Best boutique hotels in London 2023: From Soho to Covent Garden

Choosing where to lay your head in London while travelling in the UK can be a tricky affair. With a plethora of snazzy design hotels, some of the grandest, oldest establishments around and a frankly bewildering array of so-so spots offering cheap-as-chips theatre dinners to baffled tourists, it can be tempting to book into the nearest Premier Inn and be done with it.

Well, don’t. Let us tell you that the Big Smoke is home to some beautiful boutique hotels that you need to have on your radar. Brimming with charm and often nestled within coveted locations, with some of the capital city’s main scenes and sights within striking distance, opt for one of these city break boutique hotels instead, and you’ll be laughing. Trust us.

Whatever your hotel checklist and picture-perfect city break might entail, be it relaxing evenings in the hotel garden, cockatil (or two) in hand, stepping out and taking advantage of the must-visit museums and food markets on your doorstep or simply having a place to unwind while visiting the city for business, there will be a boutique hotel to suit just that.

From five-star locations in Chelsea to affordable rooms in Shoreditch, join us on a tour of the best boutique hotels in London.

Neighbourhood: Clerkenwell, Central London (nearest tube station: Farringdon)

The fashionably eccentric interiors at Zetter Townhouse extend from four-poster beds fringed with garlands of Union Jacks, to stuffed kangaroos and miniature wooden boats. Known to some as the home of the Zetter’s “Great Aunt Wilhelmina,” the snug boutique bolthole housed in two grand Georgian buildings also serves some truly terrific cocktails. Popular with creatives, browse the knick-knacks at Clerkenwell’s independent shops, or indulge in the food markets.