Last weekend Belle and I had a little weekend away together in London. With work and school, the weeks get very busy and we really enjoy taking time out every now and again to spend some quality time together.
Quality time. How wholesome I sound!
This time our trip was extra lovely, as we had been offered a room in the Cavendish Hotel, just off Piccadilly Circus. I had already been to the Cavendish once for afternoon tea, so was very excited about getting to spend the whole night there.
Belle has a thing whenever we are away somewhere, of wanting to spend as much time as possible in whatever our accommodation is. If we are at a festival for example, she is always nagging me to let her go back to the tent. I don’t know why, she just seems to like being in something.
Needless to say then, after a quick tour of the Tower of London, by 4pm on Saturday afternoon she was desperate to check in to the Cavendish Hotel. It was a beautiful day, so I was a little reluctant, but it is her favourite bit, so I gave in. We were welcomed by very friendly and efficient staff, and were thrilled to have a lovely card and box of biscuits waiting for us in our room. There was a slightly embarrassing call to reception because I couldn’t figure out how to switch the lights on, but apart from that, all good. The room was incredibly spacious, with large twin beds, additional seating and a gorgeous bathroom with a separate bath and shower.
The Cavendish Hotel is in a brilliant location, opposite Fortnum and Mason and just down the road from St James’s Park, so after an initial nose around Belle allowed me to drag her back out for a walk down to see the preparations for the London Marathon the next day and to gaze in awe at cabinets full of jellied fruits.
Because Belle likes being in a hotel room so much, we decided not to eat out that evening, so instead stocked up on snacks from Tesco and had a picnic in our room while we watched a film. I did nearly break all of the cups trying to make a cup of tea – the tea making stuff was on a shelf that slid out of the wardrobe, but it refused to stay slid, so every time you let go it went back into the wardrobe with a bit of a crash. The beds were really comfy though, and we both slept well.
We also liked the little touches, like the fact that the lights on the landing are movement activated, so save electricity, there was a fresh bottle of drinking water in our room, and the staff were very attentive to Belle, talking to her directly in a grown-up way, and even letting her keep the door key at the end of our stay as a souvenir!
The next morning and time for the best bit of staying in a hotel – breakfast! We were really pleased to see that The Cavendish Hotel serves breakfast until midday at the weekend, and our checkout wasn’t until 12pm, so we didn’t have to rush to get up early to make sure we were fed and out at a ridiculous hour. We were seated and served very quickly, and Belle quickly helped herself to all sorts of tasty treats, including pain au chocolat, hash browns and bacon, and watermelon juice. She was especially taken with the toasting machine and mini jams, and had quite a few pieces of toast just as an excuse to use a pair of tongs.
I had some fruit salad, museli, and haddock and poached eggs. It was all absolutely delicious, and set us up well for the day.
Before we checked out of course, Belle did her traditional holiday diary cam, so you can see for yourselves exactly how lovely our room was.
Brilliant video! I actually jumped when you popped out of the wardrobe, lol! Great view from your room x
Haha! Perhaps Belle and I should try our hand at horror :-)
Held the camera well, maintained concentration & kept up good flow of commentary throughout the clip. Started & finished properly. Well done Belle!
Thank you! She does seem to have a bit of a talent for it. If you fancy watching something else here is one she made at a National Trust property about her favourite flowers :-)
I became a single Mom 16 years ago, when my daughters were 5, 7 and 9. In light of my experience, if I were to give some advice to other single mommies they’d hate me now (and probably thank me in future).
When I read you were back in the hotel room by 4:30 p. m. my first thoughts were “Who’s the adult?” “the little girl doesn’t get to choose” and “if she were my daughter, I’d make it clear to her you cannot take anything for granted and you never know if there is going to be a next time”. I guess that is what most mommies do; I mean, we think what WE would do. I assume that is something inherent to the human mind, that tends to associate words/concepts/expressions heard with one’s own experience. As when somebody mentions “childbirth” and it becomes such a vivid recollection of your experience that you can almost feel the pain all over again. Or when you hear “New York” 30 years after visiting the city for the first and only time in your life and you picture yourself in the amazing Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art.
Oh, but London! I began phantasizing about London half a century ago, when we only had one TV channel and it aired a BBC course of English for foreigners on a daily basis. That is how I fell in love with the English language. As for London, very much to my regret, it still remains in the realm of Utopia for me. I’d have killed to be in Belle’s place!
But hearing her beautiful RP English was music to my ears. And she is so spontaneous and so poised too! A film director in the making? Congrats to her on a fantastic job.
I’m glad you liked her video, she does like making them! You do have a point about the ‘who is the mummy?’ thing, but then I have always been a bit of a soft touch with things like that. I did make her go out again afterwards and actually I was secretly doing it for selfish reasons as I really wanted to put down my rucksack!!
Oooooooo lovely hotel room and lovely video – I feel very jealous! Sounds like you both had a fabulous time and glad breakfast was served at a reasonable hour, a pet hate of DaBee. I’m putting this hotel on my things to do list, Bee x
I was really pleased about the breakfast thing too. It annoys me when you are meant to be on holiday but end up having to get up even earlier than normal!
Thank you for the great review and great that you both had such a great time in London. I agree with all the other comments Belle’s video was brilliant and we may just be inviting her back to do a few more. Sorry about the incident with having to call reception we usually do tell guests when they are checking in, so will follow up with the team to make sure it is happening. I agree with you about breakfast so early on days off, it is just crazy and of course you always have the option of breakfast in bed.
I hope that we can welcome you and Belle back soon!
Best regards
Neil
General Manager
WHAT A GREAT VIDEO I LOVE THE HOTEL ROOM VERY NICE ESPECIALLY ALL THE MOD CONS IM GLAD YOU ENJOYED YOURSELVES LONDON IS A NICE PLACE TO VISIT
I truly like your blog, the way you write and subject you covered are simply amazing. I know how tough it can be to get the visitors involved. I have made the decision to include your blog to my blog list.
Sliding Wardrobes London
The video is awesome. London is one of the most visited place on earth as we all know plus this great hotel. This is a great post indeed. The hotel seems to be a perfect place for a family vacation in London. Their services are fulfilling and amenities are great. For sure, kids will love it there. I am now keeping this post for future reference and vacation.