Serviced apartments: Stay a while

Michelle Mannion rounds up new and improved serviced apartment properties in London and across the UK Hotels are great. Leave your stuff all over the floor and when you get back in the evening, everything will be tidied up for you. Towels will be refreshed, trays taken away, and – if you’re lucky – your bed turned down and your slippers waiting on the floor beside it. But if you stay in hotels enough, that kind of thing can lose its sheen – especially if you are checking in for more than a few days. You’d rather spread out your things and not wonder where the maid’s put them when you get back, or cook a meal yourself rather than order it from downstairs at heart-stopping prices. That’s where serviced apartments come in. Offering a more home-like environment, they can be a good option if hitting town for more than an overnight stay, and can also be cost-effective. Here is a round-up of new, refurbished and upcoming UK properties. Bridgestreet Suffolk Lane Open since last September, Bridgestreet’s latest City property is housed in a Grade II Listed building a few minutes’ walk from Cannon Street station. The 24 studios and three one-bedroom apartments are stylish and comfortable, and some have original features such as plasterwork and marble fireplaces. They have workdesks, free wifi and iPod docks. Should you not wish to avail of the kitchen, you could order from nearby Jamies wine bar. All arrivals are greeted personally, and there is video-phone entry and weekly housekeeping. Minimum stay one night. bridgestreet.com The Apartments by the Sloane Club The Sloane Club opened this collection of 18 studio, one- and two-bedroom apartments in April. Housed in two late 19th-century red-brick buildings on Sloane Gardens, they are lavishly decorated with plush furnishings, vibrant colour schemes, sleek Poggenpohl kitchens, Samsung smart TVs and Nespresso machines. Siberian goose-down duvets and L’Occitane toiletries are supplied, along with a welcome goodie bag featuring British food and drink brands. Guests can avail of a 24-hour concierge service, order meals from the Sloane Club, arrange for “special little extras” such as the “Boy’s night in” craft beer and snack package, and get discounts in local shops. Apartments are serviced every weekday. Minimum stay one week. clubapartments.co.uk Deep Blue Victoria Located on Bridge Place behind Victoria station, 12 of Deep Blue’s 20 new one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments are now open, with the rest to follow by the end of the year. They feature colourful furnishings and free wifi; some also have balconies. Deep Blue’s “Flying Butler” option offers airport transfers, groceries, additional housekeeping (apartments are serviced weekly) and dry cleaning. The company was also set to open ten Earls Court apartments this month. Minimum stay one week. deepblue-apartments.com Marlin Canary Wharf Marlin completed a £1 million revamp of its Canary Wharf property in May. Located at 9 Byng Street, the 81 apartments (ranging from studios to four new three-bedroom units) have been refurbished to a four-star standard and have free wifi, Freeview TVs, DVD players and L’Occitane toiletries. More than half have balconies. There is round-the-clock concierge cover, on-site parking (£15 per 24 hours), weekly cleaning and a minimum stay of one night. marlinapartments.com Go Native Go Native has expanded its London presence considerably in the past year. In the final quarter of 2012 it opened both a five-star 11-apartment property on Lees Place in Mayfair, and a four-star complex with 15 units in Spitalfields. In the second quarter of this year it followed that with a 15-apartment Shoreditch property, while this year it is refurbishing 18 units on Creechurch Lane in the City, and early next year will open 15 apartments in the Square Mile’s America Square (all four-star standard). Some 90 per cent of Go Native’s apartments have a one-night minimum stay. gonative.com Fraser Suites Queen’s Gate Frasers Hospitality reopened 40 of its 105 Queen’s Gate apartments in August following a £10 million refurbishment. The rest are set to be completed by next month, with meeting facilities, a gym and a bar being added. Housed in a Victorian building close to Gloucester Road station, the property has a mixture of studios, one- and two-bedroom apartments, serviced daily (except Sundays). They have kitchenettes, 40-inch LCD TVs, iPod docks, safes and free wifi. There is a 24-hour reception and concierge. Frasers has also revamped its Canary Wharf property, converting its 63 existing apartments into 96 studio and one-beds, and adding a gym. Minimum stay one night. frasershospitality.com House of Modern Living This year has seen House of Modern Living launch apartments in three new London locations. Albany House in Bloomsbury is a newly renovated Edwardian building containing studio apartments. London Square, located close to Old Street station, is a new-build development of one-bedroom apartments with balconies, while Baltimore Wharf is a brand new tower in Canary Wharf housing stylishly designed two-bedroom apartments, with a gym and pool available to guests staying