Review: Conrad London St. James

Published May 5 2025, 8:17 AM, Updated May 6 2025, 7:40 PMWhen it comes to “Location, Location, Location,” Conrad London St. James has it all. Situated just around the corner from Big Ben, the Palace of Westminster, Westminster Abbey, and moments from Westminster Bridge, which crosses the mighty River Thames, I can not think of a better location from which to explore London.

Conrad London St. James also offers a Club Lounge, an impressive collection of modern art, excellent dining, and highly comfortable beds. We enjoyed a short stay in a Family Connecting Room, which was ideal for two adults and two children.

Remember to book any Conrad or Hilton hotels via our luxury travel concierge for extra free benefits. You also get all your usual Hilton Honors points and perks when you book via our concierge.

Location

A perfect morning stroll from Conrad St. James would be a walk past Big Ben, over the Thames, and then veering away from the road to enjoy a riverside walk, meandering along the South Bank, past the London Eye, the Sea Life Aquarium, Shrek’s Adventure, and of course the London Dungeon. Carry one beyond these attractions and you can walk for miles, right over to the Tate Modern, Shakespeare’s Globe, and beyond to London Bridge.

Head out of the hotel in the opposite direction and you will come upon St James’s Park, where you can feed the ducks, and pay homage to the queen at Buckingham Palace. Keep walking, and your next stop is Knightsbridge with the iconic Harrods department store.

As I have said, the Conrad St. James in London couldn’t be better located. For public transport, the hotel entrance faces St James’s Park tube station, with Victoria Station just around the corner.

Style & Character

The entrance to his luxury hotel has an unusual, triangular-shaped, marble-clad foyer with cream pillars and an impressive double-height atrium. History buffs will like that this hotel is housed in a building originally from the 19th-century Queen Anne’s Chambers.

Today, the hotel interior has a modern, clean-cut, minimalist American style with high ceilings, polished marble floors, and the contemporary luxury you would expect from the Hilton brand. This hotel was refurbished during COVID-19, so the communal areas, particularly the club lounge, are modern and stylish.

The classical interior of the former Queen Anne’s Chambers is interspersed with splashes of color added by the collection of modern art, including a gallery of Gerald Scarfe cartoons and humorous political caricatures. These stylish works attract the local Westminster glitterati, who use the hotel for informal meetings in the bar and lounges.

Although the rooms do not have individual styles and colour schemes, they are all decorated in a modern style with forest design touches against softer, earthy tones. Rooms enjoy dark marble bathrooms and plenty of amenities. Family rooms offer a little something extra as they are decorated with pretty wall decorations, tents, toys, and a selection of treats to make children feel extra special.

Service & Facilities

Service at the Conrad London St. James is polished and professional, with especially attentive staff at both reception and in the Pem restaurant.

The hotel enjoys a spacious Executive Lounge with natural light spilling in from the large window at one end. The Lounge offers complimentary breakfast, afternoon tea, and evening canapés for all Suite guests and rooms with executive lounge access, which is very handy for coffees, biscuits, and nibbles throughout the day. However, the food offering at afternoon tea and in the evening isn’t overly child-friendly (no crisps, simpler foods, etc.).

A lovely treat for children is the ice-cream, anywhere, anytime, though this is not widely known about or publicized. Children can order free ice cream in any of the bars and restaurants or even via room service whenever they like. My two enjoyed the rich strawberry ice-cream with real strawberry pieces!

I briefly visited the 24-hour fitness centre (key car access only) in the basement, which I had completely to myself and had everything I needed to stay in shape: treadmills, elliptical machine, rowing machine, exercise balls, benches, kettle bells, etc.

The hotel also has a business centre and multiple meeting rooms, including one you can hire in the Executive Lounge (pre-booking is essential). We found the free standard Wi-Fi in the room to be very good and it didn’t annoyingly log you out once a day like in many hotels.

Self and valet parking are available at the hotel for a fee, and the hotel is also pet-friendly, and four-legged friends enjoy special pet (VIP) amenities for a £50 surcharge.

The hotel’s concierge also has some amazing activities up their sleeves. Their 1/3/5 guide can suggest a whole load of local activities that ensure the family is kept motivated and never too far from food or the hotel (in case the kids need a lie down). These include a walking tour of the area, including the key London sites (eg, Horseguards Parade, Big Ben, Buckingham Palace).

Rooms

Two hundred fifty-six rooms are spread across six floors. All rooms have king-size or twin beds, a marble bathroom fitted with Bose speakers, a walk-in shower, and almost all have separate tubs and showers.

Further room features include Nespresso machines, large HDTVs, minibar (for a fee), complimentary still and sparkling waters all in glass bottles, blackout curtains, and work desks.

Guests can choose between standard superior rooms, deluxe rooms, a room with Executive Lounge access, or single or multi-bedroom suites. Some rooms face the internal atrium, so be sure to request an outward-facing room. On higher levels, the rooms offer views of rooftops, with the London Eye and Westminster Abbey poking up in the background.

During our stay, we enjoyed a bright and airy Interconnecting Family Room on the fourth floor. As we entered, the girls squealed with delight at the beautiful set-up in their room, which featured a teepee tent with twinkly lights, fluffy cushions, cuddly toy gifts, books to read, and more.

