JW Marriott Grosvenor House London

After lots of dreaming and drooling over hotels for a stay in London, and being a huge fan of the JW Marriott brand, I just reached down and paid the amount that was needed to stay here at the JW London. This is - I think - the second most expensive JW in the world (it was when I was checking a few years ago when I first fixated on this property).

Arrival

I was jumping around London from one affordable hotel to another during my last trip there. (They change prices all the time through the week and it's just crazy, there seem to be no rules to it). I'd rented a car and drove up to the hotel on a Friday afternoon. Despite the frontage of the hotel being just outside the congestion zone, the porte cochere is 1 block inside it, so bam £15 charge for entering the center of London. It's supposed to alleviate cars going through it more but doesn't seem to work to me.

Aston Martins, Ferraris and Lamborghinis are almost always parked here

This hotel was first built as a separate hotel in the 1920s as the Grosvenor House Hotel. Before that, there was a massive townhouse occupying the space in Mayfair, and yes, it was expensive back then too. It was converted to a JW Marriott in 2010, and I have to say it lives up to the brand.

The Room

Trying to use suite nights had initially looked really promising. But as things got closer, well it's in Mayfair and the money there is astounding. So all the suites evaporated by the time my request would clear and I ended up with the same base room I booked. After some very humble conversation, I was able get upgraded to just below a suite without using the upgrades. In retrospect, I was only in the room while awake for about 3 hours over 2 days, and I did find wanting that suite a bit silly, even if it would have been nice. The room I ended up with was spacious and comfortable.

Actually a good amount of space around the bed and the desk was quite useable. Very comfortable sized room not feeling claustrophobic at all

Well, a bigger room compared to the rest of the floor, I can't complain too much can I?

Since I had access to the Executive Lounge, I didn't use the in-room coffee or tea

I didn't even bother to check the prices on these items

Shower was at the end, the toilet seat was heated (which was amazing during the coldest weather England has had in decades) and the towel rack was heated too!

Still Aromatherapy, but a new line being introduced. Since they are based in London, it makes sense to try it out here first

The Lounge

I was looking forward to seeing my first lounge in a JW in Europe and this one was astounding and massive. During the daytime it is frequented by many of the guests visiting the hotel from the Middle East, but as soon as the alcohol service begins later in the evening, the guests change.

Not labeled or obvious, I had to ask where this was at

A side alcove which is a little quieter than the main lounge area

Large, lots of seating, very bright and well maintained

Endless drinks, non-boozy during the day and boozy at night

A couple of these around the lounge so you never have to wait long

Evening fare, that bleu cheese had such a great bite to it

The fish was good, and they do a class job for evening 'hors d'oeuvres'. Feels more like a meal

Dining

It's a class establishment in the fanciest district in the city, so there are a few places to dine and drink. Hrm... more than 3, that's Rob's resort level criteria!

Just as you would think, lots of beef cuts. Also where they serve breakfast in the morning. Not for the light of wallet

Tall ceilings - this used to be a 2 story French restaurant

The Park Room - a side room for piano and relaxing

The main side of the Park Room, for your perfect London formal tea experience or all day dining

THE bar, elegant, reserved, great service and amazing drinks, all billed to your room. This is my kind of place

The bar in JW Steak, all things American Bourbon. Being from the USA, I think it was lost on me, but is for a more global audience

Facilities

As true of most hotels, it has a lot of small event rooms, a gym, ballrooms and a spa.

I'm going to say this is a medium gym, based on my experiences. It has a workable amount of equipment but not all the things

This is insane overkill for headphones. Yes, I kept a pair

The business center, honestly the same amount of equipment as almost all of them I have seen but with a personal services desk. This one seems to just have a more open floor format

The spa, bastion of the rich wives and daughters of those with a lot more money than Rob

The main ballroom, the weekend manager clued me into it being unoccupied to facilitate some photos; generally this space is booked out many months in advance. Very old school elegant

Summary

As a continuation of my goal to hit all the JW Marriotts in the world, this was a gem among gems in my experience. The level of service and quality of detail in the hotel, and the incredible Executive Lounge, just wow. Yes, this is a very expensive place to stay, but I'm willing to make the sacrifice to visit here and experience all the luxury to be able to blog it. I know, how magnanimous of me.

I will tell you all this, after I keep going to these super top end hotels, it gets harder to stay at what most would consider regular level. I continue to do it, but places like this make it seem like a much lesser experience.

And well, as with every JW that has a lounge, getting a room with the access is probably worth it.