In the heart of Belgravia in Central London, the royal palaces of the United Kingdom were awakened by the arrival of a new resident to deserving flurry in October 2023. Joining her neighbours, such as Buckingham and Kensington Palaces, is the ‘The Grand Dame of the East’, The Peninsula, who laid her bricks in one of the most prestigious addresses in London, just alongside Hyde Park Corner and the Wellington Arch.
Mere steps away from Kensington Gardens, she welcomes all to her halls of stylish grandeur with four of her iconic Peninsula door lions, a first for the brand as this property marks the first Peninsula with two grand entrances. Inside, the same artistic touch of architect Peter Marino dresses the dining hall and lobbies, borrowing from the same vision he lent to, most recognisably, many a Chanel boutique around the world. While waiting to check in, it is worth a short hop to the adjacent Peninsula Boutique & Café, the only other existing one outside of Hong Kong, serving coffee, viennoiseries and, during the Mid-Autumn Festival, the hotel’s highly coveted Mini Egg Custard Mooncakes.
The Peninsula London is home to 190 exquisitely styled guest rooms and suites, each also designed by Marino, with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the historic architecture of Belgravia. True to its ongoing commitment to excellence, dubbed ‘The Peninsula Promise’, all are appointed with bespoke furnishings, textiles and fittings that exemplify the finest of British craftsmanship, as well as mahogany-panelled dressing rooms, luxurious bathrooms of honey onyx, and the signature Peninsula Valet Box. State-of-the-art in-room technology includes bedside touchscreen controls for lighting and temperature, personal device TV streaming and PenChat, a 24-hour dedicated e-concierge service.
My appointed Grand Premier Park Room has the bonus of a bird’s eye view of the daily parade of the Household Cavalry, the mounted guards of the Buckingham Palace. Already waiting for me upon letting myself in is my luggage as well as a miniature chocolate sculpture of The Peninsula’s famed bellboy, edible in its entirety, as well as an array of Easter chocolates and eggs, matched with a house-made sparkling peach tea, to commemorate the Easter holiday weekend on which I had arrived.
Dinner brings me to Brooklands by Claude Bosi, the newly minted two-Michelin-starred restaurant on the top floor of the hotel. While the view is spectacular, with sweeping views of Hyde Park and the London skyline at dusk, its entrance via the lobby is equally magnificent, being kitted out with the Napier-Railton racing car on loan from the Brooklands Museum. An elevator ride, fashioned after a hot air balloon complete with combustion sounds, delivers us into the space that is designed to pay homage to the classic eras of British aviation and motorsport. The restaurant shares its namesake with the storied Surrey racetrack, the birthplace of British racing sport and flight innovation. In the menu executed by Chef de Cuisine Francesco Dibenedetto, the very best of British ingredients, using traditional French techniques, race head-to-head to deliver dishes that perfectly balance modernity with classic fine dining.
Those preferring a more Asian flavour will find it in full opulence at Canton Blue, which celebrates the convergence of Asian and British cultures with innovative Cantonese cuisine in a collection of exquisitely decorated spaces. The restaurant’s main dining room is inspired by a maritime passage from East to West. Designed after the Keying junk, the trade ship that connected Canton to Great Britain during the mid-19th century, the walls show off Cantonese porcelain while a magnificent backlit ceiling panel depict a celestial navigation map. The low-lit tables and intimate private booths centre around a carved, dual-aspect fireplace, shared with an adjacent tea lounge. Two private dining rooms—The Silk Room and The Music Room—each celebrate a distinctive facet of Chinese culture. Throughout Canton Blue, the service, like the décor and cuisine, is refined and striking, with many dishes—including the dim sum and the signature Roasted Peking Duck—finished tableside.
Completing the wellness aspect of all Peninsula hotels is The Peninsula Spa and Wellness Centre, a serene oasis encompassing the lower floor of the hotel. Its treatments interweave ancient ritual with cutting-edge science in an array of mind-body therapies delivered with two product brands—Margy’s and Subtle Energies. Seven treatment rooms, four thermal suites, a 25m indoor swimming pool, and a 24-hour fitness studio of this sanctuary of wellbeing enhance mind, body and spirit, supporting the resort’s philosophy of a Life Lived Best.
