The Connaught London: Rooms, Rates and Our Honest Review
The smallest of Maybourne's London classics, and the best-reviewed of the 14 London hotels we scored.
By Biirdee Travel, Luxury Travel Concierge · Updated October 1, 2026
The Connaught opened in 1815 as the Prince of Saxe-Coburg Hotel, "The Coburg", and took its present name during the First World War; The 50 Best list dates the current building to its construction in 1897. Its modern form arrived in 2007, when a £70m restoration added a new wing, the Aman Spa, a Japanese garden and David Collins' suite, The Apartment. Tadao Ando's water feature, Silence, followed on the forecourt in 2011. The hotel was redesigned by Guy Oliver, and Michelin counts 122 rooms, which makes it the smallest of Maybourne's three London classics.
On our numbers it is also the best-reviewed. Its 100 most recent guests scored it 9.79 out of 10, the highest of the 14 luxury hotels we scored in London, and only 1% of them scored a stay under 7. The catch is getting in: on every date we tried, our booking engine had no rooms at all, because the Connaught sells through Maybourne's own reservations team and its partners. This guide covers what it is like, what the reviews say, what our clients pay and how to book it.
The Connaught in Brief
- 9.79 out of 10 across its 100 most recent reviews (April 2025 to August 2026): 95% of guests scored 9 or more and 1% under 7, the best record of the 14 London luxury hotels we scored.
- No rooms on our booking engine on any of our four test stays or in any month of the next year: it sells through Maybourne's reservations team and partners, so book it through an advisor or direct.
- Our desk books it around New Year and in spring and early summer, at a median of about $1,650 a night, taxes in; our Claridge's and Connaught stays average about 1.3 nights.
- Hélène Darroze at The Connaught holds three Michelin stars, the only starred restaurant in Maybourne, and the Connaught Bar was No. 1 in The World's 50 Best Bars in 2020 and 2021.
- Forbes Five-Star with a Four-Star Aman Spa, Three MICHELIN Keys, and No. 49 in The 50 Best Hotels 2026 (No. 29 in 2025).
The Connaught at a Glance
| Detail | |
|---|---|
| Where | Carlos Place, Mayfair |
| Opened | 1815, as the Prince of Saxe-Coburg Hotel; renamed during the First World War; restored and extended in 2007 |
| Rooms | 122 (Michelin's count), including David Collins' suite, The Apartment |
| Restaurants | Hélène Darroze at The Connaught (three Michelin stars), Jean-Georges at The Connaught, The Connaught Grill, The Connaught Patisserie |
| Bars | The Connaught Bar, the Coburg Bar, the Red Room and The Connaught Cigar Merchants |
| Spa | Aman Spa: five treatment rooms, a pool, a steam room and a gym (Forbes Four-Star) |
| Owner | Constellation Hotels, under the 2026 ownership split; run by Maybourne |
| Awards | Forbes Five-Star (2026); Three MICHELIN Keys (2026); No. 49 in The 50 Best Hotels 2026 (No. 29 in 2025) |
Hélène Darroze, Jean-Georges and the Grill
Dining is the Connaught's headline. Hélène Darroze arrived in 2008, won her third Michelin star in the 2021 guide and holds it in 2026, so the Connaught pairs Three MICHELIN Keys with a three-star dining room, a combination Michelin itself has written up. It is the only Michelin-starred restaurant across all six Maybourne hotels; book it when you book the room.
There is more to eat in the house. Jean-Georges at The Connaught, opened in 2017 and designed by John Heah, is the all-day dining room. The Connaught Grill, first opened in 1955 and revived in 2020 with John Heah's design and woodwork by Mira Nakashima, is in the Michelin guide without a star, and Nicolas Rouzaud runs The Connaught Patisserie.
