Last Updated on April 30, 2026 by dancinginhighheelsft
At 116 Piccadilly, The Athenaeum Hotel & Residences occupies one of London’s most storied addresses. The site has lived several lives: originally Hope House, the elegant private residence of MP Henry Hope in the mid-19th century, it later became a Victorian social club before being reimagined in the 1930s as an Art Deco apartment building.
By 1973, The Rank Organisation transformed it into a hotel—and, thanks to its deep Hollywood ties, the guest list quickly read like a roll call of cinema’s golden age. Marlon Brando, Elizabeth Taylor, Harrison Ford and Lauren Bacall were all regulars, while Steven Spielberg is said to have installed an editing suite in one of the residences during the making of E.T., Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Raiders of the Lost Ark.
Family-owned since the 1990s, the hotel retains a sense of considered, personal hospitality that feels increasingly rare in central London. Positioned directly opposite Green Park, it offers an unusually calm outlook for somewhere so central, with Buckingham Palace and Piccadilly Circus both within easy walking distance.
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The Room
Rooms, suites and residences carry a distinctly British sensibility, pairing Art Deco references with bespoke craftsmanship. We stayed in one of the suites, which opened onto a separate lounge with floor-to-ceiling windows—an architectural detail that feels transformative in practice, framing the park like a living painting while softening the rhythm of the city below.
The bedroom centred around a king-sized bed with a Hypnos mattress, alongside Arthur Naeum—the hotel’s quietly charming resident teddy bear—waiting on the pillows. The marble bathroom, positioned between bedroom and lounge, was thoughtfully laid out: a freestanding bathtub, a spacious walk-in rain shower, and the kind of thick bathrobes that encourage you to linger a little longer. A minibar stocked with complimentary soft drinks and a Nespresso machine set an easy tone for slow mornings.
For those travelling with dogs, The Athenaeum takes a genuinely considered approach rather than simply accommodating pets. It’s easily one of the more thoughtful stays featured in my guide to the best dog-friendly hotels in the UK, particularly for those looking for a central London base.
Its VIPup package (£35 per dog, per night, bookable in advance) includes a dog bed, bowl, treats and an Athenaeum-branded bandana to take home. Charlotte, notably, approved.
Guests also have access to The View, an exclusive residents’ lounge on the top floor, offering sweeping panoramas across London. Complimentary refreshments are available throughout the day, alongside an evening drinks hour from 6–7pm. The fact that it is dog-friendly feels less like a novelty and more like a natural extension of the hotel’s approach to hospitality.
The Food
Dinner is served at 116, the hotel’s contemporary British restaurant, where the menu leans into seasonality and provenance. Dishes during our visit included Dingley Dell pork with pickled radish and English mustard, crab risotto with Cornish whiting in a shellfish bisque, Denham Vale 30-day dry-aged sirloin, and a caramel mousse with apple and cinnamon at its centre.
Breakfast is ordered the evening before via a card left in the room—a small but civilised detail. Mine arrived exactly at the requested time, an unspoken marker of a well-run hotel.
Getting There
Location-wise, few hotels in London are as well positioned. Green Park Underground Station is a five-minute walk away, connecting to the Jubilee, Victoria and Piccadilly lines, making it a convenient base for both central London and Heathrow Airport. Several bus routes also stop nearby, which run along or near Piccadilly and provide direct links to areas such as Oxford Circus, Kensington, and Knightsbridge.
For those seeking a luxury hotel in Mayfair, or a dog-friendly hotel in central London with park views, The Athenaeum strikes a compelling balance between heritage, comfort and quietly attentive service.
With thanks to The Athenaeum for hosting us.
If you’re planning a wider UK stay with your dog, I’ve also rounded up my favourite stays in this guide to the best dog-friendly hotels across the UK.
Check availability and current rates at The Athenaeum Hotel & Residences
- My stay at The Athenaeum was complimentary; however, all views and photographs are entirely my own. This article may contain affiliate links, meaning I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.
