The Lanesborough Review: My Stay at This Iconic London Hotel
“There’s nowhere else like London. Nothing at all, anywhere.”
Have you ever tried choosing a hotel in London? With so many incredible options across the city, narrowing it down to just one can feel almost impossible. Yet for the longest time, one hotel kept pulling me back: The Lanesborough.
There’s something about the place that always intrigued me. The traditional English interiors, the old-world charm, and its location right by Hyde Park—perfect if, like me, you want to take a stroll through the park and visit the famous Peter Pan Statue, and of course, Harrods. Recently, the hotel even welcomed a new resident, a cat named Lilibet, who has quickly become something of a face of the hotel. At that point, I figured it was as good a moment as any to finally book a stay and see what it’s really like.
The Lanesborough has quite a history behind it. The building dates back to 1719 and was originally created as St George’s Hospital, before later being transformed into one of London’s most iconic luxury hotels. Today it’s known for its elegant Regency-style interiors and its famously attentive service—including a personal butler for every guest staying at the hotel.
With this hotel sitting on my bucket list for years, it naturally raises the question: did it live up to the expectations I had built in my head? Let’s find out.
Here we go! Let’s determine if staying here is worth it while we cover all aspects of the hotel, from the rooms to the location:
The Location
One of the things that really stood out to me about The Lanesborough is just how well it’s located. The hotel sits right on Hyde Park Corner, literally next to Hyde Park. If you enjoy walking through the park in the morning or just want a bit of space away from the busy streets of London, it’s a really nice spot to be in.
The hotel is also right on the edge of Belgravia, one of the more elegant and noticeably quieter neighborhoods in central London. Compared to areas like Soho or Covent Garden, it feels much calmer here, with beautiful townhouses and wider streets. At the same time, you’re still close to plenty of shops. Harrods and the boutiques around Knightsbridge are within walking distance if you feel like doing a bit of shopping.
Another thing that makes the location very practical is the Hyde Park Corner station right in front of the hotel. From there, you can easily get to most parts of London. The Piccadilly Line also runs directly to Heathrow Airport, and the journey takes about 50 minutes, which makes getting to and from the airport incredibly easy.
All in all, it’s one of those locations that feels quiet and refined while still being incredibly convenient for exploring London.
The Rooms
Walking into The Lanesborough, you’re immediately greeted by the doormen who guide you over to reception. The check-in process itself was very smooth, and shortly after arriving we were offered a short tour of the hotel. I actually really appreciated this because the layout can feel a bit like a maze at first, so it’s helpful to get a sense of where everything is.
Little side story—one thing that stood out right away was just how attentive the staff are. Before we even started the tour, someone asked for our jackets so they could be sent up to the room. It’s a small detail, but it happened several times during our stay. For example, when we were heading to the bar, someone immediately offered to have our jackets sent up to the room again. It might seem like a minor thing, but I hadn’t experienced this level of anticipating guests’ needs in other hotels before. It’s less about asking for something and more about the staff quietly noticing what might be helpful.
Anyway, back to the rooms… We had booked an Executive Room, and when we arrived at our door, we were greeted by our personal butler, already waiting with welcome drinks. Walking into the room, I have to say the photos don’t quite do it justice. The rooms are spacious yet cozy, with a classic English interior style that fits the hotel perfectly.
The bed was comfortable, and the bathroom comes with pretty much every amenity you might need. There’s also a Dyson Supersonic Hair Dryer, which is always a nice touch. The toilet has a heated seat, and the TV is cleverly hidden behind a painting so it doesn’t disrupt the room's overall interior.
Technology-wise, there are also quite a few thoughtful details. Next to the door, you’ll find buttons to call the butler or housekeeping, along with a “do not disturb” button. The lights and curtains are controlled via a tablet, which makes it very easy to adjust everything from bed. There’s also another tablet you can use to browse the room service menu or place orders directly.
Another thing worth mentioning is just how quiet the rooms are. We didn’t hear anything from the hallway, other rooms, or even from outside, which made the room feel very calm and private.
If I had to be a bit critical, I noticed a few small things. One is something I run into at quite a lot of hotels: there aren’t any power sockets in the bathroom, which means you can’t blow-dry your hair there. You can do it at the desk, but there isn’t really a mirror there, so it’s not the most practical setup.
