There is a limited number of iconic hotels on the planet which attract travellers not only by their architecture, location, food, style, etc. but also by their mere history. The Café Royal is one of them. This is a 159 room (among them 54 suites) luxury property on a top location right in the heart of London at Regents Street overlooking Piccadilly Circus. The original name “Café Royal” was a bit misleading and was therefore changed into Hotel Café Royal. But it´s famous gilded “Cafe-restaurant, formerly called Café Royal Grill, has seen many illustrious personalitis. Oscar Wilde loved the place for its great wine selection – the hotel, founded in 1865 – was then known to have the biggest wine cellar in the world. For Wilde the Café was the beginning of his misfortune when the Marquess of Queensbury stormed into Café Royal where he threatened the waiters that if he found Wilde and his son together he would strike Wilde and wreck the restaurant. Many, many other famous guests simply enjoyed to meet there. The hotel is quite expensive nowadays, some suites would be 6500 pounds a night or more, so is it worth the money? To put it on a nutshell: this is a luxury hotel with great history (where did Churchill sit when he enjoyed his steaks, where did Mick Jagger or Rihanna had their drinks?) and with a perfect location if you want to shop or explore London. Shopping miles like Bond Street, Oxford Street, Savile Row are within six minutes walking distance, the British Museum, the theater district, Buckingham palace, Soho, all within 1.6 kilometers from the hotel. The rooms, most of them in a completely new design after the restoration in 2012, are surprisingly different. You can choose those with panelled fumed english oak (not dark) or white Portland stone. Bathrooms boast real Carrara marble, rainshowers, Floris products. There is quite a bit spa (9 treatment rooms) and an 18 meter pool, which is a real relaxation zone (though expensive, massages from 175 pounds per hour) and we all know the job of a tourist can be very exhausting. So all in all: luxurious, expensive, top location and a great history.
Indicative – subject to change.
