LONDON - England 2012 and the Best of Wales - page 181

4 Richmond Mews, London W1D 3DH. www.firmdale.com. & 020/7559-3000. Fax [phone]
units. £290-£360 double. AE, MC, V. Tube: Oxford Circus or Piccadilly Circus. Amenities: Restaurant; bar;
concierge; exercise room; room service. In room: A/C, TV/DVD, CD player, hair dryer, Wi-Fi (£20 per day).
Expensive
Dean Street Townhouse Deep in the heart of town, this boutique
hotel in a restored four-story Georgian townhouse is a chic base for exploring The-
atreland and the nightlife of Soho. Formerly the home of the Gargoyle Club, it has
been converted to receive paying guests, and its Georgian architecture has been more
or less preserved. Atmosphere and location are the draw here—the price is that rooms
are small even for central London. Units have four-poster beds, hand-painted wallpa-
per, and other retro-chic touches. The innovative all-day dining room with a weekly,
changing menu of seasonal British food is a magnet for the post-theatre crowd, and
lends evenings at the Townhouse a buzzy, cosmopolitan feel. Book your stay well in
advance—this isn't the place for a last-minute bargain.
69-71 Dean St., London W1D 3SE. www.deanstreettownhouse.com. & 020/7434-1775. 39 units.
£90-£270 double. AE, MC, V. Tube: Oxford Circus or Tottenham Court Rd. Amenities: Restaurant (see
review, p. 132); bar. In room: TV/DVD, hair dryer, minibar, Wi-Fi (free).
Hazlitt's Hotel 1718 Character, character, character. Some hotels don't
have it, however hard they try, but Hazlitt's has it in spades. You step from the heart
of buzzing Soho into what feels like an untouched Georgian literary salon. Public
areas are bookish and calm, decorated in a lived-in, 18th-century style, while the
rooms mix up antiques, ancient portraits, glorious free-standing baths, and fireplaces.
Soho's a 24-hour kind of area, so unless you're a very heavy sleeper, opt for a room
facing the back.
6 Frith St., London W1D 3JA. www.hazlittshotel.com. & 020/7434-1771. Fax [phone] units.
£159-£295 double. AE, DC, MC, V. Tube: Leicester Sq. or Tottenham Court Rd. Amenities: Babysitting;
concierge; room service. In room: A/C, TV, hair dryer, minibar, Wi-Fi (free).
MAYFAIR
Very Expensive
Claridge's No hotel epitomizes the rebirth of London's grand old hotels
quite like Claridge's. Sure, it still boasts the Art Deco finery and a history stretching
back to 1812, but Gordon Ramsay's flagship restaurant and two hip bars have made
it a favorite with the fashion and media sets. Much of its '30s style remains, and the
hotel's strong sense of tradition and old-fashioned “Britishness” are also intact; in
spite of the gloss and the hip clientele, afternoon tea here remains a quintessentially
English experience. The rooms are the most varied in London, ranging from the costly
and stunning Brook Penthouse—complete with a personal butler—to the less expen-
sive, so-called superior queen rooms with queen-sized beds.
Brook St., London W1A 2JQ. www.claridges.co.uk. & 020/7629-8860. Fax [phone] units.
£339-£659 double. AE, DC, MC, V. Parking £50. Tube: Bond St. Amenities: 3 restaurants; 2 bars; babysitting;
concierge; health club & spa; room service. In room: A/C, TV/DVD/VCR, hair dryer, minibar, Wi-Fi (free).
The Connaught Built as a home-away-from-home for the denizens of
Britain's toniest country houses, no hotel has updated the classic British style with
quite as much élan as The Connaught. Leaded skylights, liveried doormen who seem
to know every guest's name, and shady, masculine bars and restaurants are the picture
of restrained 21st-century glamor, while the rooms are spacious Edwardian gems.
Traditionalists opt for the Old Wing but we prefer the New Wing—it's where The
Connaught's mix of the old and new is most successful.

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