Look, I’ve stayed in plenty of London serviced apartments over the years, and The Courtfield actually gets it right in ways that surprised me. Walking up to 55 Courtfield Gardens for the first time, you’re immediately struck by how quiet this little stretch is – I mean, you’re literally a three-minute walk from South Kensington tube, but somehow the street feels tucked away from all that tourist chaos around the museums.
The building itself has that classic white stucco Kensington look, but what really won me over was stepping inside. These aren’t those cramped, corporate-feeling serviced apartments you usually get stuck with for work trips. The spaces actually breathe, you know? My one-bedroom had proper windows that opened (thank god), a kitchen where you could realistically cook something more ambitious than instant noodles, and honestly, the bed was better than what I have at home. The whole place felt more like borrowing a friend’s flat than staying in a hotel – which, let’s be honest, is exactly what you want when you’re in London for more than a few days.
Here’s what nobody tells you about this area though – you’re positioned perfectly between the tourist South Ken and the more residential bits of Earl’s Court. Want to grab groceries? There’s a decent Tesco Express on Old Brompton Road that’s open late. Need proper coffee in the morning? Skip the hotel offering and walk two minutes to that little café on Courtfield Road where the locals actually go. And if you’re planning to hit the V&A or Natural History Museum, well, you can literally see people walking there from your window and decide if it’s worth fighting the crowds that day.
The staff seemed to understand that people staying here aren’t just tourists passing through – they’re often in London for weeks or months, which means they care about things like reliable WiFi (actually fast, not just “available”), decent water pressure (surprisingly good for a Victorian building), and not feeling like you’re living in a hotel lobby. Check-in was refreshingly straightforward too, none of that overly formal rigmarole.
I’ll be straight with you – it’s not cheap, but then again, nothing in this part of London is. What you’re paying for is space, location, and that rare combination of being close enough to everything while still feeling like you can escape the London madness when you need to. The 8.7 rating makes sense once you’ve been there a few days; it’s one of those places that grows on you as you settle in and realize how much they’ve thought through the little details that make a longer stay actually pleasant.