The first hotel that I will be staying in London is the flagship and the best Hilton property in London. Conrad London St James! This is the most premium option under the Hilton Portfolio. I am rather surprised not to see more of Hilton premium properties here given how premium the market is. It could do with certainly another Conrad, Waldorf Astoria and LXR here. I am excited to finally be able to check out this iconic Conrad. The Conrad London St James boosts an amazing location for both travellers and those on business. The location is super central and just a stone’s throw away from Big Ben. It is also right opposite a tube station. You can easily walk to Trafalgar Square and Covent Garden from here. Located in the former Queen Anne’s Chambers, the Conrad is in a 19th-century building. I was originally considering this or the Hilton London Parklane. I have a total of 3 nights in London before flying back home. I decided to get the Conrad for 2 nights before shifting to something more affordable and near Paddington for my last night given my early flight. Earlier in the year, I stayed in the DT London Bridge. This is by far the best hotel I stayed in London.
Booking Process & Pre Arrival
I booked directly with Hilton and got the base-level accessible room since that is what is available. I will be staying here for two nights. London is certainly a very premium market all year round and the rates reflect that. It is certainly not cheap especially if you want to stay in the core areas. I got some information from the hotel prior. Parking cost a whopping 44 Pounds. Thankfully we will be returning the car right after arriving in London. About a couple of days out from my stay, I got an automated upgrade to a Junior Suite. This is excellent elite treatment and nice of the hotel. I wasn’t expecting this given the low number of suites here. The Junior Suite would have cost around 750 Pounds a night! Conrad London St James comes with 256 guest rooms and suites spread across 11 categories. I believe that there are only 15 suites available here. It is very nice for them to even offer me a Junior Suite. Expectations for a suite upgrade should not be high. You can check out the breakdown below.
| Rooms | Executive Lounge Access | Bathtub | Room Size |
|---|---|---|---|
| Superior | No | Yes | 26 Sqm |
| Deluxe | No | Yes | 28 Sqm |
| Family | No | Yes | 36 Sqm |
| Family Connecting | No | Yes | 52 Sqm |
| Executive | Yes | Yes | 36 Sqm |
| One Bedroom Deluxe Duplex Suite | Yes | Yes | 45 Sqm |
| Junior Suite | Yes | Yes | 40 Sqm |
| One Bedroom Suite | Yes | Yes | 54 Sqm |
| One Bedroom Deluxe Suite | Yes | Yes | 58 Sqm |
| One Bedroom Conrad Suite | Yes | Yes | 82 Sqm |
| Two Bedroom Suite | Yes | Yes | 123 Sqm |
Checking In
I drove over from Brighton and it took quite some time with the traffic. We also made a stop at Greenwich. I got to the hotel at around 2pm. Driving in London is definitely not the easiest. It is so slow! Upon arrival, the polished bellboy came over to help us offload our bags and to usher us over to check-in. We could park our car at the side for a while for check-in.
I was warmly welcomed and the check-in process was polished. The friendly lady introduced herself and offered me some welcome drinks. We had some bubbles while check-in was done. I was confirmed to be in the Junior Suite. This would have cost approximately 750 Pounds a night! What an awesome upgrade here. There isn’t a huge amount of suites here so the probability of a suite upgrade isn’t that common. All the information and details were also provided. Late check-out was offered till 2pm.
After checking in, the lady showed me around a little before ushering me to my suite. The lobby is on the cosy side with some sittings by the side. You can also find the hotel bar over here.
Junior Suite
I was assigned a junior suite on the third floor. Suite 341 to be exact. It is just a short walk away from the elevators. The Junior Suite is surprisingly not the entry-level suite over here. The duplex suite is priced cheaper and larger than the Junior Suite. This suite measures 40 Sqm. It is not the largest suite out there. It is kind of in a L-shape layout. Upon entering, you have a very wide entranceway. I love the warm tones and decor. It is classy and luxurious. The place feels even nicer with the high ceilings over here.
Right after entering, you have a full-length mirror on the right and then to the left you have three huge spacious wardrobes that come with everything that you might need for the stay. It goes from a portable luggage rack to plenty of hangers and an ironing kit. There is also a safe and hairdryer inside.
Next to it is a well-stocked minibar. There is plenty of glassware, a Nespresso coffee machine and a kettle. Packaged tea and capsules are provided too. The minibar is fully stocked with snacks, alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. There are complimentary bottles of drinking water provided. These are replenished during daily housekeeping and turndown service. Additional bottles can be requested from the staff too. I am glad that they are not stingy over this.
Both the living room and bedroom area are in the same room. It doesn’t have a proper divider beside the middle partition that segregates the two regions. It is quite nicely designed with a middle partition that houses the television that can be swerved towards the living area or the bed area. This allows it to be used multi functionally and to save space. The TV is slightly on the smaller side but high quality. It comes with a good number of both local and international cable TV channels. I love the radio programs since they turn it on during turndown service.
Here is also the working desk. All sorts of ports and outlets are available. The chair offers decent support for short periods of work. The Wi-Fi connection is very stable and strong. It is a nice working setup if you need to get something done. I would far prefer it if they could provide a proper ergonomics chair.
The living room also has two couches and a coffee table in the middle. It is a very comfortable sitting area for some snacks or room service. A cosy spot for some tea too. The suite doesn’t come with much view but just the surrounding street. I left the curtains drawn most of the time. I wish that the blinds and sheers here are electronically controlled.
Moving onto the bedroom area. This is one of my favourite areas of the suite. It comes with a super comfortable and plush king-size bed. This bed is one of the best that I ever lay on. I love that the mattress has a nice balance. It felt soft at first but soon it confines to your body shape and back. It offers amazing back support. The sheets were so high quality and smooth. They also had a pillow menu that you can customize your sleeping experience. They had some of these orthopaedic pillows and I slept so well.