Another minor detail is that the phones in the room feel quite dated—not in a charming vintage way that matches the interior, but more like early-90s office phones, placed on the desk and in the bathroom. I completely understand that antique-style phones wouldn’t necessarily work either, but something slightly more modern might fit the room better.
The TV also isn’t a smart TV. When we tried to connect our phone to watch something like Netflix, the screen told us to download an app that we couldn’t actually find in the App Store. Eventually, we called the butler, who explained there had been some issues with the app provider. They immediately brought an Apple TV to the room, which solved the problem. Everything worked perfectly after that, but it might save guests some time if there was a small note near the TV explaining that you can simply call the butler if you want to connect a device.
All of these are really minor details, and none of them spoiled the stay in any way, but I wanted to mention them for the sake of a complete review.
The Restaurants
There are several places to eat at The Lanesborough, depending on what you’re in the mood for.
The main restaurant is The Lanesborough Grill, which is where breakfast is served every morning. It’s also the restaurant where the Bridgerton Afternoon Tea takes place—which I’ve written about separately as well.
Another space you’ll likely spend some time in is the Withdrawing Room, which is a beautiful lounge area where the hotel’s resident cat, Lilibet, mostly hangs out. It’s a lovely place to sit down for a drink or a light bite. The same menu is also served at the Library Bar, which we’ll get into a bit more later because it really deserves its own section.
The hotel also offers room service, which we ended up ordering one evening after a full day of exploring the city. Sometimes, after a long day, it’s just nice to stay in and relax, and the food we ordered was really nice.
One space we didn’t end up visiting is the Garden Room, which functions more as a cigar lounge. Since neither of us smokes, we didn’t really feel the need to go in there, but if you enjoy cigars, it’s probably worth checking out.
Breakfast
Breakfast is served every morning at The Lanesborough Grill until 10:30 (which I feel isn’t always clearly mentioned on hotel websites, so I thought it was worth calling out). During our stay, it was an à la carte setup, and since breakfast was included with our booking, we were offered a choice of eggs (prepared any style), a pastry, cereal, or fruit, along with coffee and juice.
This is probably the only real point of critique I have during the stay. I’ve stayed at quite a few luxury hotels over the years, and while I don’t personally need a huge breakfast buffet, I did find the options here somewhat limited. If you’re staying multiple nights, the choices start to feel a bit repetitive—especially if you don’t want eggs every morning alongside the same fruit selection.
The quality of the food itself was very good, so there’s absolutely nothing to say about that. It’s more the structure of the menu that stood out to me. Additional dishes like pancakes cost around £30, and sides such as hash browns, mushrooms, or tomatoes are about £8 each—and that’s per side. It’s not necessarily about the price itself, but more about the principle of it.
Personally, I think it would already make a lot of sense if the breakfast worked a bit more like choosing one main dish—whether that’s eggs, pancakes, waffles, or something like avocado toast—rather than only having eggs included and everything else coming at quite a significant extra cost.
Another small observation is that many luxury hotels nowadays offer things like champagne or Bloody Marys as part of the breakfast experience. It’s not that I personally need those with breakfast, but it has become fairly common at this level of hotel, so it was something I definitely noticed during our stay.
The Library Bar
Now moving on to my favorite part of the hotel: the Library Bar.
This is where we ended up spending most of our time during our stay at The Lanesborough. It’s such a lovely spot—moody, cozy, and full of character—that once you’ve been there once it’s hard not to return. It has that classic London hotel bar atmosphere that makes you want to sit down for “just one drink”… and then stay a bit longer.
Even if you’re not staying at the hotel, I would absolutely recommend stopping by here for a drink. The cocktails are excellent and the overall atmosphere alone makes it worth the visit. That said, if you’re not a hotel guest it’s probably a good idea to make a reservation. The bar was almost always packed when we visited, especially in the afternoon and evening.
On Sundays there’s also a piano player, which adds even more charm to the space.
