MEET YOUR GUIDE
Here’s a fab interview with Andy Hotels Makes for a fascinating – and illuminating – backgrounder for this walk.
This is a standalone walk that can also be enjoyed before or after More Luxury Hotels – Their Stories & Secrets.
New York Times First
“London Walks puts you into the hands of an expert on the particular area and topic of a tour.” The New York Times
Guide Next
It all comes down to the guiding. Andy – we call him Andy Hotels – is an acknowledged expert on luxury hotels and the golden age of travel. The official historian of Brown’s Hotel, Andy Hotels is the author of the definitive histories of Brown’s and The Savoy. No surprise then that he’s the go-to expert for television documentaries and radio interviews on the subject.
The Walk
Let us go then, you and I and Andy Hotels, up the red carpet and through the portals into the world of white glove service. The walk is your Platinum Pass to what goes on behind the gilded doors and top-hatted doormen of the city’s luxury living quarters. It’s your entrée to a cast of characters more intriguing than a novel by frequent guest Agatha Christie, from royals to roués, writers to rakes, bon vivants to bankrupts…let alone con artists and crooks, spies and war criminals, actors and musicians, upstairs and downstairs.
We stop by the capital’s finest stopping places during the golden age of luxury hotels. Learn about Oscar Wilde’s fall from grace, Rudyard Kipling dying at his desk and Stephen King’s resulting Misery, Britain’s first phone call, King Zog of Albania checking in with the crown jewels, the world’s greatest chef creating culinary classics, the mystery of the body in the bathtub, the nervous breakdown of the world’s greatest hotelier, Bob Dylan writing lyrics on his dry cleaning inserts and King Charles going public with Camilla. And that’s just for starters.
Yes, welcome to our new five-star walk. Five-star in every respect.
A Smoking Cocktail of a Walk
Catherine Makepeace –
Great walk. Great guide.
Sue –
Auguste Escoffier, Cesar Ritz, Richard D’Oyly Carte, The Count of Savoie, all present and correct on a sunny Sunday morning, a short stumble from Brown’s. Add to the mix James and Sarah, Henry Ford (no not the one of black car fame), King Zog and the Albanian crown jewels, FDR, first telephone calls, a Venetian film set, rising rooms, and heaven forbid en suite bath rooms and electricity. Wow, how the other half lived! A thought to ponder, where did Margaret Thatcher meet Rudyard Kipling?
From revolting peasants to wayward writers, con men, thieves, artists and possibly the most prolific English female serial killer, up from Devon checking in, this walk has them all. To finish the feast, a fine Peach Melba. Amongst all of this intrigue, beware of a chap called Andy Hotels, now that really is a name to conjure with, jokes and all.
Wendy –
A thoroughly entertaining walk. Andy is a great guide and was so helpful when, thanks to travel hold-ups, we thought we weren’t going to make it. Highly recommend this tour.
Steve B –
A unique tour with a very knowledgeable guide! Recommended for anyone.
Harriet Calvert –
This is the best London Walk so far. I love hotels and it was great to hear from Andy some of the stories connected to them. When a member of the group asked a question he would then turn to the rest of us :I have been asked…” This was wonderful and the first time I’ve encountered it on a walk. I will go on any of his further walks. I liked his jokes.
Caroline Weiss –
Andy was fabulous! Fantastic stories and a really unique thread of history. Appreciated his dad jokes, too!
Kim Davies –
A wonderful way to spend a Saturday afternoon and a very engaging guide
Thoroughly recommended
Elaine Williamson –
Really enjoyable introduction and insight into some of the fabulous hotels in London. Thank you, Andy.
June Rose –
A wonderful way to spend a Saturday afternoon – is in the hands of Andy (Hotels) Williamson and his extensive knowledge and understanding regarding the secrets of London’s luxury hotels
The 2-hours just flew by
THANK YOU Andy
THANK YOU London Walks
Here’s to my next London Walks guided tour❣️
Vittoria D –
Delightful walk!! Fabulous stories about the ups and dows of guests, hoteliers, chefs and every other possible aspect of a luxury hotel, with interesting context about their origins in London and some key figures in their history!