Flanking both sides of the bed are nightstands with controls for the lighting and power outlets. There is also an alarm clock on one side of the bed.
The bathroom is located to the side of the bedroom. It is nicely designed and super spacious as well. My main concern about this place is how heavy the bathroom sliding door is. It takes some effort to move it. The bathroom comes with a single sink and plenty of counter space. All sorts of amenities and toiletries are provided and additional ones can be requested from the staff itself. As usual, toiletries are from Byredo and in large pump-size bottles.
There is s standing shower and a separate bathtub. Water pressure and temperature are extremely good. It comes with both a handheld shower head and a rainforest one. With the high ceilings, it feels like rain cascading down on you.
Turndown service was automatically offered and done up in the evening with the room refreshed and tidied. They have also very thoughtfully placed some chocolates on the side. Bath slippers were prepped and I love that they even turn on the radio to play some soothing music. This is a very nice touch. Do note that with the proximity to the tube station, you might get some of the vibration in the room itself when the train passes by.
Fitness Centre
The fitness centre is located on the lower ground level. The facility is open 24 hours. It is not a huge space. The round-the-clock opening time comes in handy and allows you to use it anytime you fancy. There are the usual few gym equipment that you can find here. There are also some fruits, water and towels provided. The place is clean and well-maintained. The place does not come with a view or anything. It is just a simple room that gets the work done.
Executive Lounge
The executive lounge is located on the 1st floor and is open from 6.30am to 11pm daily. It is not manned and you can simply access it with your key card. I went to check out the lounge on my first day after dropping off my car. The lounge offers afternoon tea from 2pm to 4pm and evening cocktails from 5.15pm to 7.15pm. Breakfast was also offered in the morning from 7am to 10.30am on weekdays and till 11am on weekends. The lounge is on the smaller side and rather cosy. It is a nice spot if you need a change of environment. The lounge could fit about 40 pax or so. It feels like it could get rather busy during evening cocktails. You can find some pictures of the place here.
I appreciate that the lounge comes with shower facilities. The bathrooms were like the ones in the rooms. It comes with a full set of toiletries, a toilet and a shower. This will be so useful if you have an early arrival or late departure. Why can’t other executive lounges offer a shower?
During the day, you can just find some coffee, tea, soft drinks and juices. I love that they had some artisan mineral water and quality soft drinks provided by The London Essence Co. Afternoon Tea is also a rather small affair with some sandwiches, cakes and desserts. I am very surprised not to see any scones. That is like such a British Classic. This seems weird. I would love to have some warm scones. I did love the London Tea Exchange tea provided. With how central this hotel is, it might be worth dropping back for a rest if nearby but if not, it is not worth making the trek back.
On the third day, they had some shallots sandwiches and madeleines which were so good.
Evening cocktails are offered from 5.15pm to 7.15pm. It is such a weird timing to implement. This is the most crowded service of all. It is however pretty simple and nothing too amazing. The canapes are rather weak and most cold items. There are some salad, terrine and gnocchi. The selection changes from day to day.
Drinks-wise is a lot better. They have some white wine, sparkling wine, rose, red wine and a selection of spirits. They also have some local Meantime Greenwich craft beers on offer too. It is worth dropping by for a drink or some. It is not a dinner replacement.
I really love that the lounge is open all the way till 11pm. It is nice to have a space to return to after dinner for some drinks or just a cup of tea. Often, you see these lounges close at 8pm or so. Like why?
Breakfast at the Executive Lounge
The executive lounge also offers breakfast which can come in handy for those who booked an Executive Room and above. For Gold and Diamond members, the restaurant will be recommended. I pop by to take a quick look. Breakfast consists of a small buffet with a couple of hot dishes, cold dishes, cold cuts, pastries, fresh juice, fruit, and continental options.
There are no a la carte options or cook-to-order egg dishes here. With London being such an expensive market, it is nice to be able to pop by for some complimentary grub.
Breakfast at The Pem
Gold and Diamond Members can choose to have breakfast either at the lounge or at the restaurant restaurant. Breakfast is offered from 6.30am to 10.30am on weekdays and till 11am on the weekends and bank holidays. The restaurant is just on the ground floor to the side of the reception area. I went down at around 9.40am and it was quite packed. There was a wait before were were helped by a fresh host who showed us to our seats. She was very polished.
Drink orders were taken and served by the staff. The teas and coffees were excellent. I love that it is made from an actual espresso coffee machine. Breakfast here is a mixture of buffet with a small a la carte menu that you can use to supplement it. There are three items there that are included and complimentary. The rest require additional charges.
The buffet line was a small spread consisting of some pastries, cold cuts, smoked fish, cheese, fruits, yoghurts, smoothies, cereals and hot English buffet items.
The eggs and ala carte items are excellent. Over the course of my stay, here are some of the items that I have tried. Breakfast is excellent here and it is of excellent value for elite members considering that it would have cost 35 pounds per person.
Conclusion
Special mention goes to the attentive turndown service. I love that awesome touch. Why can’t all hotels do this? I have been to London multiple times now and as far as Conrad goes, it got to be at the top of my stays here. I enjoyed my stay and the location is great for both business and leisure travellers. Of course, this comes at a premium and rates here don’t go cheap. The staff are polished and everyone was great. I am always greeted by name and warmly welcomed. Surprisingly, they do not have any Conrad mascot or Conrad bear over here. You will not be disappointed with your stay here. The value is especially nice if you are a Gold or Diamond member. I do wish that they could buff up slightly on the executive lounge. Do note that with the proximity to the tube station, you might get some of the vibration in the room itself when the train passes by. London is of course a very premium market with plenty of choices. I would love to try the Hilton Park Lane the next time I am here in London.
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