Neighbourhood · London

Soho / Covent Garden

For most first trips, the right answer is somewhere between Oxford Circus and the river. Soho gives you the theatres, the late-night restaurants and Chinatown; Covent Garden gives you the piazza and the shops; Fitzrovia, just north, is a quieter base within the same walking distance.

Best for first-timers · theatre-goers · late-night eaters

Wrong for light sleepers; families with pushchairs.

From Where to Stay in London 2026: A Neighbourhood-by-Neighbourhood Guide.

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Where to stay in Soho / Covent Garden

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  • Citorah PickHotel · Soho / Covent Garden

    The Soho Hotel

    Citorah says A Firmdale hotel that opened in 2004 and, Firmdale says, was widely regarded as Soho's first luxury hotel. Firmdale's Film Club screens films there on Sundays at 3.30 PM.

  • Citorah PickHotel · Soho / Covent Garden

    Ham Yard Hotel

    Citorah says Another Firmdale hotel, home to The Croc, an original 1950s bowling alley with a lounge and bar.

  • Citorah PickHotel · Soho / Covent Garden

    Hazlitt's

    Citorah says An 18th-century townhouse hotel with period rooms.

  • Citorah PickHotel · Soho / Covent Garden

    Henrietta Experimental

    Citorah says 40 Bedrooms and suites, tucked away in Covent Garden.

  • Citorah PickHotel · Soho / Covent Garden

    Hotel Café Royal

    Citorah says A five-star on Regent Street, where St James's, Mayfair and Soho meet.

  • Citorah PickHotel · Soho / Covent Garden

    One Aldwych

    Citorah says An independent five-star where Covent Garden meets the Strand.

Where to eat in Soho / Covent Garden

All of London

  • Citorah PickRestaurant · Soho / Covent Garden

    Kiln

    Citorah says Kiln & Bao — Soho counter restaurants, Thai and Taiwanese respectively, that defined the modern London counter-dining wave.

  • Citorah PickRestaurant · Soho / Covent Garden

    Bao

    Citorah says Kiln & Bao — Soho counter restaurants, Thai and Taiwanese respectively, that defined the modern London counter-dining wave.

Other neighbourhoods

All neighbourhoods

  • Neighbourhood · 5 places

    Mayfair

    Mayfair is the postcode of the Bond Street boutiques, the Berkeley Square gardens and the private members' clubs. The streets are quiet at 10 PM, and the hotels are the ones non-Londoners imagine when they imagine London hotels.

    Best for anniversary trips · luxury travel · anyone whose London is theatre + Mayfair restaurant + Hyde Park morning walks

  • Neighbourhood · 6 places

    Shoreditch

    Shoreditch is in east London: street art, vintage shops, bars and restaurants. Brick Lane is its eastern edge, Old Street is its Tube station and Hoxton Square is its centre.

    Best for design-conscious travellers · foodies · longer stays

  • Neighbourhood · 8 places

    Kensington / South Kensington

    South Kensington has the Natural History Museum, the V&A, the Science Museum, and Hyde Park / Kensington Gardens all within ten minutes' walk. The streets are wide and white-stuccoed.

    Best for families · museum-led trips · couples on a quieter, smarter London weekend

  • Neighbourhood · 4 places

    Marylebone

    Marylebone is immediately south of Regent's Park. It's a short Tube ride from Mayfair (Bond Street to Baker Street is three minutes on the Jubilee line), and Marylebone High Street is a 16-minute walk from Oxford Circus.

    Best for returning visitors · couples · anyone who'd rather sleep in a real neighbourhood than next to a landmark

  • Neighbourhood · 7 places

    King's Cross

    King's Cross has been regenerated around Granary Square: Coal Drops Yard for shopping and food, Central Saint Martins, the art school, on the square itself, and restaurants including Dishoom, Caravan and Granary Square Brasserie.

    Best for short trips with a hard travel anchor · Eurostar passengers · first-timers willing to base in a less famous neighbourhood

  • Neighbourhood · 9 places

    South Bank / Waterloo

    South Bank / Waterloo here means the south side of the Thames from the London Eye to Tower Bridge, with Waterloo station as the transport hub. It's a riverside walk and a theatre district: the National Theatre on the South Bank, The Old Vic on The Cut, and the Bridge Theatre between City Hall and Tower Bridge.

    Best for theatre-led trips · Borough Market obsessives · second-trip visitors who've done the standard tourist arc and want a different perspective on the city

Plan the trip

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