Hotel Café Royal

The place

A grand nineteenth-century building on the southern edge of Soho, near Mayfair. The public rooms hold a timeless line — golden tones, large chandeliers, rich velvet.

The 159 rooms and suites, by David Chipperfield, are far quieter. Refined contemporary furniture, walls of Portland stone or English oak, herringbone parquet, a Carrara marble bathroom. Frette linens, Muehldorfer pillows, a Bang & Olufsen speaker.

Then the Akasha spa: a serene indoor pool, a large state-of-the-art gym, a sauna, a steam room, a jacuzzi, a hammam, treatment rooms. Five places to eat and drink run from Barbounia's Mediterranean cooking to Alex Dilling's modern tasting menu.