Review of Four Seasons Hotel London at Park Lane

Set back from Park Lane in Hamilton Place, in the heart of London’s Mayfair, the Four Seasons Hotel London at Park Lane is just steps from Hyde Park and Knightsbridge. Green Park and Piccadilly, home to Fortnum & Mason’s and the Royal Academy of Arts, are also very close with the shops and galleries of Bond Street and Jermyn Street within easy reach. Attractions including Buckingham Palace and the Palace of Westminster are around a 20 minute walk away.

The Four Seasons London at Park Lane is 25 kilometres (15.5 miles) from Heathrow Airport, just a short car journey from the Eurostar terminal at St Pancras Station, the Heathrow Express terminal at Waterloo Station and from Victoria Station - which offers a direct rail link to Gatwick Airport.

There are 153 guest rooms and 43 suites at the Four Seasons Hotel London at Park Lane, and all have the feel of a smart, well-heeled Mayfair home or apartment.

From the light, bright superior and deluxe rooms with urban views over Mayfair streets or Westminster, to the elegant simplicity of the premier rooms overlooking Hyde Park, all are cosy, comfortably furnished and have everything you need for an urban stay including one of the world’s most comfortable beds.

The hotel’s suite portfolio offers a range of accommodation, enhanced with fireplaces, terraces and stunning views of the city and park. The suites with a terrace – ranging from a Junior Conservatory to the Garden Suite are a little unusual in London and have that priceless commodity in an urban setting – beautifully landscaped semi-private outdoor spaces.

Every suite has a uniqueness about it as evidenced by the Hyde Park Suite, one of three speciality suites, opulently redesigned by Pierre-Yves Rochon to celebrate the property’s 50th anniversary. Located on the ninth floor with a spacious open plan living and dining area, a unique feature is its secluded Glass Lounge with floor to ceiling windows showcasing panoramic views over Hyde Park and beyond.

The Presidential Suite meanwhile has a more classic feel, with floor to ceiling windows looking out over Park Lane and Hyde Park. Situated on the fifth floor, this suite can be configured as a two- or three-bedroom suite for families or friends travelling together. With lounge seating and dining for six, the suite features a private fireplace and beautiful rosewood panelling.

There are several adapted rooms for guests with disabilities and the hotel is wheelchair accessible.

For early arrivals, guests are invited to relax until their rooms are ready in the 10th Floor Lounge.

The tenth floor rooftop Spa is one of the hotel’s treasures and offers beauty treatments and massages looking out over the London skyline whilst the Sky Suite offers a private facility for couples to relax and reconnect whilst enjoying 180-degree views of the city. Most of the treatment rooms have relaxation pods and there are windowed men’s and women’s saunas and two skylit vitality pools. The Fitness Centre is connected to the Spa so those keeping up with their regime can exercise whilst looking out over the Houses of Parliament and the Millennium Wheel.

From seamless meetings and intimate gatherings to grand occasions to mark key life events, the Four Seasons Hotel London at Park Lane offers a total of 796 square metres / 8,568 square of event space with the largest room being the expansive open Ballroom accommodating up to 500 people. All the main events rooms are located on one floor and most offer natural light. Ten at Four Seasons is based on the 10th floor with unrivalled views out over the London skyline, perfect for private dining or boardroom meetings for up to 20 guests.

As with all Four Seasons properties, the hotel is family friendly with families staying at the property enjoying complimentary dining for children up to five years of age and welcome amenities for children aged 12 and under. Dog lovers are welcome too with four legged canine guests weighing eight kilograms (18 pounds) or less offered a warm welcome.

The hotel’s house car offers complimentary drop off services for hotel guests within a two-mile radius of the property.

For those who want to explore London’s largest Royal Park in central London, Hyde Park, just across the road from the property, the hotel offers a customised picnic hamper ranging from the classic hamper with savoury snacks to the luxury complete with afternoon tea, champagne and a dedicated attendant.

On the site of the original Four Seasons Inn on the Park, the company’s first European hotel which opened in 1970, this property effectively introduced the United Kingdom to the Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts brand.

It opened in competition to the more traditional, classic Mayfair grande dames and has more than held its own, continually re-inventing its facilities with hidden gems and unexpected additions over the years to meet with changing tastes. The hidden sunken garden terrace for cocktails or snacks on Park Lane is one example - the deeply glamorous, rich-hued public spaces with the nod to the 1930s another as is the rooftop spa which offers treatments looking out over an iconic London skyline. The subtlety and sensitivity of these small touches bring the hotel alive and when coupled with Four Seasons’ friendly yet unobtrusive service, really helps make this hotel stand out.

The hotel’s main restaurant, Amaranto, is a light filled ground floor venue looking out over the property’s sunken and hidden terrace. Featuring a private dining room and a sun-filled semi-private Captain’s Table for an intimate dining experience, the restaurant offers a wide range of global favourites, all served with an Italian twist by Executive Chef Henry Brosi.

On the Terrace is the perfect venue for the summer months and offers an unrivalled al fresco dining experience with a curated menu including a “From the Grill” offering, complemented by speciality cocktails. To cool down in the summer months, the culinary team serve delicious ice cream sandwiches every weekend whilst the ultimate treat has to be the Dom Pérignon ultimate experience with a special pairing menu.

The Amaranto Lounge meanwhile is the perfect comfortable setting for Afternoon Tea and all-day dining whilst the Amaranto Bar serves some of London’s most inventive cocktails which can be enjoyed with a light dining menu, and an extensive wine list.

The Four Seasons hotels in London (Park Lane and 10 Trinity) boast a plethora of sustainability initiatives. These include, linen-less tables as standard in all dining outlets, non-plastic straws used in all outlet, reusable/recyclable coasters used in all outlets, working with sustainability-focused vendors, locally sourced food, food waste collected delivered to a company that uses bacteria process to generate electricity, plastic-free coffee capsules, recycled regularly, leftover soaps and shampoos donated to Clean the World organization, 80% of the property is fitted with LED lighting, Motion Sensing Lighting is installed in all back-of-the-house areas and offices, automated energy efficient programming is in place for all guest room lighting and recycling – cardboard, paper, plastics, glass, aluminium, cooking oil, shampoo and soaps.