The main bedroom had a spacious king-size bed with the comfiest mattress that delivered an excellent night’s sleep! We enjoyed a sizeable ensuite dark luxury marble bathroom, and there was an accessible bathroom with a shower connected to the children’s bedroom, both with amenities from Byredo Mojave Ghost.

Note – there was no shower head in the bath, which was a minor inconvenience when bathing children. Further amenities included complimentary bathrobes (adult size only), slippers (adult size only), and cosmetic, shaving, and dental kits. Inside the wardrobe was a safe, an ironing set, laundry bags, a hairdryer, and an umbrella.

At turn down, the girls were provided with a hot-chocolate station (not too hot to drink straight away!) and a smörgåsbord board of accompanying treats (marshmallows, chocolates, whipped cream, and meringue bites). Meanwhile, us adults were given beautifully crafted boxes of six individually flavoured luxury chocolates made by Lauden Chocolate – simply divine!

We were lucky enough to stay on the fourth floor, but some people say that noise from the Tube running below the streets was noticeable in rooms on the first floor. So, if you are offered a first-floor room, you might want to ask to be placed on the other side of the building or on a higher floor at check-in.

Book a club room or suite, and you will get access to the club lounge, which offers free breakfast, drinks and snacks, and evening alcoholic drinks and canapés.

Review: Conrad London St. James Executive Club Lounge

Reviews

The Conrad London St. James has one of London's best executive club lounges. The hotel is centrally located near St. James Park and Westminster and offers spacious, contemporary guest rooms, a fine dining restaurant, a beautiful afternoon tea lounge, and even an authentic English pub! This club lounge is widely considered one of the best Hilton Executive Club Lounges. Remember to book any Conrad or Hilton hotels via our luxury travel concierge for extra free benefits. You also get all your usual Hilton Honors points and perks when you book via our concierge.

Food & Drink

There is a great range of dining to choose from at the Conrad London St. James, celebrating everything British. The Pem restaurant, led by Michelin-starred chef Sally Abé, offers a menu of traditional British fare with a contemporary twist, crafted from seasonal ingredients.

Guests can also enjoy a classic British pub experience at the Blue Boar Pub, known for its hearty meals and extensive drinks selection with a funky and proud-to-be British décor featuring corgi dogs, and miniature caricature sculptures of past Prime Ministers.

For those who prefer the comfort of their room, the Pem in Bed service delivers restaurant-quality dishes directly to your room.

Royal Afternoon Teas are served surrounded by the pastel colours of The Orchard Room. Expect indulgent treats with exquisite pastries, delicate finger sandwiches, and free-flowing Bollinger Champagne.

There are also private dining options, including The Harben Room and The Snug, for intimate gatherings with bespoke multi-course menus.

Breakfast is served at The Pem daily, and there is a wide selection of buffet options. Cold options while we were there included cereals, banana bread, pain au raisin, lemon and poppy seed drizzle cake, Pastel De Nata, strawberry and rhubarb cake, pasties, yoghurts, fresh fruits, and breads.

The hot offering featured bao buns, crispy hash browns, baked beans, baked tomatoes, baked mushrooms, bacon, sausages, and scrambled eggs. Included in the breakfast is a small offering of à la carte dishes made to order, including omelettes, pancakes, and oatmeal; however, mildly more extravagant choices like Eggs Benedict incur a charge.

We enjoyed the large, light, and fluffy American pancakes, and my daughters were each given a pencil case colouring gift, which kept them entertained whilst waiting for their hot food, which was a nice touch.

Breakfast is also served in the Conrad executive club lounge from 7:00 to 10:30 am (11:00 am on weekends) with a surprisingly reasonable spread featuring cereals, natural yoghurt, fresh fruits, pastries, breads, scrambled eggs, baked tomatoes, juices, and more. Hilton Gold and Diamond members enjoy a complimentary breakfast, which can be taken in either the lounge or restaurant.

Afternoon Tea is served in the Executive Lounge from 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm daily with two types of finger sandwiches, and a small selection of sophisticated sweet treats including crème brulés, chocolate mousses, and fresh fruit tarts as well as cakes and cookies.

The desserts, mooses and pastries were particularly indulgent for an afternoon tea.

Evening drinks and canapés are served daily between 5:15 pm – 7:15 pm but arrive early as this is the busiest time of the day. A decent drink offering includes a reasonable selection of red and white wines, Proseccos, spirits, mixers, and soft drinks to be self-served.

At this time of day, there is a small hot and cold buffet offering, which features three types of cold meats, cheeses, smoked salmon, tartlets, bruschetta, and hot canapés. Be quick because once a hot dish is brought out, the contents vanish in seconds! Though they are replenished repeatedly for the first hour or so.

The Conrad St. James makes a real effort with the kiddies, from their special ‘Piglets Menu’ in the Blue Boar Restaurant and Bar, and a discounted rate for the traditional afternoon tea to a complimentary breakfast for children under 12.

Conclusion

We really enjoyed our stay at Conrad London St. James. We were very well looked after and enjoyed our Connected Family Room, and the bed gave us such a good night’s sleep! Our girls loved all their surprises and treats, especially the free ice cream. This modern five-star Hilton city hotel was a really great base for us, and the Executive Lounge access was very handy throughout our stay, giving us a space to kick back and relax away from the hustle and bustle of the capital below.

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