The cocktail menu features a mix of signature drinks and classic cocktails. There’s even a Lilibet cocktail, of course—a little nod to the hotel’s resident cat. Alongside the drinks, the menu includes classic bar dishes such as club sandwiches, burgers, wraps, but also more elevated options like tuna and oysters.
Everything we tried was genuinely delicious, so if you’re staying at the hotel—or even just passing by—I’d definitely recommend stopping in at least once.
The Bridgerton Afternoon Tea
Of course, I can’t talk about The Lanesborough without mentioning the Bridgerton Afternoon Tea.
The tea is served in The Lanesborough Grill and is inspired by the world of Bridgerton. What I personally liked is that the theme isn’t overly obvious. Instead, it shows up in small details—like the Lady Whistledown-style menu and pastries named after moments from the series. The menu also changes with each season of the show, which is a nice touch if you happen to visit more than once.
Since there’s quite a bit to say about the experience, I’ve written a separate post where I go into much more detail about the menu, the cocktails, and what the afternoon tea is actually like.
The Spa
The spa at The Lanesborough is honestly an experience on its own and definitely something I would recommend adding to your itinerary if you decide to stay here.
We spent our Sunday early afternoon at the spa for a couple of hours, and it ended up being one of the most relaxing parts of the stay. After walking around London for most of the weekend, it was the perfect way to slow things down a bit.
The spa has a pool with a built-in whirlpool section—almost like a jacuzzi area inside the pool itself. It’s not a huge pool, but for a relaxing swim, it actually felt just right.
There’s also a steam room and a sauna, though it’s good to know that these are located inside the men’s and women’s changing rooms rather than in the main spa area. So if you’re visiting the spa together with someone, you’ll end up exploring those separately.
Next to the pool, you’ll also find a separate relaxation room where you can sit down with a cup of tea, some water, and a bit of fruit. It’s a very calm space and a nice place to unwind for a while.
For us it was the perfect way to spend a Sunday afternoon—getting your feet up for a bit after spending the weekend exploring the city.
If you’re staying at the hotel, I’d definitely recommend stopping by at least once.
The Cat (Lilibet)
Before getting into the final verdict, there’s one more resident of The Lanesborough that deserves a mention: Lilibet.
During your stay, you’ll likely spot her roaming around the lobby or relaxing in one of the lounge areas, which is always a fun little moment when you’re walking through the hotel. We were told she often likes to sleep on the mantle above the fireplace, which is where guests can usually find her taking one of her many naps throughout the day.
Fun fact: Lilibet actually wears a tracker and has dedicated staff looking after her during the day. Apparently, the tracker is partly there as a precaution because sometimes, after a few drinks, guests jokingly say they’d like to take her home with them, so this way the hotel can always locate her.
She’s incredibly sweet, although a little shy at times, which is honestly understandable considering how many people want to say hello to her throughout the day. Still, she seemed perfectly happy and content in her role as one of the (if not THE) hotel’s most beloved residents.
The Verdict
So, is a stay at The Lanesborough worth it?
For me, the answer is yes. The hotel had been on my bucket list for years, and it absolutely lived up to the expectations I had built up in my head. From the elegant interiors to the location right next to Hyde Park, it’s the kind of place that feels very classic London.
What really stood out during our stay was the level of service. The staff is incredibly attentive without ever making it feel over the top. Small details—like offering to send our jackets up to the room or remembering your name when you return to the bar—add an extra special and personal touch to the stay.
One moment that really stuck with me happened when we ordered room service one evening. My friend had a bit of a cold, and without us even mentioning it, the staff immediately offered to bring her a tea. It’s such a small gesture, but it really shows how attentive the team is.
Of course, no hotel is perfect. The breakfast options felt a bit limited compared to what I’ve experienced at other luxury hotels. But honestly, these are minor details that didn’t take away from the overall experience.
Between the beautiful rooms, the spa, the atmosphere of the Library Bar, and, of course, the Bridgerton Afternoon Tea, there’s plenty to enjoy during a stay here.
If you’re looking for a hotel in London that combines classic British charm with genuinely attentive service, The Lanesborough is definitely one worth considering.
I hope this was helpful. If you have any more questions, you can always reach out here or on Instagram, and I’m more than happy to answer any of your questions. Happy Travels!
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