A London hotel just dropped a $15,000 coronation package
If you're looking for a London trip to mark King Charles III's coronation in style — and happen to have a spare $15,868 (13,000 British pounds) burning a hole in your butler's pocket — we have just the offer for you.
The capital's impeccably gilded Hotel Café Royal is offering guests a "Crown Jewels Experience" from April 1 through Oct. 1. It includes an overnight stay in the Royal Suite and other regally outrageous touches for what can only be described as a princely sum.
The high-end property sits in the heart of London's Piccadilly Street, where bustling Soho meets Mayfair and St. James's, and counts the likes of Princess Diana as famous royals to have graced its foyer.
The package includes a stay in the Royal Suite, which is glitz personified. It's 3,251 square feet of wall-to-wall luxury comprising two bedrooms, a living room and a bathroom kitted out with a marble bathtub and a rainfall shower. The complimentary breakfast, which the hotel describes as being "fit for a king," is served by a personal butler.
The suite also features a study and a seating area in each bedroom, plus a butler's pantry and your own personal dressing room — all of it sprinkled with additional high-end indulgences.
The package also includes a VIP trip to the Tower of London after regular visiting hours. A chauffeured limousine drops you off for your personal tour led by one of London's iconic beefeater guards.
Following the tour, guests will be whisked off to a Champagne reception and private viewing of the real crown jewels and royal collection at the Jewel House.
"Treasures on display at the Jewel House include the largest diamond in the world, the 17th-century solid gold St. Edward's Crown and Sovereign's Orb, used during coronations, and the 20th-century Imperial State Crown," according to the hotel.
It's surely enough to sate the appetite of the most frenzied royalist.
After your exclusive tours, another chauffeur-driven limo will drive you back to the Royal Suite.
If money is no object, it could be a brilliant way to spend 24 hours. However, if $15,868 is too steep for your liking, here's how to do something similar for a fraction of the price.
The expensive but not completely prohibitive way
Hotel
Finding a luxury hotel suite — let alone one with multiple royal connections — in the English capital during the week of King Charles' coronation (which takes place on May 6) for a sensible price isn't easy. However, it can be done. There are a number of London hotels used by actual royalty.
For example, you could opt for Claridge's, a classically A-list property brimming with more royal history than you can shake a golden scepter at (Prince Charles and Princess Diana had their wedding reception here). Rates start at $2,125 (1,740 British pounds) per night for a Deluxe Junior Room.
If you want to up the ante, select a room rate with all the trimmings, including a full English breakfast delivered to the suite, two Claridge's Frette bathrobes monogrammed with your initials and a bottle of Laurent-Perrier rose on arrival. It'll cost you around $2,357 (1,930 British pounds).
Just in case you want to leave with some jewels of your own around the time of the coronation, this Mayfair haunt is within short walking distance of the famously upmarket shopping row of Bond Street.
Travel
Just because you're paying for a smaller hotel space doesn't mean you have to skimp on the size of your transport. A leading London-based luxury car company (which declined to be named) quoted around $1,099 (900 British pounds) — or around $1,318 total when you factor in the 20% value-add tax — for car hires. The cost includes four hours in a chauffeur-driven Rolls-Royce Phantom VIII.
When hiring a luxury car worth around half a million dollars with your own personal driver, it's not uncommon to have to pay for a minimum of four hours. Also, if you're looking to fit in a visit to the Tower of London, you'll need the extra time.
VIP Tower of London tour
You can book VIP Tower of London tours without the need for a middleman by reserving tickets directly through Historic Royal Palaces. Deals include an evening tour away from the crowds culminating with the ancient "Ceremony of the Keys."
Prices start from around $1,172 (960 British pounds) per person when factoring in taxes. This package includes 20 guests, working out to just $58.60 (48 British pounds) per person, should you have a big enough family or friend group.
Total cost
Factoring in a junior room at Claridge's with extra touches, use of a Rolls-Royce with a private chauffeur and a VIP Tower of London experience out of regular guest hours, you're looking to spend a total of about $4,852.59 (3,970 British pounds).
While you won't get a private viewing of the crown jewels, it's about $12,228 (10,000 British pounds) less than you'd pay for the Hotel Café Royal package.
Affordable but glitzy
Hotel
If you don't want to shell out for a suite but want to stay somewhere with a royal stamp of approval, The Goring is a must. This high-end hotel a stone's throw away from Buckingham Palace has welcomed the great and the good on behalf of the British royals for generations.
In April and May, you can book a Superior Room at the slightly more reasonable price of $830 (680 British pounds) per night. However, you can't actually book on the night of the coronation, as the hotel isn't taking public bookings.
Travel
Book a trip with Uber Exec, or better yet, Uber Lux, to enjoy all the luxury of a private ride in a high-end vehicle at the drop of a hat.
You can hire an Uber Lux to take you from The Goring to the Tower of London during peak daytime hours for around $67 (55 British pounds). The price will likely drop considerably during non-peak hours.
Two adult tickets for the Tower of London (experiences include the crown jewels, the White Tower, battlements, the Medieval Palace, Bloody Tower and the "Torture at the Tower" exhibit) will set you back around $73 (59.80 British pounds).
Traveling with family? The day after King Charles' coronation, you can snag free tickets (while they last) for A Coronation Celebration at the Royal Mews at Buckingham Palace.
Here, you'll be able to get a closer look at many of the carriages used in the previous day's coronation procession, including the Gold State Coach. Families can also head to the Livery Room for coronation-inspired arts and crafts and more fun activities.
Total cost
Pricing it all up — round-trip Uber Lux rides, an overnight stay at The Goring and two tickets for the Tower of London — this royal stay on a budget comes to a total of $1,036 (849.80 British pounds).
By choosing this less expensive take on a coronation vacation, you'll save around $14,676 (or about 12,000 British pounds) compared to the Hotel Café Royal's extravagantly eye-watering 24-hour package.
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