The Connaught Bar
The Connaught Bar, designed by David Collins and led by Agostino Perrone, has the record to back its martini trolley: No. 1 in The World's 50 Best Bars in 2020 and again in 2021, No. 2 in 2011 and 2019, No. 4 in 2012, 2013, 2016 and 2017, and No. 6 in 2025; in 2026 it was No. 10 in Europe's 50 Best Bars. It takes no reservations, so go early in the evening or late. The other bars in the house are the Coburg Bar and the Red Room, with The Connaught Cigar Merchants for a cigar.
The Connaught by Our Numbers
On 1 October 2026 we tried to price the Connaught through our own booking engine (the one behind hotels.biirdee.com) on the same four stays we checked at every hotel, 10–13 Nov 2026, 27–30 Dec 2026, 12–15 Mar 2027 and 15–18 Jul 2027, and for a two-night midweek stay in every month of the coming year, and we scored its 100 most recent verified guest reviews ourselves. The reviews were there; the rooms were not. So the table pairs our review scoring with what our desk has paid, rather than engine rates.
The Connaught by Our Numbers
Our scoring of the 100 most recent verified reviews on our booking platform, our text analysis of the written English ones, our rate checks of 1 October 2026, and our desk's bookings over the past year (spend per night, taxes in).
| The Connaught | |
|---|---|
| Recent guest score | 9.79 / 10 across the 100 most recent reviews (April 2025 to August 2026) |
| Guests scoring 9 or more / under 7 | 95% / 1% |
| Long-run platform score | 9.6 / 10 over 308 reviews |
| Who stays | Couples 61%, solo travelers 20%, families 11%, groups 7%, business 1% |
| What guests mention (share of written reviews, their mean score) | Service 58% (9.9); food 28% (9.4); breakfast 8% (10.0); price 6% (10.0) |
| Lowest rate on our four test stays | No rooms on 10–13 Nov 2026, 27–30 Dec 2026, 12–15 Mar 2027 or 15–18 Jul 2027 |
| 12-month calendar (Nov 2026 to Oct 2027) | No rooms in any month |
| What our desk pays | A median of about $1,650 a night, taxes in |
| When our clients go | Around New Year, and in spring and early summer |
| Typical stay on our desk | About 1.3 nights (our Claridge's and Connaught bookings) |
| Forbes Travel Guide 2026 | Five-Star hotel; Aman Spa Four-Star |
What the Scores Say
Nothing else in our London sample comes close. The Connaught's 9.79 is well clear of the next-best hotel, the Cadogan (9.48), and its 1% of guests under 7 is the lowest of the 14. Service is the story: 58% of written reviews mention it, and those average 9.9, where at Claridge's the same topic averages 8.83. Breakfast, the soft spot in Maybourne's reviews as a whole, averages 10.0 in the 8% of reviews that mention it here, and so do the 6% that mention price.
Couples write most of the reviews (61%), but one in five comes from a solo traveler (20%), and families are a smaller share (11%) than at Claridge's (15%) or the Berkeley (18%). Our read: this is a hotel for adults who want discreet service, a serious dinner and a very good drink.
How the Connaught Ranks in London
Of the 14 luxury hotels we scored in London, a selection, ranked by the mean of each hotel's 100 most recent verified reviews (out of 10), with the share scoring 9 or more and the share under 7. † marks an older review window. Rates: lowest per night on our four test stays, priced 1 October 2026.
