As one of the most recent additions to Mayfair’s saturated luxury hotel scene, The Beaumont should have found it tough to make its mark. But the boutique indie was masterminded by Corbin & King – the restaurateur duo behind luxe destinations The Wolseley and The Delaunay – so winning over London’s discerning elite was almost guaranteed. The pair have lost none of their passion for old world charm, and the bijou hotel (it only has 73 rooms) is a convincing homage to American Art Deco style with a fabulous retro dining room and bar, as well as a subterranean spa where polished chrome and ridged glass reign supreme.
The 1920s theme starts in a sleek babershop, extends to the small but comprehensive gym and then into the main spa and changing rooms. Here a compact space hosts a steam room and sauna, relaxation area and a couple of treatment rooms, as well as its calling-card: a Moroccan-inspired, Art Deco-outfitted hammam. A rare find in London, this traditional set-up means therapists can offer an affordable (£65), updated version of a Turkish bath – in this case, that means laying on a heated marble slab while Moroccan black soap, together with a coarse mit, is vigorously used to scrub down your body. This is then showered off and a clay mask is smeared all over before you’re wrapped up like a mummy and treated to a head massage while the detoxifying mask takes action. It's a far cry from the tinky-tonky music and hushed tones of most spas. But if the invigorating experience leaves you longing for something a touch more relaxing, you can opt for any number of classic spa treatments from a spectacularly good deep tissue massage to a simple talon groom.