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For travelers sensitive to London’s atmosphere, who like to set down their suitcases away from the hustle and bustle, without ever really straying far from it.

Just a stone’s throw from Paddington Station and the lanes of Hyde Park, the Grand Hotel Bellevue is set in an elegant Victorian building on Norfolk Square, a peaceful urban oasis. The first London opus of French group Lignée Hôtels (Le Narcisse Blanc, Le Yndō), this 4-star hotel reinvents 19th-century railway hotels with a resolutely contemporary touch.

Fabrizio Casiraghi’s design contrasts English heritage with faraway escapes to Pondicherry or Buenos Aires. The 60 rooms, spread over five floors, feature a warm, natural palette in the spirit of a family home, with a few vintage touches.

The service, largely French-speaking, is warm without being overbearing. The Pondicherry bar has a hushed, cosmopolitan atmosphere, and breakfast is served in a discreetly charming green room.

NOHrD’s signature fitness studio, for a morning session before diving back into vibrant London.
The “beautiful English house” ambience, with a twist of distant influences, designed like a movie set.
The calm of Norfolk Square, surprisingly quiet in this well-connected district.
Value for money, rare in London for this level of style and comfort.