New Hotels in London 2014

Legendary American hotelier Andre Balazs has turned the vacant former fire station in Marylebone's Chiltern Street into the Chiltern Firehouse, a luxury hotel with 26 boutique suites. New York-based real-estate developer Andre Balazs has already enjoyed huge success and notoriety with designer hotels like The Mercer, Chateau Marmont, and The Standard Hollywood in the US. Now he has opened his first hotel in London, transforming the Grade II-listed Victorian building into a classy hotel set to be the hangout of choice for the style set. Portuguese chef Nuno Mendes departed his Michelin-starred Viajante restaurant at Bethnal Green's Town Hall Hotel to head up the kitchen, serving dishes with an American slant - taking inspiration from the 16 years Nuno spent training and working in the States with chefs such as Wolfgang Puck who is behind CUT at 45 Park Lane and the thrice Michelin starred Jean-Georges Vongerichten.

When it opened on 15th March 2014 the 278-room Hampton by Hilton London Waterloo became the first 'Hampton by Hilton' property in central London - a brand Hilton has created for "value-oriented and quality-minded" travellers. Close to Waterloo station, on the site of Partnership House (which until 2003 was the home of the Anglican Communion and a number of other religious organisations) and a derelict 1960s office block, the hotel occupies a 1.5 acre site. As with all Hampton by Hilton hotels this one offers guests a free 'On the House' hot breakfast, high-speed internet access in every room, wireless internet access in the lobby and meeting rooms as well as 24-hour coffee and tea in the lobby. Already well established in the United States, Hampton by Hilton is relatively new to the UK with hotels in Liverpool, Birmingham and Braintree in Essex. The 9-storey London Waterloo hotel has been designed by KSS, who have also helped design the Basketball & Handball Arena for the London 2012 Olympics, and is a scaled-down and redesigned version of the original proposal which included a 13-storey tower on the corner of Gray Street. The hotel is run by Shiva Hotels who are also opened a Hampton by Hilton near Gatwick Airport's North Terminal in 2012.

A 244-room hotel located within the converted Norfolk House office building at Gatwick Airport's South Terminal, Bloc Gatwick is conveniently located next to the terminal's departures hall and security area. The BLOC concept is based on the idea of making everything as cost-effective as possible, and passing those savings onto their guests. That philosophy starts with the build of the hotel - which takes less than half the time of a traditionally built hotel - and filters down to the rooms which are offered at very good prices. Bloc caters for guests who want a short stay and who, in all likelihood, won't even fully unpack their bags, so there's no need for spacious storage cupboards and a desk. With so many restaurants and bars so close by the hotel doesn't have its own. Instead, the focus is on comforable beds with pocket-sprung mattresses, well designed rooms and wet rooms complete with power drench showers. There's high tech comfort in features like keyless entry, climate control system, fast Wi-Fi, HD LED TVs and ambient lighting. Reviews of Bloc's first hotel, opened in Birmingham in 2011, praised the "Missoni-designed carpets, Armani bathrooms and Artemide lighting" (Monocle), "not furnishings you would expect from a budget hotel". With the Gatwick hotel set to follow the same blueprint, London will welcome this affordable hotel with compact rooms and king-size beds.

The first ever luxury Shangri-La Hotel in London will have the unique selling point of occupying the upper floors of one of the tallest buildings in Europe when it opens in 2014. Standing at 310 metres (1,016 feet) tall the new Shard tower, also known as London Bridge Tower, will be 245 feet higher than One Canada Square in Canary Wharf - previously London's tallest tower. Taking up 18 floors of the Shard - from floor 34 to 52 - the Shangri-La will offer 195 rooms, 170 deluxe guestrooms, averaging more than 42 square meters each making them among the largest in London. Its 25 suites, including two specialty suites and a presidential suite, are sure to be something special - with glass-enclosed 'wintergarden' balconies. Guests can sink into the 'Shangri-La Bed', with its patented body-contouring technology, and enjoy state of the art luxuries like LCD televisions, hi-fi equipment and business services. To top it all, the luxury spa on the 52nd floor - Europe's first CHI spa - will offer Chinese and Himalayan healing therapies alongside fitness facilities including gym, whirlpool, steam, sauna and, best of all, an indoor infinity swimming pool with panoramic views of the London skyline. Even if you're not staying at the hotel you will be able to benefit from those far-reaching views - anyone can book in for a meal at the restaurant Ting or visit the artisan deli, Lang, on the ground floor. Gong on level 52 is the highest bar in London - the ideal place for sunset cocktails with stunning views over London's skyline. Alternatively, there's the public viewing platform, The View From The Shard, on floors 68 to 72 which is expected to attract over half a million visitors a year.

