Fortunately, London’s hotels have noted the new expectations – and delivered ten-fold. Across the city, the most prestigious hotels have been working away in the background to secure the biggest names in fashion, jewelry, and spirits, ready to reveal their December extravaganzas.
We bring you the best hotel Christmas displays across London, be it just for a glass of champagne post shopping trip or for a festive getaway.
The Goring
Characterful boutique hotel The Goring has teamed up with British accessories designer Lulu Guinness to create its kitsch London Calling tree, surrounded by London telephone boxes and adorned with crimson red lips (a Lulu Guinness signature motif). Pop in to the bar for a drink by the fire, or go all out and stay for the big day itself: Christmas dinner is served in the hotel’s Michelin-starred dining room. As has become tradition, the hotel kicked off the festive season with an eccentric party – this year Love Actually themed – and featured managing director Jeremy Goring dressed up as a priest.
thegoring.com
Claridge’s
London’s Grand Dame has once again recruited a top name in fashion to inject some Christmas charm. This year is the turn of Burberry’s chief creative officer Daniel Lee. Unlike other years where a more conceptual approach was taken, Lee’s festive offering leans more traditional: a 16-ft tree, bedecked with Burberry-check bows, hand-blown glass baubles, and wild foliage and thistle sits in the middle of Claridge’s famous Art Deco lobby. The Burberry touch extends through the hotel: signature tartan clads the lifts; doormen are in designer scarves, and a pop-up boutique will be open until Jan.
claridges.co.uk
The Berkeley
Claridge’s sister hotel The Berkeley is also appropriately dressed up for Christmas. Up on its rooftop, Feast Off-Piste has taken over, featuring an instalment of custom-made gondolas overlooking the lights of Winter Wonderland below. On the menu is an Alpine-inspired line-up: Swiss raclette, tartiflette, gingerbread s’more, and chocolate fondue, all to be washed down with mulled wine or a glass of champagne.
the-berkeley.co.uk
The Ned
Over in the City of London, The Ned – best known for its lavish bottomless roast dinners – has pulled no punches with its first-ever Christmas collaboration, enlisting the help of The Macallan to launch its 2025 tree. Sat pride of the place in the hotel’s grand banking hall, the mammoth 22-ft tree is covered top to bottom in velvet bows in Macallan red, copper baubles intended to reference whisky stills, and acorns and berries nodding to the brand’s Scottish roots. Whisky lovers should head to The Library Bar, which will showcase some of The Macallan’s most prestigious portfolio, including the M Decanter, Art is the Flower, and Harmony Collection.
thened.com
Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park
MO’s original London outpost, which straddles the bustle of Knightsbridge and the greenery of Hyde Park behind, has invited De Beers to create The Jewel of the Season – an immersive festive takeover. As part of this, the hotel’s lobby has transformed into The Enchanted Lotus Bar (drawing inspo from De Beers’ signature floral motif) and will serve champagne and caviar. Elsewhere at The Rosebery, guests can sit down to a De Beers themed afternoon tea.
mandarinoriental.com
Rosewood London
Rosewood London (the original London outpost from the US brand, not to be confused with the newer opening over in Mayfair) has teamed up with not one but two international brands –Amsterdam-based skiwear brand and The Singleton Scotch whisky – who have together transformed the hotel’s courtyard into a sleek mountain-inspired scene. The Chalet offers a slice of the slopes in the middle of the city (and is a convenient nod to Rosewood’s upcoming Courchevel opening), with themed cocktails and Alpine-esque dishes.
rosewoodhotels.com
The Savoy
Harking back to Victorian-era London, The Savoy is holding Frost Fair throughout the festive season, inspired by a time when cold spells would see the entire Thames River frozen – and solid enough to host a fair on. Climate change has ensured such frivolities are a thing of the past, but the historic hotel is retaining tradition with a pop-up in its forecourt, complete with mulled wine, hot chocolate, and plenty of Laurent-Perrier Champagne.
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thesavoylondon.com