‘Dial 0 for anything’ says the handwritten note on the bedside table, but while staying at the Chiltern Firehouse, you can hardly ask for more.
Last year (when my hair was a lot shorter), I stayed there while doing an ELLE travel guide to London, and it’s been on my mind ever since.
Simply put: everything is on point at Chiltern Firehouse. From the amazing front desk staff and the beautiful marble and pink bathrooms to the bar waitresses perfectly dressed in Emilia Wickstead-jumpsuits.
It’s located in an old fire station in the (now only more chic) Marylebone area, but it’s been long awaited. Hotelier André Balazs took over the place in 2011, but it was too small for his first European hotel. He wanted to extend the building but with original bricks, so it would look exactly the same as the old fire station, and that can take a while. But it was well worth the wait.
I already tipped you about the hotel restaurant back when they opened a few years ago, but there’s a lot more to the hotel. The bar (where the real party happens) is only accessible to hotel guests. Rumor has it they handed out gambling chips for the lucky few, to have access to the bar. Until people started bringing their own.
The hotel is made for a-listers, and even has several elevators and hidden back exits, maybe that’s why, now two and a half years later, it’s still a hotspot any time of day.
After spending as much time possible in the hotel room, we decided to have dinner in the restaurant. But this time was different, because we were invited to the old watch tower for drinks and desserts. It’s tiny, but you can see all of London from there.
The more I think about it (and maybe the older I get) I agree less with the idea that a hotel is just a place to sleep.
And after spending a night at Chiltern Firehouse, it’s not really up for discussion.
1 Chiltern Street, Chilternfirehouse.com
