When you live in the best city in the world, why go anywhere else? But sometimes it’s nice to see your home through fresh eyes (and wake up in fresh linen you haven’t had to launder yourself) and a couple of nights in one of London’s top luxury hotels is as much of a treat as a trip abroad.
This 1960s icon, designed by the great German-American architect Walter Gropius, has a pleasingly checkered heritage. In 1965 it became the London Playboy Club (apparently occasionally they welcome former bunny girls, popping in to relive their memories from the club’s heyday), and at its peak was the most successful casino in the world. It has been part of the Dorchester Collection of hotels since 2011.
Where?
The Bauhaus School founder’s corner building, with its distinctive aluminimum ‘fins’ sweeping around the outside, sits facing its sister hotel The Dorchester, with views across the carriageway to Hyde Park. It’s a central location that showcases London at its best – a 20 minute walk to Soho (rather a nice one, down the lovely Curzon Street, which also features another 1960s gem, the Grade II listed Curzon cinema, and opposite, the palatial 18th century Crewe House, now the Saudi Arabian Embassy), but moments from one of the city’s largest royal parks (350 acres, don’t you know). On the very western edge of Mayfair, it stands out, in a good way, among some of the city’s most elegant residential architecture.
Style
Masculine, modern luxe is the vibe of the interiors by French architect and designer Thierry Despont – known chiefly for restoring the Statue of Liberty – with a distinctly clubby feel (as in, cigars and leather chairs as opposed to flashing lights and bad toilets) tempered by a strong Art Deco influence (Despont’s signature can also be seen over the road at the Dorchester, in the bar and promenade).
Rich natural materials dominate, with woods, velvets, leathers and Italian marble everywhere, but with added drama provided by bespoke silver chandeliers inspired by clouds, designed by Brand van Egmond, and an eclectic art collection throughout the hotel. A series of photographs by the musician Bill Wyman adorn the staircase, while the CUT restaurant houses a full series of Damien Hirst’s Psalms prints. There are also several works by the Pop artist Sir Peter Blake.
Facilities
Admittedly the options outside are very tempting, but should you be admirably committed, there’s a very swish, very quiet, very well-equipped gym downstairs. There’s also a gorgeous spa offering a wide range of treatments using Ishga and Valmont products, along with one of the loveliest (and most Instagrammable) pools in London, adorned with a lush floral mosaic, hydrotherapy pool and sauna and steam room.
Which room?
It’s hard to beat the Park Lane suite, which sits on the curving corner of the hotel and overlooks the trees of Hyde Park, with a vast lounge and dining area that is bigger than many London residents’ entire flats. You can stream from your device with Chromecast, there’s a Bang & Olufson entertainment system, and there’s even a guest bathroom should you wish to invite your pals to party after the premiere (or whatever). Alternatively you could go for the London Balcony suite, which is more of the same with an actual balcony overlooking the park.
For slightly less stratospheric prices, the deluxe rooms still boast lavish Italian marble bathrooms, park views, and a complimentary selection of fruit, cakes and other treats, replenished daily, that will definitely ruin your dinner. You even get your own butler, and they’ll get your change of clothes pressed on request.
Extracurricular
It’s hard to think of something you can’t do within about 20 minutes walk of 45 Park Lane, from a pint in a Soho boozer to a visit to the former home of the Duke of Wellington. But the hotel has been developing its own cultural programme, the latest addition to which is a rather lovely art tour focusing on the artist Barbara Hepworth, Hepworth: Rhythm and Form, with art historian and gallerist Florence Evans. It’s available as part of a package, with tickets to Tate Britain – you’ll be picked up as part of a small group and ferried in a comfy people carrier up to and around Hampstead, hopping out to see the artist’s former studio, home and various public artworks in the area before being safely deposited back at the hotel (via Hepworth’s fantastic Winged Figure, on the side of John Lewis).
There are also regular temporary exhibitions – the next is titled The Artisan Collab, and is a celebration of contemporary artisanship, with ceramics, wood carvings, paintings and jewellery.
Food & drink
It’s worth resisting at least some of the delicious treats in the room for a trip to CUT, the hotel’s signature restaurant, run by American superstar Wolfgang Puck and specialising in the world’s most luxurious steak. A choice of Japanese, Australian, British and American beef, including the highest quality wagyu, is the basis of a wide-ranging menu of punchy, flavourful and fun dishes that actually would be perfectly fine for non-meat-eaters, though that’s not really the point.
For a less meaty but no less luxurious experience, there’s Sushi Kanesake, an omakase dining experience (where you essentially leave all choice up to the chef) of exquisitely formed dishes in a serenely designed space for only 13 diners, including four seats at the chef’s bar.
Details
A double room starts from £950 per night including breakfast. The Hepworth: Rhythm and Form package, including a Deluxe King Room, English breakfast, a two-hour expert guided tour and two entry tickets to Tate Britain starts at £1,430 for two sharing. Sushi Kanesake’s 18 course menu costs £450 pp without wine. The Artisan Collab runs at 45 Park Lane from September 5 to November 5. dorchestercollection.com
