• Rating: 8/10
• Rooms at The Portobello Hotel start from $204 (£172) a night
• Check current rates and availability
Finding a hotel with a bathtub in London is tricky, especially if you don’t want to spend thousands of pounds. Aside from Covent Harden's Henrietta Hotel, and The Ned I also stumbled across this luxury hotel, The Portobello, rumoured to have a tub in most of its 21 fabulously designed bedrooms. The boutique hotel feels more homely than your usual London sleepover spots, the cozy lounge is the place to laze over a long breakfast and there are antique finds from nearby Portobello market dotted throughout. The bedrooms are spread across the two Victorian Townhouses and it’s all so quaint and characterful you almost don’t feel like you’re in London, yet it’s a mere five-minute walk from legendary Portobello Road.
 |
| Bathroom art in my room at The Portobello |
What’s the vibe at The Portobello Hotel?
The short road leading to the hotel is lined with grand white terraced houses, each one featuring a couple of pillars marking the entrance. There’s a church at one end of the road and perfectly manicured gardens sit all around, so the location feels very ‘Richard Curtis London’. The reception, painted in a deep fuchsia shade is filled with old paintings and dark-wood antiques and typically very English, but bedrooms have their own theme, each being decorated in a totally different style. Located in Notting Hill, near the very lovely Lost Poet, it’s the perfect area for a weekend visit to London or a secret staycation with a lover or friend.
 |
| Gorgeous design details punctuate the hotel |
How are the rooms?
Each of the 21 rooms has a totally different style, and range in size from ‘box’ for solo travellers to ‘signature’ for garden views and extravagant beds. We stayed in one of the two ‘roomy’ rooms; both secretly tucked away on the lower ground floor, each with king-sized beds and private patios. Our room had been recently decorated and had what I’d describe as an ‘India meets Notting Hill’ vibe, I felt like I was back in Rajasthan at the Fairmont Jaipur as soon as I walked in. Teal wallpaper features elephant and palm tree prints and the headboard is a huge wooden creation, carved with flowers and vines. Every element of the room had a nod to India, from the thick burgundy curtains studded with circular mirrors that glimmered in the low light to armchairs covered in beautiful Indian fabrics—it actually felt quite magical.
 |
| My India-inspired bedroom |
The bathroom was also delightful, painted in calming yellow with a huge roll-top bath that was comfortably big enough for two. The only issue with the bathroom was that there was no low lighting (for when you want a relaxing, sexy, bedtime bath), but that’s my only issue.
 |
| The beautiful bathroom, complete with bathtub |
What is there to eat and drink?
You can pay extra for continental breakfast and get it delivered to your room for no extra cost but we decided to head out as there are so many places to eat around Notting Hill, some of which feature on my list of the best luxury London breakfast spots. The hotel also offers a small menu of food throughout the day and into the evening but I’d recommend exploring the area. Restaurants I love are Taqueria for delicious tacos and margaritas on Westbourne Grove, don’t miss the fish and al pastor versions. And for amazing Greek food with a modern twist, book a table at Mazi near Notting Hill Gate station. Dishes are designed to be shared, we tried spicy tiropita, feta tempura, pork belly gyro tacos and shredded lamb shoulder that came served with the most incredible tasting avgolemono sauce, I’d recommend them all.
Any highlights?
The location is really hard to beat and I really loved the décor, especially in our Indian-inspired room. The huge bath was a real highlight too and the full-size natural bath and body products from British brand Green & Spring smelt amazing.
Anything they could improve on?
Low-level mood lighting in the bathroom would be a small but much-appreciated improvement.
Follow @portobelloldn
Check rates at Booking.com
Post a Comment