Visionary Hotels With Views in London, England

You’ll soon see why people move into the Collective for months on end – this co-living concept in Canary Wharf is packed to the gills with fun facilities, including a cinema, golf simulator and fully equipped gym. After a day spent ticking off your to-do list in the litany of libraries and lounges, reward yourself with a trip to the 20th floor – the sky-high swimming pool and ravishing restaurant, Mthr, are both blessed with superlative city views.

From its prime perch atop the Montcalm Royal London House in Finsbury Square, rooftop bar and restaurant Aviary has arresting views of the Square Mile’s skyscrapers. The modern brasserie menu uses only British produce, including sustainable seafood often caught that very morning or ethically raised heritage beef seared in its charcoal oven. Out on the colourful all-season terrace, you can lounge on a banquette with a botanical-themed cocktail or, when the weather’s not so nice, snuggle up with a glass of red wine in a heated glass igloo.

Take the dedicated elevator to the top floor of the Hoxton, Southwark to find Seabird, a sea-to-table restaurant from the duo behind Brooklyn’s cult cocktail bar, Maison Premiere. This stylish spot boasts London’s longest oyster list, an impressive marble raw bar and seafood with a Spanish twist, including fried baby squid, prawn croquetas and scallop ceviche. There are expansive city views from every angle, and the coastal-cool interiors feel more Mediterranean than metropolitan.

For centuries, “being sent to the tower” indicated a grim fate à la Guy Fawkes, Anne Boleyn or Lady Jane Grey. Now, thanks to citizenM Tower of London, fortunes look a little brighter, with your sentence served amid contemporary design, art-filled public spaces and high-tech bedrooms with wall-to-wall windows, fluffy beds and power showers. The crown jewel in this wallet-friendly city stay is the double-height bar, cloudM, which has commanding views over the Cheesegrater (Leadenhall Building), the Shard, Tower Bridge and, naturally, that namesake fortress.

From the group behind 1 Hotels in the US comes the playful, witty and foliage-filled Treehouse London in Langham Place. Lounge on the cushioned window seat in your bedroom’s bay window to take in views over Regent’s Park, the London Eye and Marylebone’s architectural landmarks. On the top floor, you’ll find the 360-degree skyline views at crowd-pleasing cocktail perch the Nest and modish Mexican eatery Madera, with its bang-on-trend interiors: wicker, velvet and printed pillows.

We don’t have space to list all the illustrious guests who have passed through the Savoy’s revolving doors since it opened in the late 19th century (though Marilyn Monroe, Frank Sinatra and the Beatles spring to mind). However, we think Claude Monet deserves special mention, as the French Impressionist memorialised the hotel’s spectacular river views in a series of paintings – not a bad badge of honour. Today, you can admire the very same vistas of Waterloo Bridge and beyond from the balcony in his former fifth-floor suite – naturally, now named after him.

While some hotels boast of views of the Shard, the Shangri-La is actually inside the 72-storey skyscraper, so all of London’s landmarks seem to sleep peacefully below. The hotel occupies 18 floors of Renzo Piano’s south London landmark – the tallest building in the UK – so you’ll be treated to a bird’s-eye view over the city from, well, everywhere, including the dizzying bedrooms, the luxurious lap pool, the gorgeous GŎNG bar and more.

The stylish Bingham Riverhouse sits right on the banks of the Thames in leafy Richmond. If you opt for a room with a view, you can watch the river roll by as you wallow in your free-standing copper tub. On weekends, linger over brunch or a five-course Sunday roast in the hotel’s Steven Edwards restaurant (winner of Masterchef: The Professionals). It’s fronted by a luscious lawn that extends right to the water’s edge.