for three months. Minimum stay five nights. houseofmoli.com Premier Apartments London This new waterside development opened in Limehouse Lock, three minutes’ walk from Limehouse station, in May last year. Its 21 studios, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments come complete with fully fitted kitchens, iPod docks and safes. A meet-and-greet service is available 9am-5pm, otherwise access is via a code, and there is a 24-hour on-call manager. Dry cleaning, grocery and restaurant delivery can be arranged. Minimum stay one night. premierapartmentslondon.com Max House Commercial Road Max House opened opposite Limehouse station in June. Its 18 units are a mix of modern studios, one- and two-bedroom apartments, many of which have balconies or terraces. They offer free wifi, air conditioning, Freeview TVs, secure entry systems and weekly cleaning. Minimum stay two nights. max-servicedapartments.co.uk Oakwood Monument Street Refurbishment of Oakwood’s nine apartments on the City’s Monument Street was completed in May. The studios, one- and two-bedroom units now feature new furniture and bathrooms and upgraded flatscreen TVs. They have video entry systems and a minimum stay of one week. oakwood.com Cheval Three Quays Luxury operator Cheval Residences is due to open its Three Quays property adjacent to the Tower of London by March next year. Comprising 159 studios and one- two- and three-bedroom apartments (97 serviced), the ten-storey new-build will offer views of the Thames, Tower Bridge and City Hall. Half of the units will have a colour scheme of soft apple green, burnt orange, gold and copper, the other half burgundy, plum, gold and grape. They will feature Dada kitchens, Lyndon furniture and Samsung smart TVs, and many will have balconies. There will also be 862 sqm of retail and restaurant space on the ground floor. Minimum stay one week. chevalresidences.com Staycity Serviced Apartments London Greenwich Having opened its first property in the London area in June last year – 144 units a ten-minute drive from Heathrow airport – Staycity is due to open up in Greenwich in the first quarter of next year. There will be about 160 serviced apartments split across two sites – one between Greenwich and Deptford, the other by Deptford Bridge DLR station. Both will offer 24-hour receptions and on-site car parking. Minimum stay one night. staycity.com Ascott St James/Citadines St Mark’s Last October, the Ascott Limited took over management of the Cavendish hotel on Jermyn Street. It will run it as a hotel until the end of next year, after which it plans to transform it into luxury serviced residences and rebrand it as an Ascott the Residence property. At the start of this year, the Ascott’s St Mark’s property near Angel station joined its Citadines brand and can now be booked for one-night stays. It has 80 studios, one- and two-bedroom apartments, 24-hour reception, and business and fitness corners. the-ascott.com   OTHER UK NEWS Manchester This month, SACO is moving to a new location on Minshull Street. SACO Manchester Piccadilly will have 63 apartments (studios, one- and two-bedrooms) with a minimum weekday stay of one night. It will offer a round-the-clock reception and weekly maid service. sacoapartments.com In April last year, Blue Rainbow Aparthotels launched its Manchester High Street development. It has 19 one- and two-bed apartments equipped with 42-inch plasma TVs, Egyptian cotton linen and goose-down duvets. Minimum stay one night. bluerainbowapartments.com Birmingham Birmingham is the launch city for the upcoming Aparthotels by Bridgestreet brand. Due to open next year, the city-centre property will have 82 studio, one- and two-bedroom units, a lobby, concierge, meeting facilities, fitness centre and café-bar. Bridgestreet calls the concept “a mid-scale solution for business travellers seeking city-centre locations at an affordable rate”. Minimum stay one night. apart-hotels.com Liverpool March saw the arrival of Accor’s Aparthotels Adagio brand in the UK. Located in the Grade II Listed Lewis’s building, the Adagio Liverpool City Centre has 126 studios and one-bed apartments with kitchens and free wifi. Minimum stay one night. See businesstraveller.com/tried-and-tested for a review. A second Adagio is due to open near Birmingham’s Bullring next year. adagio-city.com The Richmond Luxury Living opened in a Grade II Listed building in Hatton Garden in May. Part serviced apartments, part hotel, its Richmond suites and two-and three-bedroom apartments are stocked with Molton Brown toiletries. The property has a brasserie and event space. Weekday minimum stay one night. richmondliverpool.com Glasgow Fraser Suites Glasgow completed a refurbishment of its 98 apartments and public areas in March. The property is housed in an 1850s building on Albion Street and offers free wifi, a fitness centre, a meeting room and daily maid service. Minimum stay one night. frasershospitality.com Edinburgh Open since July, Destiny Scotland’s St Andrew Square Apartments are a few minutes’ walk from Waverley station. The ten studios and one two-bedroom unit have free wifi and smart TVs. Minimum stay is two nights. destinyscotland.com