Athenaeum Hotel: Family-Friendly Luxury AND Social Media Savvy-ness

Less than 15 minutes after I wrote this on Twitter there was a knock on our hotel room door. We were expecting our room service dessert so Josh excitedly jumped up and answered it.

There was no food, instead a young man with an outstretched arm.

“You need this?” was all he said before handing my husband a dental kit. Josh closed the door stunned, mouth opened in awe.

What the?!

After 2.5 weeks of free accommodation in London, we were looking forward to saying goodbye with a bang and The Athenaeum seemed to have it all. From the moment we booked the gold-class service already started flowing.

Weeks before we were due to arrive I received an email from The Athenaeum in my inbox asking me to fill in a survey. When I clicked through to the link they asked me questions like what was my kids favourite snacks? Would they prefer a Nintendo Wii or PlayStation? Is it okay to deliver milk and cookies in the evening?

I was gobsmacked, and it wasn’t to be the last time either. 

The Room

Our check-in went very smoothly and reception accompanied us to our apartment behind the hotel lobby. We were led up a flight of stairs to a gorgeous, spacious one-bedroom apartment. 

The kids were over the moon when they realised the spare couch in the corner of the living room turned into a bunk bed. I had to admit, I found this pretty darn impressive to. 

Quality furnishings, the widest bed I’ve ever seen, an equipped kitchen filled with complimentary mini bar snacks and drinks, a beautiful dining table, a large bouquet of fresh roses and even a stuffed pet dog which Caius loved cuddling. A few minutes later a delivery of board games, Wii games and an afternoon snack of apples arrived. An hour or so later, milk and cookies. 

The bed must have been made to fit the room, because while it was very wide, it seemed slightly short. Initially Josh had trouble sleeping in it, but we easily cured that by sleeping sideways.

Wi-Fi was fast and stable, which is something that’s important for us, and it was complimentary (which isn’t always the case in luxury hotels, ironically). There was a convenient business centre near the lobby for when we needed to print last-minute boarding passes. 

We played Wii for a while during which my kids started beating me at Super Smash Bros. And it was only their first time playing! I must be out of touch! We played Connect 4. The London indoors became as much a family bonding fun as our preceding weeks outdoors. 

The Food

We headed to the hotel restaurant at about 6pm for dinner. Shall I let the food do the talking? These were a couple dishes over the 2 dinners we enjoyed there.

Pan fried lamb loin, mousseline potato, glazed beetroot, mint puree & caper jus.

Wild rabbit, green lentils, glazed turnips, Regent's Park honey confit garlic.

Confit of duck and roasted breast of duck, seasonal greens with ginger, caramelised shallots, red wine reduction.

Yes, it was a food fantasy – fine dining at it’s best. Refined, elegantly designed dishes executed with precision. During dinner our two kids, who were most excited about the bunk bed, begged to go to sleep in our hotel room. That doesn’t happen very often. The staff at the restaurant were so kind as to let us finish our third course in the hotel room and we asked them to wait for an hour before sending it up so we could get the kids to sleep, before indulging in our decadent desserts in peace and quiet. 

Steamed sticky toffee pudding, walnut and toffee sauce, Devonshire clotted cream.

Breakfast was also a fancy affair with the choice of the continental buffet and/or a cooked breakfast. How long had it been since I had enjoyed eggs benedict? And the staff responded so kindly when I requested asparagus to be served with it – no request was too big or too small.

The continental breakfast was not the typical limited choice. There were freshly baked muffins, perfect pastries, numerous varieties of fruit, cereals, fresh honeycomb and even a crème fruit brulee – that felt naughty! 

Oh, and I did mention the complimentary in-room mini bar with soft drinks, juices, water, coffee, chocolate, and chips. Nice. Alcohol was extra.

Especially For Families

During our stay at The Athenaeum we spent a lot of time indoors playing the Wii, board games and eating. Nannies are available for hire if you want a night out, or to see a theatre performance perhaps.

Inside the built-in wardrobe were 4 fluffy bathrobes, 2 adult-sized and 2 child-sized, which the kids loved dressing up in – complete with slippers. 

The hotel also provided kites and bird food, so that we could cross the road to Green Park, skipping and singing, “Let’s go fly a kite” as loudly and boisterously as the kids on Mary Poppins.

Caius wasted no time and lost his ball to the lake that day and we all learnt a valuable lesson about materialism. But the park was beautiful, with plenty of shade, tranquil lakes and views of Buckingham Palace at one end and the London Eye at the other. 

The Tweet

As described above, I tweeted about my missing toothbrush. And just a few minutes later was rewarded with a knock and a dental kit by a staff member. On a Saturday night. Yes, I know.

I was so miserable about my electric toothbrush missing, but that one act of service had me on a high for the rest of the night. I was so impressed that I knew I would be shouting the praises of the Athenaeum for a long time.

Can you imagine? The Athenaeum ruined me with their magnificent 5 star service like the ticklish torture of a toddler. I can never look at Twitter the same. From the friendly hello of the helpful doorman, to the wait staff in the restaurant, everything was flawless. For outstanding service, pure luxury and social media savvy-ness, it’s clear The Athenaeum deserves an A+. 

The eye-catching and unique vertical garden on the facade of The Athenaeum. A magical tapestry eight storeys high.