London

Concierge.com's insider take:

To paraphrase the real estate cliché, three words describe successful hotel keeping: detail, detail, detail. And, thanks to its dapper, exacting man-about-town owner, Gordon Campbell Gray, this ever-hip turn-of-the-21st-century luxe boutique has that down pat. Some of those details are unique to Gray's establishment—for example, the lifesized dog papier-mâché-ed with comic strips standing by the reception desk, and the rest of GCG's hand-curated, hotel-wide 400-piece contemporary art collection. Other details are ones every hotel should master: the plate of rigorously seasonal, perfectly à point fruit and flowers in your room; the friendliness of the handsome doormen, natty in their custom-made Richard James frock coats; and Wi-Fi throughout. The 105 beige, green, lilac, red, and blue rooms are mod, but so very comfy, with their deep carpet, crisp Frette linens, and brown stone bathrooms with mini TVs, special eco-water-systems, and exclusive natural bath products from New Zealand. One side of the basement is a wondrous spa with underwater music in the pool; the other side is Axis, the posh restaurant. On a mezzanine above the lobby is Indigo, the buzzy brasserie—with its canvas of 192 slices of burnt toast embedded in beeswax—and the lobby itself is a perennially hot hangout with its tea and cocktails, and arty bouquets. As for location, location, location, One Aldwych has that down too: This is Covent Garden and Theaterland's doorstep.