The Hotel: Located just north of Oxford Circus, with an unmissable grand entrance to the 144-year-old iconic London landmark building. It was London’s – and Europe’s – first purpose-built grand hotel when it opened in 1863 and was a Hilton until 2004. Now, after a five-year refurbishment programme costing £80million, the 380-room five-star property is the flagship of Hong Kong-based, 12-strong Langham Hotels International.
The Check-In: Check-in is to the right of the entrance and is an impressively large, tranquil and empty area, thankfully, so the paperwork was painless and the marble lift took me up to the ninth floor in no time.
The Room: My Grand Junior Suite is one of the completely new room categories up in the eaves of the building, with fabulous views of London and larger than most (Classic category rooms have only received a soft refurbish). It had a good size entrance lobby with full-size desk, mini bar and ample storage wardrobes, a sitting room with sofa and easy chair, and a large marble bathroom with separate shower and toilet cubicles.
The Facilities: There's the stylish Oriental-themed Artesian bar with impossibly large and dramatic light fittings and a rum speciality, the formal restaurant Lantau. Formerly the hotel ballroom with its entrance via a wine corridor, it has lots of private and well spaced banquette seating ideal for business meetings, plus a private dining space for up to 16. There's also the more informal Palm Court with annoying piped music and frustratingly slow service on my visit – serves champagne by the glass and prides itself on afternoon tea. The Health & Fitness Club on the lower ground floor has a well-equipped gym and 16-metre pool. It will be turned into an Oriental themed spa later this year.
The Business: This is where this hotel really excels: the basement is full of smaller Carriage rooms while the dedicated Langham House – an adjacent, two-storey building linked internally and with its own entrance – has four larger rooms which can sit from ten to 80 people and linked to the pillared and chandeliered ballroom. This can accommodate 375 for a reception, 300 theatre style or 280 sitting. There is also a business centre with six work stations and pre-function spaces and all have natural daylight through large picture windows, high ceilings, plasma screens, wireless internet capability and data projectors throughout. Langham House can be booked for exclusive use. By this summer a landscaped garden should be open for outside events.
The Verdict: Great refurbishment of a beautiful building. Impressive looking meeting space, public areas and bedrooms in the centre of London and it has lost its Hilton chain feel and is now a much grander looking property.
The Details: Portland Place, London, WIB IJA. Rates are £405pp for a Classic room (+VAT) but on the day can be half of that. The Junior Grand Suite I stayed in has a rack rate of £705 but was £425 on the day, for example. Tel: 0207 636 1000; www.langhamhotels.com Gillian Upton
