The Connaught – Mayfair, W1

How we love The Connaught. It has always been a special, very British place and now, as part of the Maybourne Group, it’s both a home from home and a glamorous destination, with superbly orchestrated service. While the magnificent mahogany staircase compels guests not to take the lift, treats don’t come better than a martini in the seductive, buzzing Connaught Bar. Or take home a limited-edition, hand-inscribed bottle of the bar’s very own gin distilled in house by master mixologist Agostino Perrone. Since 2008 The Connaught has been home to the two-Michelin-starred Hélène Darroze restaurant, where the ravishing dishes are perfectly complemented by Pierre Yovanovitch’s sophisticated, colourful interiors. There are many pleasures: taking breakfast at Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s restaurant overlooking Tadao Ando’s specially commissioned water feature in Carlos Place; Tom Stuart-Smith’s Moon Garden; the peerless rooms and suites, and not forgetting the blissful subterranean sanctuary that lies beneath the lobby – the first Aman Spa outside an Aman resort. A great hotel in its prime.

Doubles from £570

+44 (0)20 7499 7070; the-connaught.co.uk