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POSTED: 18 NOVEMBER 2011

Destination: London

JOHN ROZENTALS visits London and revels in a few nights at the top end of the Monopoly board. Images: SANDRA BURN WHITE

“Good evening, Mr Rozentals. Welcome home.”

The greeting comes from Jim Burns, the Athenaeum’s already tall doorman, who becomes impossibly tall when his top hat comes into view.

Jim’s something of a legend in London’s posh Mayfair district, not just for his two-metres-plus height but also for his freakish recollection of guests’ names and faces — and for the easy-going banter and helping hand that really do make you feel at home.

That is exactly the impression that matters at the family-owned Athenaeum, which prides itself on providing a cosy niche for its many regular guests, mainly from other parts of Britain but also from abroad.

And while many top-end hotels seem to prefer adult company, the Athenaeum is just as much about families as it is about business travellers, honeymooners or baby-boomer couples relishing their freedom.

That’s shown in the style and decoration of some of the apartments that adjoin the hotel proper, in the presence of a kid’s concierge, and in a deal with Disney to open the world’s first hotel-based Winnie the Pooh playroom.

Not that more mature tastes aren’t catered for. Among the attractions is the Whisky Bar, where at last count resident whisky sommelier Angelo Gobbi had accumulated some 270 delectable drops, and where he holds regular tastings and whisky-food-matching exercises.

The accommodation is ... well ... sumptuous.

Our suite has a separate lounge room with plush furnishings, thoughtfully designed desk and free wifi that works immediately and at lightning pace. We wonder why the latter seems all too difficult in otherwise-classy Australian digs.

King-size seems to underestimate the acreage of the bed and the shower recess would facilitate a meeting deemed dangerous in many parts of the world. After the cramped conditions on a two-person motor cruiser on the Thames, this really is luxury.

The view is straight over Piccadilly to Green Park, where squirrels will eat from your hand and where King Charles II and many subsequent royals have promenaded.

Yes, this is very much royal territory and adjacent to many of the landmarks immediately associated with London ... Buckingham Palace, Westminster, the Queen Victoria Memorial, St James Park, Hyde Park, Marble Arch. The list goes on.

It’s a great base to occupy. Walk north-east along Piccadilly and it’s just a few blocks to Fortnum & Mason. Gourmet paradise — think David Jones Food Hall and multiply by any factor you’d like.

Then not many steps to Regent Street, probably London’s premier shopping precinct, where virtually every building is registered as being of historical or architectural value. You could easily spend a day wandering just half a dozen or so blocks to Oxford Circus.

One of our finds there was the National Geographic UK Store, where you could have a very hearty full English breakfast and get reasonable change out of £10.

Head the other way, past Hyde Park Corner, to Knightsbridge and a plethora of cheap eateries of seemingly all persuasions, before turning left into Sloane Street and gawking at the ridiculously expensive fashion so artistically presented to tempt London’s “Sloane Rangers” ... and boggle at a system that allows beautiful “public” gardens to be locked off and be only accessible to those fortunate and wealthy enough to have a key.

The walk to Chelsea and the Thames riverbank will take a couple of hours but provides a fascinating exercise in people watching and window shopping — and there are plenty of opportunities to duck into a pub for a pint of Spitfire Ale or similar.

There and back it’s a good day out, especially when you’re greeted at the end by “Good evening, Mr Rozentals. Welcome home.”

Disclosure: John Rozentals was a guest of the Athenaeum Hotel.

CONTACT DETAILS

The Athenaeum Hotel, 116 Piccadilly, Mayfair. Phone +44 20 7499 3464. Web: www.athenaeumhotel.com.

National Geographic UK Store, 83-97 Regent Street, London. Phone +44 20 7025 6960. Web: www.shopnatgeo.co.uk.

Green Park. Web: www.royalparks.org.uk.

Official London City Guide. Web: www.visitlondon.com.

Fortnum & Mason ... a mecca for lovers of fine food and wine.

The Athenaeum Hotel's whisky bar ... at last count some 270 delectable drops.

The Athenaeum Hotel ... a wonderful outlook over Green Park.

Jim Burns ... a prolific memoery for names and faces.

The Athenaeum Hotel ... suites are plush, with separate lounge areas.

Marble Arch.

The Athenaeum Hotel ... looking out over genuine royal territory.

Above and below: The black and white of fashion are clearly on show outside Buckingham Palace.

The Athenaeum Hotel ... rooms are ... well ... sumptuous.

A place to suggle up and enjoy life's finer things ... The Athenaeum Hotel's dining room.

A reflection on fashion ... Sloane Street is packed with the bizarre and impossibly expensive.