Tim and Kit Kemp, owners of Firmdale Hotels, are turning a large three quarter acre site at Ham Yard in Soho, a bombsite since the Blitz, into a luxury boutique hotel worth £90 million. The building, situated between Great Windmill Street and Denman Street, will have 90 bedrooms and suites, 25 apartments, 12 retail stores, bar, restaurant, gym and spa when it opens on Sunday 1st June 2014. Plush private cinemas are a feature of other Firmdale hotels - which include Charlotte Street Hotel and the Crosby Street Hotel in New York - but Ham Yard will have the biggest yet with a 176 seat state-of-the art theatre. And that's not the only quirky, cool feature. It will also have an original 1950s four lane bowling alley imported from Texas, complete with bar and lounge which can also be used as a night club. To top it all, hotel guests will have access to a charming rooftop garden with sweeping views across London. Firmdale is working with the architects Woods Bagot to turn this central London site, deserted for 40 years, into a luxury hotel with individually designed rooms - something Kit Kemp is a dab hand at.

A former office building in the West End has been turned into Z Piccadilly, part of the pocket friendly Z Hotels chain, a stylish, central place to stay at out-of-town prices. An absence of room service, uniformed porters and overly large rooms means prices are low for this part of town and this level of style and comfort. Just a short walk from Piccadilly Circus, the 112 room hotel in Orange Street is midway between St James's Square and Covent Garden, within easy strolling distance of Leicester Square, Trafalgar Square, Whitehall and the West End. A seven storey building arranged over lower ground, ground and five upper floors, the Z Piccadilly deal includes complimentary toiletries, free Wi-Fi, en suite wet room, crisp bed linen, 48 inch TV with Sky movies - everything you need for a short, affordable stay in town.

Dorsett Shepherd's Bush is a four star hotel within a Grade II-listed red brick landmark building which opened as the Pavilion Cinema in 1923. Unoccupied since 2001, the building has undergone a complete rebuild - just the facade of the original building remains - with a stunning blue tinted glass exterior attached to the brick facade. Located next to what used to be a rather noisy (now closed) Walkabout pub, the hotel has 317 rooms, two restaurants and a spa and occupies a prominent site on Shepherds Bush Green, neighbouring the Shepherds Bush Empire music venue.

Artist Residence London is a ten bedroom hotel with a ground floor restaurant overlooking a lovely garden in the London neighbourhood of Pimlico, just a 5 minute walk from Victoria Station. The hotel has eight individually designed bedrooms and two suites, ranging from Small to Grand Suite with the Loft on the third floor which includes a seating area for two. The young owners, Justin Salisbury and Charlotte Newey, already have two successful hotels in Brighton and Penzance, and, like them, Artist Residence London is furnished in a relaxed style using exposed brick set off by pieces sourced from antique shops and original artwork. Michael Bremner's restaurant, 64 Degrees, concentrates on doing a few things very well and has a mix of tables, kitchen bar seating, and some cubicles while the basement bar can be a comfy cafe during the day or a cocktail lounge in the evenings. There's also a private dining area which can double as a meeting room or temporary workspace.

Eight years after it first opened its doors the hip Hoxton Hotel in Shoreditch replicates itself and sets up the east London favorite in Holborn. Just like the mothership, the 174-bed Hoxton Holborn has quirky design touches and rooms which are "cleverly designed to maximise comfort, space and style". Rooms are divided into four categories - Shoebox, Snug, Cosy, and Roomy - and while each differs in size all share the same design and features, like a leather armchair and wood-and-leather headboard. Shoeboxes, on the top floor of the hotel, may be small but they have far-reaching views over the city and offer very affordable accommodation for this location, while Cosy rooms are a great size for London. All rooms have 300-thread count sheets, rain showers, free WiFi, and come with complimentary breakfast bags. The hotel has two restaurants run in partnership with the Soho House Group: Hubbard & Bell restaurant set in an airy conservatory, and a Chicken Shop serving rotisserie chicken. There's the Holborn Grind run by the people behind Shoreditch Grind, and the Cheeky beauty salon if you want a bit of pampering.

Intended to be a luxury hotel when it was first designed in the 1970s, Sea Containers House fulfills its original purpose when it opens as a Tom Dixon designed hotel on 30th September 2014. The building, situated between the OXO Tower and Blackfriars Bridge, will become the Mondrian London, a luxury hotel from the Morgans Hotel Group - the New York based boutique hotel group who brought us swanky hotels the Sanderson and St Martin's Lane. Tom Dixon's Design Research Studio, responsible for the design, is planning a transatlantic theme; "the copper-clad lobby gives a nod to the convex shape of a ship's hull" according to Vogue magazine which predicts the Dandelyan bar will be "the hip port of call" with its views across the river to St Paul's, its green marble bar, and the trio of bar masters who have come from the White Lyan bar in Hoxton. Most of the hotel's 359 guest rooms and suites have spectacular river and city and the hotel also houses a riverside bar and brasserie with outdoor seating, and an exclusive rooftop lounge and terrace. As with all Morgans hotels, the spa will be a luxury affair, branded to fit in with the signature Agua style with six treatment suites, relaxation space and a manicure and pedicure room. Spaces for hire include the 56-seat private screening room, break out and meeting rooms.

