurious two-bedroom suites which means there’s plenty of space for everyone, as well as giant bathrooms, an abundance of sofas and outdoor space. The Terrace Suite is particularly jaw-dropping; located on the top floor it has floor-to-ceiling windows, a private terrace and killer view, as well as decadent details like princess canopies over beds, and a bespoke headboard.
Read Megan Murray’s review here.
The NoMad, Covent Garden
Located in the heart of Covent Garden, in the former Bow Street Magistrates’ Court and Police Station, NoMad London offers just the right blend of historic intrigue and contemporary cool, with a stand-out in-house art collection of 1,600 works. Aesthetics reign supreme here, as The NoMad was designed to feel like a collector’s home while paying homage to the building’s heritage and the hotel group’s New York roots which carries through to each of the rooms and suites. Though, it may just be The NoMad’s atrium restaurant that is the most photographed space, while the newest restaurant Twenty8 NoMad champions New York and French nostalgia with plates by chef Zak Gregoire.
Read Millie Walton’s full review here.
Broadwick Soho, Soho
Broadwick Soho is loud, proud, and anything but a wallflower. With interiors by world-famous Martin Brudnizki, expect kaleidoscopic colours, bold prints, and lavish fabrics as soon as you step under the hotel’s arched entranceway on Broadwick Street. Rooms are awash in macaron-like shades of pastel, from velvety headboards to bespoke wallpapers, and there are an impressive number of destinations to wine and dine, from Bar Jackie where guests gather for breakfast and coffee to Dear Jackie where Italian favourites are served up come suppertime. Don’t miss The Nook, the resident-only bar lounge.
Read Gina Jackson’s full review here.
The Zetter, Marylebone
The Zetter gives visitors that ‘small town’ feeling while being right in the middle of a nine-million-person metropolis. On entering, guests are met by a deeply decorated lounge at odds with the hotel’s subdued exterior. It’s a statement space which immediately sets the mood for a stay here. Twenty four rooms are made up of eight Deluxe Doubles, 11 Deluxe Kings, four Junior Suites and a penthouse (Lear’s Loft) split across five floors. Refreshments – breakfast, lunch, and dinner – are taken in The Parlour, an eclectically adorned lounge space whose crimson walls peak out between a mass of corbels. The Zetter’s kooky attitude is perhaps exemplified best by its cocktail menu, which comes as The Gazetter: an A5 ‘puzzle’ pamphlet outlining drink options via crosswords, word searches, mazes and sudokus.
Read Ally Wybrew’s full review here.
Raffles London At The OWO, Whitehall
Presiding over Whitehall and just minutes from Buckingham Palace, this gargantuan behemoth of a hotel occupies the very same building that housed Britain’s former Old War Office. It’s here that Winston Churchill called the shots during WWII, and Ian Fleming first devised the James Bond series. A cool £1.4 billion renovation later, and it’s now one of London’s most extravagant hotels where no expense is overlooked. Mosaicked corridors lead to a warren of bedrooms upstairs (120 in total), each designed by interior hotshot Thierry Despont where handsome Edwardian details shine through. Downstairs, gourmands are spoilt for choice with nine different spots to wine and dine under the same roof including the mysterious Spy Bar, the hotel’s hidden, residents-only hangout behind a locked door in the basement.
Read Gina Jackson’s full review here.
...At Sloane, Chelsea
In carefully transforming an elegant mansion block into one of London’s most exciting boutique hotels …At Sloane brings a welcome dose of old-school glamour to the heart of Chelsea. Expect to be dazzled by the dizzying combination of print and texture that covers each surface, courtesy of design whiz François-Joseph Graf and hotelier Jean-Louis Costes (of Parisian icon Hotel Costes). Upstairs to the bedrooms: each of …At Sloane’s 30 hideaways are a wunderkammer of playful print and expensive-feeling furnishings. Expect white wooden panelling, leaded windows, Loro Piana fabrics in every room, 30 different wallpaper prints, and cashmere curtains in 21 varying patterns. Plus, the hotel’s restaurant on the sixth floor (which was added to the original building, and offers soaring ceilings and sweeping views over the neighbouring rooftops) might just be Chelsea’s best-kept secret…
Read Gina Jackson’s full review here.
Lead image credit: Raffles London at The OWO
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