Hotels
Where to stay in London, including the day-use rooms and the discreet options most hotel guides will not discuss. Prices and booking rules taken from each property’s own published information.
Read moreRead less
Where to stay in London is the page to read first, because here the neighbourhood decides more than the hotel does. It sets out which districts suit which kind of trip, and what each one costs you in travel time at the other end of the day.
After that: the best hotels for the rooms themselves, the five star list for the top end, and day use hotels for the rooms let by the afternoon rather than the night, which is a real and badly documented corner of the market.
Check-in times, luggage storage and early arrival policies vary far more between hotels than the star ratings suggest, so they are quoted from the hotel rather than summarised.
The Shangri-La Sky Pool Is Free, but You Cannot Just Turn Up
A slot is required for the highest pool in Western Europe, adults swim until 6pm only, and children get two short windows.
Six Senses London: The Gym Is Open All Night, Supervised Until Eight
A 2,300 square metre spa with cryotherapy and a flotation pod, and a members club the hotel says is not for the public.
The Peninsula Gives You the Room From 6am, Free
Peninsula Time runs 6am to 10pm at no charge, when budget hotels charge for both. The pool four floors down, and what the hotel does not publish.
A London Capsule Costs 42 Pounds. The Room Above It Costs 175
Same operator, same street. The size of a capsule, the fees that close the gap, and why under-18s cannot stay.
Pan Pacific London: Children Can Only Swim at Set Hours
The infinity pool has narrow children's hours and an under-16 supervision rule. Where the kids eat free, and where the discount stops.
Kimpton Fitzroy London: Its Own Pages Disagree on Dog Size
The FAQ caps dogs at 35kg and the pet page says any size. No pool, no spa, no parking, and a 2pm same-day cancellation.
Sea Containers London: The Rooftop Is Over 18s All Day
12th Knot admits nobody under 18 at any hour. The 20lb dog limit, the missing pool and the 6pm cancellation deadline.
Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park: A 90-Minute Weekend Spa Booking Gets You Nothing
The spa access ladder nobody explains: 90 minutes works midweek, the weekend threshold is two hours, and only two hours unlocks the pool. Plus riding in Hyde Park from age four.
Nobu Hotel Shoreditch: Closed, and Now Aethos London Shoreditch
The name came off the building on 5 August 2025. What is there now, what happened to the restaurant, and where Nobu's two remaining London locations are.
Ham Yard Hotel: The Bowling Lanes Are Only Released a Week Ahead
An empty calendar at The Croc does not mean it is full. Plus £25 an hour to bowl, and why dogs can sleep here but only guide dogs can eat in the restaurant.
Elsewhere in the guide
Questions we get asked
Which London hotels hold a Forbes Five Star rating?
Nineteen across the city. Three of them are on Knightsbridge itself, the Bvlgari, the Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park and The Egerton House, with The Berkeley a short walk away at Wilton Place. No other postcode in London comes close to that concentration.
Is a five star rating the same as five stars on a booking site?
No, and the gap is the most misleading thing in London hospitality. A booking site star is self declared or crowd sourced. A Forbes rating is an anonymous inspection against a published standard, which is why a small townhouse hotel can rate above names you would assume outrank it.
Can you use a luxury London hotel without staying there?
Yes, and it is the cheapest way to see the inside of one. The bars and lounges of the five star hotels serve the public, take walk ins, and nobody will ask whether you have a room. Afternoon tea does the same thing at a fixed price.