Restaurateurs Jeremy King and Chris Corbin are to open a boutique hotel overlooking Brown Hart Gardens at 8 Balderton Street in the former Avis building, a 1920's Art Deco structure originally used as a garage. The Beaumont, a 75-room hotel in Mayfair, will feature an inhabitable sculpture of a crouching man, called Habitat, by 'Angel of the North' artist Anthony Gormley which is predicted to become a landmark for the area. King and Corbin, who have made their name with top notch eateries like The Wolseley, The Ivy and Le Caprice have developed the £40 million in partnership with property firm Grosvenor to a design by ReardonSmith architects who have previously worked on the Four Seasons on Park Lane, The Savoy, and Claridge's. The boutique hotel at 8 Balderton Street will comprise a royal suite, restaurant, a small private private dining room, lobby bar/salon, spa and leisure facilities as well as the 75 guest rooms. The new hotel in Mayfair (due to open in 2014), is one of several London based projects the pair have instigated along with The Delaunay in London's Aldwych which opened in December 2011, Brasserie Zedel in Sherwood Street (open summer 2012) and Colbert in Sloane Square, due to open early Autumn 2012 on the site where the Oriel brasserie stood for 20 years.

Guests staying at the tech-savvy flagship hub by Premier Inn Covent Garden can use the hotel's app to check availability and book a room and then use the same app to control room settings during their stay. Everything from changing the TV channel to adjusting the room temperature can be done through the app which also gives guests a guide to the local area. Developed through four years of research and testing, hub by Premier Inn which revealed that what guests want is technology to make their everyday lives easier. As a result, each room comes with the latest technology, including a 40-inch smart TV with access to movies, games, the internet, and catch-up TV. And there's free, high-speed Wi-Fi available throughout the hotel. Rooms are 'compact' so they've had to be clever with space - pull-out desks and plenty of under-bed storage make the best use of the 11.4 metres square allocated to each room. The rooms may be small but there's enough room for a double bed fitted with pocket-sprung mattress while excellent soundproofing ensures a great night's sleep even in a busy city centre location.

The flagship Covent Garden hotel, open in November 2014, is the first of 11 Hub hotels planned by 2018 in London and Edinburgh. These include nine London hub hotels in Covent Garden, Tottenham Court Road, Tower Hill, Spitalfields, Kings Cross, Shoreditch, Bank - City of London, Farringdon and Westminster.

One of two new hotels from the Montcalm group set to open in 2014, the M by Montcalm at 151 City Road, close to Old Street roundabout and opposite the Moorfields Eye Hospital, is part of a cluster of towers beginning to form on City Road. The new build 200-room hotel is part of a 23-storey tower development which fuses large scale art, sculpture and architecture in a futurisitc looking tower. The building will include retail and bars, self-storage, business centre, fitness centre and the hotel which has an exceptional roof top bar overlooking London. Level 42 of the building is given over to a public bar and viewing gallery creating "an exceptional roof top bar overlooking London". The pioneering new building which tapers and twists to allow daylight penetration at street level has been created by architect Will Alsop. He has described the project as "an artwork" which includes a striking 15-storey work by artist Bruce McLean. The Montcalm already operates several hotels in London, The Montcalm at The Brewery London City with the London City Suites By Montcalm nearby, and The Montcalm London Marble Arch with The Marble Arch By Montcalm London just a stone's throw away. As well as the new City Tower By Montcalm a second new Montcalm hotel, The Royal London House By Montcalm in Finsbury Square, also opens in 2014.

A £15 million upgrade of Royal London House, a listed building on the north side of Finsbury Square, has converted what was once an underused and dated office building into the Royal London House By Montcalm, one of two hotels set to open in 2014 from the Montcalm group. The 256-room five star hotel includes a bar and destination restaurant accessible from Worship Street, a spa and gym, and a banqueting suite on the lower ground level. The proposed plan put forward by 5plus architects in October 2012 includes a roof extenstion which is in keeping with the building and the square. The Montcalm already operates several hotels in London, The Montcalm at The Brewery London City with the London City Suites By Montcalm nearby, and The Montcalm London Marble Arch with The Marble Arch By Montcalm London just a stone's throw away. With the opening of this hotel and The City Tower by Montcalm in Shoreditch also due to welcome its first guests in 2014 the hotel group is fast expanding within The City of London.

citizenM hotels, the hotel chain set up by Mexx founder Rattan Chadha, have proved to be a hit with budget-yet-fashion conscious travellers and in 2014 London gets not one but two new citizenM hotels: citizenM Tower of London and citizenM St Paul's which along with citizenM Bankside (opened July 2012) bring the total in London to three - good news for anyone looking for affordable and stylish hotel rooms and free Wi Fi. The proposed citizenM St Paul's is a landmark 213,500 square foot luxury 246-bedroom hotel with a vast public area on the ground floor, close to the historic Smithfield Market. The hotel forms part of a £100m redevelopment of Citicape House at 61-65 Holborn Viaduct, EC1, which includes office space. The development will comprise basement, ground and lower ground floor levels with eight upper office storeys and ten upper hotel levels. With a lack of affordable luxury accommodation in the area, citizenM St Paul's fills a gap in the market. Construction starts in 2013, with an expected opening in the second half of 2014.