Detailed Review
The Connaught is London's best-kept secret and after one visit you will discover why many of our guests would not consider staying anywhere else. You will be guaranteed the highest levels of service and the finest cuisine at London's best address.
The Connaught stands in the heart of fashionable Mayfair, in a charming area of antique shops, galleries and designer boutiques. Our location is perfect for guests who wish to be close to the vibrancy of London but then wish to return to the relaxing environment of our hotel. Originally built in 1897, the hotel preserves its air of Edwardian elegance and the experience has been compared to staying in a country house. A fine mahogany staircase, original oil paintings, antiques and comfortable furniture blend effortlessly alongside the latest in modern facilities such as our new Fitness Studio. Our Rooms and Suites are individually decorated in English country style.
Press Quotes
"a sophisticated throwback that no soulless Modernist hotel could ever hope to emulate." Travel + Leisure 08
Independent Reviews
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The Connaught
By Gemma PitcherThe hotel where everybody knows your name - and what you drink, what time you like to dine, what paper you prefer in the morning and quite probably your inside leg measurement as well. The Connaught certainly isn’t flashy or grand - it has an old English atmosphere that seems to imply those guests wondering at the lack of state-of-the art business centre or 24 hour jacuzzi are disgustingly vulgar. The foyer, with its mahogany staircase, and the rooms, which are on the small side, are low key to the point of disappointing some visitors - but the Michelin starred restaurant and exquisite service - staff outnumber guests by about four to one - are reported as world-beating. Many of the Connaught’s guests are regulars who probably inherited their room keys from their great-grandfathers - until a few years ago the hotel was a private club. Newer, younger staff are making the stuffy atmosphere less pronounced, but the Connaught is still hardly the place to go if you’re yearning for cutting-edge cool or American-style amenities. Beware of some die-hard English foibles - jacket and tie are still required for gentlemen in the bar or restaurant after 5pm.
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"London's premier Grand Dame: clubby and traditional, jacket and tie"
The Connaught is alone amongst grand London hotels to have managed to retain the traditional English look, with service and style to match.
The Connaught
By Matthew Barker
Venerable Mayfair townhouse with the feel of a country house and a hushed charm offensive giving rise to an air of genial formality. ‘Clubby’ hardly does justice to the mahogany-heavy interiors, lined with oils and laden with antique furniture. One of London’s best. 69 rooms (23 suites). They say: "A calm oasis in a turbulent world, where you can be sure of braised oxtail and the perfect Dover sole" (Tatler) Hotel Attractions: The new fifth-floor fitness studio is a well-stocked, state-of-the-art affair and perfect for working off Michel Bourdin’s superior comfort food, served in the Michelin-starred restaurant. The revamped and restored Drawing Room has been given the Nina Campbell treatment and is a relaxed, chic honey-pot for cocktails and a light lunch. Each floor has its own butler service. Local Attractions: Bond Street, complete with the new(ish) Burberry’s flagship, is just around the corner, Green Park, St James’s and Buckingham Palace an easy stroll away. Cross Oxford Street (no self-respecting Londoner actually goes down Oxford Street) to the Wallace Collection, which remains, despite the recent opening of a new restaurant, one of the capital’s best-kept arty secrets. Mirabelle, the Greenhouse, the Square and Le Gavrouche restaurants all within reach.
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Condé Nast Traveller 2008 Gold List
