Claridge’s, London, England
OH, Claridge’s. No matter how many new and exciting (at least to begin with) hotels open in London, its crown never appears to slip. The hotel’s popularity might be down to chef Martyn Nail’s hugely popular lobster Wellington or because a new bar seems to open every month, inside a forgotten nook or cranny of the Grade Ii-listed building.
Perhaps it’s the decor, the familiar and perennially chic checkerboard floor and duckegg-blue walls, or that the service is some of the best in the world (check in after a threeyear hiatus and the staff will still know which newspaper you like to read in the morning).
Its enduring popularity may also be because the hotel knows exactly how to blend the need for tradition with the need to move forward. Take, for example, the newly refurbished suites, designed by Bryan O’sullivan and described as ‘Deco for today’. In one, a pink marble and glass scalloped fireplace takes centre stage; in another, you’ll find a burr-oak mini bar, inspired by the lives of the Bright Young Things. Blush pinks, soft caramels and pops of that duck-egg blue appear throughout. In March, the hotel will unveil a spa, part of a multimillion-pound subterranean, five-storey building project underneath Brook Street. RP From £550 plus VAT per night in a Superior King room (www.claridges.co.uk)