Some Great Hotels in London, Part 1, The Rubens at the Palace

We haven’t written much about hotels in London because often when we visit we book a flat to rent for our stay. However, holiday flats in central London are getting more expensive, so recently we’ve tried a few hotels and found a few we like.

The typical chain hotels in London are Marriott, Hilton, Holiday Inn, etc., and they are well-operated and centrally located. However, some smaller chains operate unique, boutique hotels that have wonderful amenities for the traveler.

The Rubens at The Palace Hotel (Image copyright EnglandForAllReasons.com, 2024)

One of these is The Rubens at the Palace, near Buckingham Palace at 39 Buckingham Palace Road, SW1W 0PS. It has a lot to offer, especially its location, situated directly opposite the Royal Mews, where the coaches, horses, and carriages are kept along with  a working stable and, of course, Buckingham Palace. Nearby are the Victoria Theater, the Duke of York pub, St. James’ Park, and many attractions associated with the Palace. Also across the street is the Royal Mews shop, the official Buckingham Palace store for souvenirs.

A room at The Rubens. (Image copyright EnglandForAllReasons.com, 2024)

Our room at The Rubens was on the third floor (second floor for the Brits) and faced the Mews entrance directly. The room was very comfortable and well-appointed, with a full ensuite bath and a very comfortable bed. The windows were doubled, which cut down on the traffic noise from Buckingham Palace Road, which tends to be full of traffic day and night, unless the Changing of the Guard Ceremony at the Palace is underway, in which case the road is closed to motor traffic near the hotel. Cabs are plentiful and the doormen are very adept at hailing them. (If your doorman is named Pascal, say hello to him for us. We found him to be delightful!) Victoria Station for the Underground is nearby, should you wish to take the Tube while in London.

Buses go by outside the tea room at The Rubens. (Image copyright EnglandForAllReasons.com, 2024)

The restaurant was lovely, and we took advantage of their delicious offerings for breakfast, dinner, and afternoon tea. An additional Tea Room at the front of the hotel, just off the lobby, is our favorite spot to have afternoon tea as they have seating that overlooks the Mews entrance across the street. What makes sitting in the windows even more fun is that tourist buses will come down the street from the Palace and stop for the traffic light just in front of the hotel. Sitting at a window table, we noted that the passengers, busily taking pictures of everything, were genuinely startled when we waved at them. They didn’t realize we could see them, too!

The service and staff at The Rubens are exceptional. Recently, our family traveled with us and, as we had to check out of a flat in the morning, we were left with a lot of luggage to stash until their late afternoon flight and until our room was ready. The very courteous hotel staff accommodated our needs by holding our bags, as well as answering all of our questions and being very patient with us Yanks.

The Rubens at the Palace is part of a chain of hotels called The Red Carnation Hotel Collection. There is another hotel in that collection we will write about soon.