Just a six-minute walk from Buckingham Palace, The Guardsman has all the smart sophistication, intimacy and personal service of an exclusive members-only club.
From street-level, The Guardsman, a member of the prestigious Preferred Hotels & Resorts portfolio, doesn’t look like your typical hotel. Tucked away on the quiet Vandon Street just south of St James’s Park and within walking distance of some of London’s most popular landmarks, the purposed-built building is outfitted chicly (but understatedly) in geometric gray and gold accents and looks more like a new private luxury residence building than your standard London hotel—and that’s precisely the point. The Guardsman is designed to be a home-away-from-home and the perfect London pied-à-terre for discerning travelers.
The new boutique hotel, which had a soft opening in October 2020 and recently just reopened in line with new regulations, is made of up of 53 individually styled bedrooms, but the USP of the hotel is the six ultra-swish residences, which take up the top three floors of the eight-floor building. Kitted out with one, two or three bedrooms, each residence has plenty of space with living and dining areas, and state-of-the-art kitchens. Many of the residences also offer outdoor space, with the pièce de résistance, The Astor Suite, boasting its own wraparound terrace with views over Westminster.
Named after the British-American politician, Lady Nancy Astor, whose image bedecks the walls, The Astor Suite reflects the neighborhood as the current and historic seat of government. Both the Houses of Parliament and Buckingham Palace are just a short walk away.
The whole feel of The Guardsman is undeniably modern British with Richard Tomlin at Tonik Associates responsible for the sleek design; atmospheric lighting by Tom Dixon; and toiletries by the ever-charming Noble Isle. Floors are swathed in sophisticated herringbone and the quirky contemporary art can be described as Elizabethan-meets-modern-day.
One of the most beautifully dressed public spaces (of which there are several) is the in-house bar and restaurant located on the lower ground level. Flowing off a gold-spindled spiral staircase, the bar and restaurant is a gorgeously adorned, intimate space whose jewel-bright looks are only surpassed by its purpose: both the cuisine and service are a joy. If you’re lucky enough to have Jana as your bartender, ask for her custom whisky-meets-pineapple-meets-champagne concoction, which she fashioned in tribute to the Preferred Hotel & Resorts brand, as the logo is a pineapple. The modern-British food is also worth mentioning: Don’t skip out on the homemade bread, pulled straight from the oven and infused with (what else?) fresh pineapple.
The Guardsman is only one of several new openings from Preferred Hotels & Resorts, the world’s largest independent hotel brand. The group is actually slated to open 15 new properties worldwide this year, including another hotel in the British capital, The Londoner in Leicester Square, which will be launching September 2021.
Rates at The Guardsman, a member of Preferred Hotels & Resorts, start from £250 per night, based on two sharing. For more information or to book, visit www.preferredhotels.com
