Tag: Marylebone

Marylebone, London, UK ~ Dorset Square Hotel

February 2026

We were staying at the Raffles OWO for the first part of this London visit; why did we move?

The Raffles was amazing — and we would have happily stayed there forever — but we also love London’s neighborhoods and have been wanting to return to Bethnal Green in East London and a hotel with fond memories for us: Town Hall Hotel. But when it came time to make the booking at the Town Hall, it wasn’t available; we figured this was our sign to try something new.

Okay, so why Dorset Square?

London has so many wonderful hotels; it really is an abundance of riches, and it can be hard to make a choice. Rather than looking to our go-to sources, we started with the idea of visiting a property connected with the hotel that gave us the original idea for our blog: the Crosby Street Hotel in New York. We don’t have a full entry for the Crosby Street because hoteling.org didn’t exist yet, but we chose a picture of the hotel for the featured image on hotelling’s home page, and we mention it in our “Past stays and reminiscences” entry where we note the hotel is one of our top 3 (it was on our list of favorites for a long time).

Crosby Street is a Firmdale hotel, one of (now) three in the U.S. The Firmdale brand is the brainchild of Ken and Kit Kemp, whose company includes 11 hotels. The very first property the Kemps opened is — you guessed it — Dorset Square. Since staying at Crosby Street, we have wanted to try another Firmdale hotel, and we thought it would be fun to check out the original.

We spent 10 days in Marylebone last year; was the Dorset Square neighborhood and the hotel itself familiar?

We thought we knew Marylebone pretty well, as we spent a lot of time exploring the neighborhood last year, but we’re pretty sure we had not previously come across the hotel or even the lovely residential square (the hotel’s namesake) that it sits on. With that said, even if we had walked by, it would be easy to miss the hotel. It is housed in an attractive Regency building that blends in with the townhouses that surround the square. Only a small sign at the doorway identifies the hotel.

We arrived on a rainy day, walking from the Baker Street tube station. What did you think when we arrived?

Dorset Square is understated and petite — a definite contrast to the grandeur of Raffles, but they both feel sumptuous, just in quite different ways. We arrived early in the afternoon, so our room wasn’t quite ready. We were invited, however, to linger in the drawing room, which featured a fireplace and honesty bar, or to visit the hotel’s restaurant, The Potting Shed, which the staff member at reception took us down to see.

The hotel’s design felt similar to Crosby Street, even though the properties are quite different. The Firmdale website says the 11 hotels encompass “modern English style, exceptional personalised service and an unrivaled attention to detail.” Our first impressions of Dorset Square reinforced this mission.

I’ll also say the aeshetic of the hotel — while not something I would probably want to use in the interior design of our own home — just makes me happy. Dorset Square (the square itself), is now a private garden but was originally a cricket ground, and the hotel plays on the cricket and garden themes throughout. Coming to London in January from Minnesota where winter was in full force, we were happy to see all the references to trees, flowers and sporting of the outdoor type.

Tell me about your impressions of the room.

While it would have been tempting to sit down and relax as preparations for our room were completed, London called, so we left our bags and headed out. By the time we returned, it was evening, and the housekeeping staff was doing turndown services. We found bottled water at each bedside, a small bottle of RikRak pillow spray (which smelled amazing) and tube of hand cream, a welcome note and a piece of cake.

Our room was on the smaller side, but it had everything we needed; the same could be said for the bathroom, which was floor to ceiling marble and felt luxurious despite its size. The bed — the primary feature of the room — was tall and fluffy and oh-so comfortable.

The combination of patterns, textures and colors in the room was a feast for the eyes, and, as we remembered at the Crosby Street, everything was impeccably maintained — not a scratch or nick to be found, even in the closet, which was painted a high-gloss white. We wouldn’t be surprised if touch-ups are done after every guest.

I particularly loved the large painting of a dog in silouette, but the room had lots of smaller details to enjoy as well, including the knobs on the closet door, the selection of drinks and snacks in the minibar, and the colorful canvas bag we were invited to take with us.

My only small complaint was that our window had frosted squares on the bottom half that impeded our view. We could see that our room looked out to some mechanicals for the building, so we understood the purpose of the frosting, but it made me feel a little claustrophobic when we were in the room during the day. If we were to return, we’d book a room with a view of Dorset Square.

What was most memorable about Dorset Square?

I loved feeling, for a few days, like I was a resident of a stylish townhouse in Marylebone. The hotel gave us a key to visit the private square, and we met the gardeners who had recently been hired to look after the square. It was beautiful, and we couldn’t get enough of the blooming bushes and bulbs. We also discovered (or rediscovered) Marylebone Station, which is both a tube stop and an overground station serving destinations to the northwest operated by Chiltern Railways. The station is as charming as the hotel and is now my favorite in London. I also appreciated the low-key but completely competent service at the hotel. We felt like we were in the good hands of staff members who authentically cared about their guests.

Stay details:

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Marylebone, London, UK ~ The Langham

February 2025

For a stretch of about 15 years, we visited London regularly, and we loved trying hotels in neighborhoods across the city. But our last visit was in 2018, and we had a lot of catching up to do. We know Kensington and Chelsea well and were tempted to return to a new hotel on familiar grounds (The Chelsea Townhouse was top of the list). We also, however, love Marylebone, which is near The Regent’s Park and close to so many of the things we love in the city.

In the very southeast corner of Marylebone, right across the street from the BBC’s Broadcasting House, sits one of London’s first luxury hotels: The Langham. After our terrific experience at The Langham Chicago, we decided to test the Langham brand, booking eight nights at the property where it all began: The Langham London.

