Dossier 02 · 150 Piccadilly, W1J 9BR
The Ritz London
César Ritz's own house, opened 1906 — the most formal, most gilded and most unapologetically ceremonial hotel in Britain.
César Ritz's own house, opened 1906 — the most formal, most gilded and most unapologetically ceremonial hotel in Britain.
The Ritz was the first steel-framed building in London, wrapped in Norwegian granite and Portland stone by Mewès and Davis, with a colonnaded arcade over the Piccadilly pavement that was designed to make the whole street feel Parisian. It worked. Within a decade "ritzy" had entered the English language as an adjective.
What distinguishes it from the other four is commitment to a single idea. There is no ironic modern wing, no design-hotel annexe. Every corridor is Louis XVI, every room is in the palette of the Palace of Versailles — peach, pale blue, gold leaf, chintz — and the staff behave accordingly. You either find this transporting or exhausting; there is very little middle ground.
136 rooms and suites, which makes it the smallest of the five by key count and the most consistent in style. Superior Queen rooms are surprisingly generous, with working fireplaces in some, brass beds, and marble bathrooms lined in Ionian and Pentelikon stone. The Executive King category adds a sitting area; the Deluxe rooms on the Green Park side are the ones worth chasing, because the outlook over the park is one of the few genuinely green views in central London.
Suites are named rather than numbered — the Prince of Wales Suite, the Trafalgar Suite, the Berkeley Suite — and several have private terraces overlooking the park. The hotel also maintains the adjoining 18th-century townhouse at 5 Arlington Street for exclusive-use bookings.
The dress code is enforced, politely but firmly, in all public rooms after 18:00: no jeans, no trainers, no sportswear; jacket and tie in the restaurant. Bring the clothes or stay elsewhere.
"The Ritz does not attempt to be contemporary. Its entire proposition is that you have stepped out of the current century for twenty-four hours."
| Address | 150 Piccadilly, London W1J 9BR, United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Opened | 24 May 1906 |
| Rooms & suites | 136 (111 rooms, 25 suites) |
| Architects | Charles Mewès and Arthur Joseph Davis |
| Dining | The Ritz Restaurant (1 Michelin star), The Palm Court, Rivoli Bar, Ritz Club |
| Dress code | Smart; jacket and tie for gentlemen in the restaurant |
| Nearest stations | Green Park (2 min walk), Piccadilly Circus (8 min) |
| Listing | Grade II listed; interiors substantially original |
| Official website | theritzlondon.com |
Park-facing rooms on the fourth and fifth floors are the sweet spot. Avoid the lowest floors on the Piccadilly side. If tea is the objective, book the Palm Court before you book the room — sittings release further ahead than accommodation and sell out first.