COMO Metropolitan London

The Metropolitan is the apotheosis of the trendy boutique hotel concept — and we don’t mean ‘trendy’ in a pejorative sense, but rather as a simple statement of fact. Some hotels aim to impersonate down-home country charm, others old-money aristocracy; the Metropolitan, and the genre it stands for, aims to welcome guests into an exclusive society that appreciates the most minute signifiers of cool, from the sleek black designer uniforms on the receptionists to the meticulously feng shui’d guest rooms — minimal and Zen, yes, but not trying too hard.

Some hotels of this sort put on an impressive show, then lose your dry cleaning and short-sheet your bed; the Metropolitan earns its cachet (and repeat business) by actually delivering the experience that the atmosphere promises. You could do worse than to stay in a hotel with Como’s signature Shambhala spa, right in the middle of London, and as a bonus the Shambhala bath amenities stack up nicely against the own-brand products you’ve no doubt acquired from other hotel bathrooms.

Granted, the Metropolitan experience can be an intimidating one for those wallflowers who tremble at the thought of eating somewhere like Nobu, but as you’re a guest; you’ll get your table.

The best part, though, is that none of this matters once you’re in your room. Some hip bar & boarding-house hotels leave you with an empty feeling once the party’s over, and you’re left to contemplate the puzzle of your needlessly complex lighting controls and that damned transparent bathroom wall. Not so at the Metropolitan; something about the stripped-down simplicity and the thoughtful luxuries like those Egyptian cotton sheets will make you wonder why you weren’t off to bed earlier, and there are certainly worse fates than to wake up with a postcard-perfect view of Hyde Park.

How to get there:
Metropolitan London is a 5-minute walk from the Hyde Park Corner tube station. If you’re arriving from Heathrow Airport, the most convenient transfer option to central London is the Heathrow Express train, which leaves Heathrow Airport every 15 minutes and takes 15 minutes to arrive at Paddington Station. One-way fares are available from £25 and round-trip fares from £37. By black cab, the Metropolitan London is approximately a 45-minute ride from Heathrow Airport (depending on traffic) and can cost upwards of £50.