As you arrive at the Rosewood London, the noise of London's bustling streets seems to simply fade the background... Cross the courtyard, then sweep up an original marble staircase barely changed since the building's Edwardian heyday and into one of the capital's most reliably luxurious (and calm) hotels. Inside, the mood softens into something warm and residential with polished wood, deep sofas and flourishing bouquets at every turn, yet it really is in the thick of midtown, equidistant from the theatres of the West End and Covent Garden, as well as the buzz of the city. It's lavish yet refined and the service is, quite simply, impeccable.
The Holborn Dining Room is at the heart of the hotel and is most certainly worth a visit. A big, lively brasserie where the booths fill with a mix of guests and the after-work crowd, the menu is modern, British and tasty. Tucked alongside is the Gin Bar, with one of the longest gin lists in London (good luck choosing!) and for something daintier, the spangly Mirror Room offers a fine afternoon tea. There's also a spa - The Sense - decked out in black slate and offering a comprehensive list of treatments using Face Place and Votary products.
Settling into a room here feels a little like moving in to your own perfectly appointed abode. Soft, layered and easy to relax into, even the smallest Deluxe rooms are spacious enough for an enormous bed. Bathrooms are roomy and most have enormous, double-ended bath tubs with windows looking out over the rooftops of the city. At the top of the tree, the Grand Manor House Wing is a six-bedroom residence so self-contained it has its own postcode.
Covent Garden and its multitude of shops, bars, restaurants and theatres is only five minutes west (by car - it's 15 on foot), the British Museum a similar stroll north, and the quiet of Lincoln's Inn Fields, home to the wonderfully odd Sir John Soane's Museum, closer still. The West End's theatres and the Royal Opera House make for an easy evening out, and the city's landmarks lie just east. Few addresses fan out in so many directions at once, in such easy reach - and the nearest tube, with both the Central and Piccadilly Lines, is less than a 15-minute walk away.
Scarfes Bar, undoubtedly one of the best-looking rooms in town. Think velvet armchairs, Gerald Scarfe's wicked caricatures on the walls, a fire and live jazz most nights.
The Pie Room sells its pies to the street through a hatch at the front without any booking or fuss. Join the queue of locals, pick up a homemade pastry still steaming, and find a bench to enjoy your lunch.
Don't expect a chocolate-box setting. Holborn is offices, commuters and through-traffic, and it empties at weekends. The trade-off is location: almost everywhere worth going is within walking distance.
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With a borough for every possible mood and sightseeing for days, London has genuinely never been better.
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