Formal but not fusty

We arrived at Heathrow just after 7 in the morning, and our taxi was pulling up to The Langham by 8:15. The building is described by British Listed Buildings as “heavy Italianate style with some late Medieval details, French pavilion roofs and an east wing with a corner tower.” Put simply, it’s a building to behold – certainly at 8 in the morning, but, as we would later learn, even more beautiful at night.

The hotel’s interior is no less dramatic. The central lobby with shining marble floors and pillars supporting a tall ceiling is surrounded by a more intimate seating area with a fireplace; a room off to the side with a fabulous chandelier that houses the registration desk; and the Palm Court restaurant, which is reportedly where the tradition of British afternoon tea began. Because we arrived so early, our room wasn’t ready, but the staff member at reception got us checked in and then escorted us up to The Langham Club where we were invited to have a cappuccino and linger until our room was ready. We knew if we sat too long, jet lag would be the demise of our day, so after getting properly caffeinated, we headed out for a walk. On our way back out of the hotel – and feeling slightly less foggy – we took note of other beautiful common spaces, including the landings on each floor, each of which had artwork worth spending a little time with.

A classically beautiful room with abundant amenities

Within 45 minutes, we received word that our room was ready, so we returned to the club to pick up our key. We entered our room on the 4th floor to find sun streaming in through two large windows. A parquet-floored entry foyer with two closets to the left and the bathroom to the right led into a large room with a king-sized bed, a seating area, a coffee bar and an ample work space with a desk that faced into the room. While our tastes tend toward the modern, we had to admit that the traditional room was lovely. Books about London, a live orchid, paintings that looked to be more than simple prints, and a framed picture of the hotel’s chefs in 1907 along with a glass paperweight on the desk gave the room a distinct personality. As we were settling in, a bowl of fruit and box of chocolates arrived (the fruit would be resupplied throughout our stay).

The elegant bathroom included a deep tub, a separate water closet and a shower with some of the most amazing water pressure we’ve experienced in a hotel. Langham’s signature color is pink, and the color appears throughout the hotel, but the effect is not overly feminine. The delicate pink is balanced by dark woods and marbles, both of which featured in the bathroom. We loved the hotel’s bath products with their ginger flower signature scent, and the bamboo shoot on the vanity brought life to the space.

We used and appreciated all of the room’s amenities. From the multiple choices of china for our coffee to the fluffy Frette robes with slippers properly sized for each of us (the first time the small-footed of us had slippers that fit), we felt pampered. We loved that we could open the windows to sleep with fresh air coming in, and the storage allowed us to tuck all of our personal belongings out of sight.

Amazingly attentive service

A hotel itself is just part of the experience, and we have come to appreciate top-notch service when we encounter it. The Langham’s service felt flawless to us, and everyone we encountered was a pro. Our room was serviced multiple times during the day, but we were never interrupted. We had breakfast each morning in the hotel, and by the time we returned, the housekeepers had come and gone. Turn-down service was done when we left for dinner, whatever time that was. One of our favorite nightly rituals became anticipating the linen postcard with a story about The Langham that was left on our pillow each evening. We learned, among other things, about The Langham’s longstanding alliance with the BBC, about Langham appearances on the silver screen, and about the literary icons who frequented The Langham.

During our stay, the concierge team secured last-minute reservations at Trishna, a lauded (and quite small) neighborhood restaurant; porters held umbrellas over our heads as we got into taxis, and staff in the club learned our coffee preferences after the first day.

Nourished and quenched  

One of the best things about London is its eating and drinking establishments; it really is an embarrassment of riches. And some of those riches are right in The Langham. The room we chose included access to The Langham Club. When we booked the room, we thought the club might be a convenient place to get a cup of coffee before heading out on the day’s adventures. We’ll admit that we didn’t have high expectations. That perception was misplaced. The club – open throughout the day with a changing menu of food and drinks – became our living room. The promise of a coffee gets us out of bed each morning, and the coffee was delicious. Of course, the pastries, salmon and caviar, and eggs cooked to order didn’t hurt. In the club, we could also connect with a staff member who offered concierge-level services, and when we popped in during the evening, champagne flowed liberally.

During our stay, we also patronized the hotel’s pub – The Wigmore – twice; we had a drink in the Palm Court one evening and breakfast one morning; and we also visited the hotel’s bar, Artesian, and had a lovely conversation with our Polish server who talked to us about drinking Zubrowka vodka as a young person. (We’ll admit that we’ve had our fair share of this particular vodka, which we discovered at our neighborhood Russian restaurant). Each of our experiences at the hotel was well worth using as one of our limited London eating and drinking opportunities.

Quite possibly Langham fans

The Langham London

If you’re a regular reader of our blog, you’ll know that we tend to choose smaller, independent properties when we travel, and we certainly aren’t loyalists to any brand. But we both must admit that our two experiences at The Langham have made us think about where we might visit next because it has a Langham hotel. Can two wonderful experiences become three?

The Langham Chicago

We don’t imagine we’ll ever become exclusive to a particular hotel brand, but it’s fun to see how a brand can be expressed in different places. The Chicago and London Langham hotels are two very different properties, but they share things that we appreciate and that we would seek out. Stay tuned for where we next discover a Langham hotel.

Stay details:

  • The Langham London
  • 8-night stay: February 21 – March 1, 2025
  • Executive Club Room, #405

What we did, where we ate:

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