When the Bank Holiday arrived, we decided that instead of heading to Europe for a city break, we would instead spend some time in our capital revisiting its sights and exploring some of the areas we had not yet discovered.
Getting There
London is such an easy journey from where I live. Within half an hour we were in Paddington and from there heading to the tube to take us onwards to Chelsea. From Paddington, the District and Circle line take you directly to Sloane Square, with the underground station literally metres away from the hotel. A very easy and stress free journey it must be said!
Location
Sloane Square Hotel is located in the affluent area of Chelsea in southwest London, home to luxury boutiques, the richest of the rich, and where you find lavish cars aplenty.
The area fronts the River Thames, running from Chelsea Bridge along the Chelsea Embankment, taking in the likes of Cheyne Walk, Lots Road and Chelsea Harbour. Whilst Chelsea is in walking distance of many of West London’s great tourist attractions, including Hyde Park, the Royal Albert Hall, Kensington Palace and the museums of South Kensington, it is in itself an area well worth exploring.
Its main thoroughfare, the King’s Road, is a mecca for fashionistas and shopaholics, offering everything from high street names to designer flagships, swanky bars and exclusive clubs – it is definitely a place to see and be seen.
The Hotel itself is located directly on Sloane Square – so perfect positioning really – just minutes from the Kings Road in one direction and Hyde Park at most twenty minutes away by foot in the other.
On Arrival
As always we were early for check in and so left our bags with the reception staff whilst we headed out to while away the time and explore the immediate area before taking ‘ownership’ of our room. The hotel staff were very welcoming and offered to give us a ring when the room was ready so that we could make the most of our afternoon.
At 3pm we returned to the hotel, had a very short wait in the comfortable and nicely decorated lounge/ foyer area, before being handed our room key. We then headed up to the 2nd floor to our room, number 219, with our luggage following shortly behind with one of the concierge staff.
The Room: Club Room
It was a lovely surprise to find ourselves upgraded to a Club room with views out onto the leafy Sloane Square below and, in terms of London hotel rooms, ours was pretty spacious indeed!
We had a lovely king sized bed, decked out with luxurious Egyptian cotton bed linen and seriously comfortable pillows! The room was also tastefully decorated with modern furnishings and plenty of comfortable seating – I particularly loved the generous window seating looking out onto the square!
Our room also had a decent writing desk, flat-screen television and digital radio speaker, and a telephone – for which local and national calls were free of charge. In terms of extra facilities, the room was also equipped with a Nespresso coffee machine as well as a kettle for making tea, a safety deposit box and a fast (and reliable) WiFi connection.
The bathroom, despite being a little on the small side, had everything one could possible need and want – modern fittings, a bath with shower attachment, luxury Elemis toiletries (which smelt amazing), speakers so you could listen to the radio/ television in the bathroom as well as those all-important bathrobes and slippers!
Returning to the hotel in the evening, we were also very pleasantly surprised to find our bed had been turned down and the pillows topped with a small chocolate. We had also been left with a bottle of mineral water each and in addition two mugs had been left out with hot chocolate. As a final and most welcome touch we also found a generous bowl of fresh cherries (very yummy!). Such a thoughtful and generous service! I will also add that despite being directly on Sloane Square, I slept so soundly. The bed was seriously comfortable and the blackout curtains were very effective in blocking out light. It was also considerably quiet in our room, little outside noise penetrating the effective sound-proofing.
Food
Afternoon Tea:
During our stay at the hotel, we were invited to enjoy Afternoon Tea in the Hotel’s Cafe and Bar on the 1st floor.
The location, as I mentioned above, is fantastic and we were placed right by the window giving us wonderful views out over Sloane Square. Our waitress was very attentive and polite, and was very quick to attend to us as we arrived. We were offered a variety of teas or the choice of coffee, which was brought to us within no time at all. Not long after that, our selection of sandwiches, scones and cakes arrived.
I was very impressed at the generous portion sizes and the apparent quality of the items. I eagerly tucked into the sandwiches – cheese and pickle, smoked salmon and cream cheese, and sliced beef with English mustard. When it came to the sweet items they were also delicious. We had two scones per person – one plain and one with sultanas – which came with generous lashing of clotted cream and strawberry jam. As for the petits fours, there was a lovely choice between chocolately and fruity pieces. I must admit that we were actually defeated when faced with such a spread and couldn’t finish everything! A very rare occurrence, I assure you of that!
If you are looking for somewhere to enjoy afternoon tea in Chelsea, then I would definitely add Sloane Square Hotel to your list. It was a very peaceful, relaxed and enjoyable experience, with generous portion sizes and good quality ingredients.
Breakfast:
Our overnight package came with the added extra of the so-called ‘Express Breakfast’. This was served in the Cafe and Bar – where we enjoyed Afternoon Tea the previous day – and consisted of a selection of breakfast items in buffet form. Although it was ‘express’ I still feel like there was enough choice to satisfy customers – miniature pastries, yoghurts, fresh fruit and cold meats and cheeses, as well as fruit juice and warm drinks. It was just what we needed to start the day!
The Verdict
All in all, we thoroughly enjoyed our stay at the Sloane Square Hotel. We found the staff to all be extremely polite and helpful, and were impressed with the hotel’s tasteful decor and furnishings. In addition, the thoughtful added extras such as the turn down service and the complimentary water by the side of our bed were very much appreciated.
Perfect for: A couples weekend or a girls shopping weekend
What did you think of my Sloane Square Hotel review? Have you recently enjoyed a stay there yourself, or would you consider it for an upcoming trip to London? If you want to know anything else about the hotel or if you enjoyed this post, please leave me a comment in the box below and let me know!
*Disclosure: Many thanks to the team at Sloane Square Hotel for providing us with Afternoon Tea during our stay at the Hotel. We were guests of the Hotel for the purpose of this review. No other compensation was received. All opinions are, as always, my own.
