You know what strikes you first about The Churchill? It’s that perfect sweet spot where you get proper five-star treatment without feeling like you need to whisper in the lobby. I mean, this place has serious old-school London hotel vibes – we’re talking polished marble, rich wood paneling, the works – but there’s something refreshingly unpretentious about the whole operation.
The location is honestly brilliant, and I don’t just mean “oh it’s central London.” Portman Square is one of those quieter Georgian squares that most tourists walk right past, which means you’re tucked away from the Oxford Street madness but still a two-minute walk from Marble Arch tube. You can actually hear yourself think when you step outside, which is saying something for this part of town. Plus you’re basically around the corner from Selfridges if that’s your thing, and Hyde Park is right there when you need to escape the city buzz for a bit.
What really sold me on this place though – the staff actually seem to remember you’re a human being, not just a room number. Check-in was smooth (none of that hovering around the desk for twenty minutes nonsense), and when I mentioned I was celebrating an anniversary, they genuinely seemed to care rather than just going through the motions. The rooms are properly spacious by London standards, which you’ll appreciate if you’ve ever tried to unpack a suitcase in some of those shoebox hotels near Covent Garden. Everything feels solid and well-maintained – thick curtains that actually block out the streetlights, a shower with decent water pressure, bed linens that don’t feel like they came from a budget chain.
I’ll be honest, the breakfast situation is a bit pricey even for London (and that’s saying something), but the restaurant downstairs does this Sunday roast that’s actually worth writing home about. The bar area gets properly busy with locals after work, which I always take as a good sign – means it’s not just another sterile hotel space. One small thing that caught my attention: they’ve got proper coat hangers in the closets, not those weird security ones that don’t actually hold anything properly. Little details like that tell you someone’s paying attention.
The neighborhood really comes alive in the evenings too – there’s this great little pub called The Grazing Goat literally next door that does excellent fish and chips, and you’re walking distance from some fantastic Indian restaurants on Drummond Street that most guidebooks completely miss. During the week it’s mostly business travelers, but weekends bring a nice mix of people actually exploring the city. Just fair warning – if you’re here during Christmas shopping season, the whole area gets absolutely mental with crowds, but honestly that’s half the fun of London in December.