| # | Hotel | Guest score (mean · 9+ · under 7) | Forbes 2026 | Lowest rate: Nov / Dec / Mar / Jul |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Connaught | 9.79 · 95% · 1% | Five-Star | No rooms on any of the four |
| 2 | The Cadogan, A Belmond Hotel | 9.48 · 91% · 6% | Five-Star | $1,133 / $1,428 / $714 / $1,453 |
| 3 | The Peninsula London | 9.43 · 90% · 8% | Four-Star | $1,675 / $1,772 / $1,251 / $1,514 |
| 4 | The Lanesborough | 9.42 · 86% · 4% | Four-Star | $1,259 / $1,394 / $975 / $1,292 |
| 5 | 45 Park Lane | 9.39 · 93% · 5% † | Four-Star | $1,522 / $1,660 / No rooms / No rooms |
| 6 | The Emory (only 43 reviews) | 9.33 · 86% · 9.3% | Four-Star | No rooms on any of the four |
| 8 | The Dorchester | 9.26 · 82% · 11% | Five-Star | $1,569 / $1,957 / $1,372 / $1,667 |
| 9 | Claridge's | 9.21 · 89% · 8% | Five-Star | $1,626 / $1,839 / $1,239 / $1,239 |
| 10= | The Berkeley | 9.12 · 78% · 5% | Five-Star | $1,205 / $1,611 / $1,049 / $1,637 |
Why It Never Shows on Our Engine, and How to Book It
Our engine returned no rooms for the Connaught on any of our four test stays and in none of the 12 months on our calendar. That is how the hotel sells: through Maybourne's own reservations team and its partners, which include travel advisors working through the GDS under Maybourne's chain code, MI. For you it means a rate comes from a request rather than a search, so start early for the dates that matter most.
The Connaught is among the Maybourne hotels our desk books most, and our clients use it in two seasons: around New Year, and in spring and early summer. Stays are short (our Claridge's and Connaught bookings average about 1.3 nights each), and the median spend is about $1,650 a night, taxes in. If the Connaught is full, Claridge's, also in Mayfair, was on sale on all four of our test stays; we compare all three of Maybourne's classics in Claridge's vs the Connaught vs the Berkeley.
The Connaught FAQs
How much does the Connaught cost per night?
The Connaught shows no rates on our booking engine, so we can't quote a lowest rate from our checks. What our desk has paid is the best guide: a median of about $1,650 a night, taxes in, on the stays we booked over the past year. For comparison, Claridge's lowest rates on our four test stays were $1,239–1,839 a night and the Berkeley's $1,049–1,637.
Can I book the Connaught online?
Not through our engine: it had no rooms on any date we tried, across four test stays and a full 12-month calendar. The hotel sells through Maybourne's own reservations team and its partners, including travel advisors; send us your dates and we will request them.
Is the Connaught the best hotel in London?
It is the best-reviewed of the 14 London luxury hotels we scored: 9.79 out of 10, with 95% of recent guests scoring 9 or more and 1% under 7. The Cadogan (9.48) and the Peninsula London (9.43) come next. The right hotel still depends on the trip, but no London hotel we measured leaves its guests happier.
Can I get into the Connaught Bar without a reservation?
You have to: the Connaught Bar takes no reservations. Go early in the evening or late. Hélène Darroze at The Connaught is the opposite case, a three-Michelin-star restaurant worth booking at the same time as the room.
Does the Connaught have a spa and a pool?
Yes: the Aman Spa, which Michelin describes as the first Aman spa designed for a hotel outside Aman's own properties, has five treatment rooms, a pool, a steam room and a gym. Forbes rates it a Four-Star spa for 2026.
Maybourne's Other London Hotels
Claridge's
Brook Street, Mayfair
9.5Exceptional · 779 guest reviewsMaybourne's Art Deco flagship, with Dante Mayfair since June 2026 and a flat $1,239 a night on our calendar from July to September.
Guests praiseClean and spacious roomsAmazing staff serviceExcellent location
from $1,238/night (Jan 2027)
The Berkeley
Wilton Place, Knightsbridge
8.9Very good · 365 guest reviewsThe Knightsbridge all-rounder with the rooftop pool and La Môme London; the cheapest Maybourne in London on our calendar.
Guests praiseFriendly staffGreat locationLovely rooms
from $1,049/night (Jan and Mar 2027)
The Emory
Old Barrack Yard, Belgravia
9.6Exceptional · 43 guest reviewsAll suites, with breakfast, a 24-hour butler and the Surrenne club in every stay; like the Connaught, booked on request.
Guests praiseGreat locationExcellent service
On request (not on our engine)
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