If you are looking for a London King Charles III’s coronation trip is in style — and happens to have a spare $15,868 (£13,000) that burns a hole in your butler’s pocket — we have deals for for you.
The capital’s impeccable gilded Hotel Café Royal will offer guests a “Crown Jewels Experience” from April 1 to October 1. It includes an overnight stay in the Royal Room and extras. Other regal luxuries that can only be described as a precious sum.
The luxury property is located in the heart of London’s Piccadilly Street, where bustling Soho meets Mayfair and St. James’s, and consider the likes of Princess Diana to be the famous royals that adorn its foyer.
This package includes a stay in the Royal Suite, sumptuously personified. It is a 3,251 square foot luxury wall-to-wall residence consisting of 2 bedrooms, a living room and a bathroom equipped with a marble bathtub and shower. The complimentary breakfast, which the hotel describes as “fit for a king,” is served by a private butler.
The suite also features a work and seating area in each bedroom, plus a butler’s pantry and your own personal dressing room – all outfitted with premium pleasures.
The package also includes a VIP trip to the Tower of London after regular sightseeing hours. A chauffeur-driven limousine will drop you off for a personal tour led by one of London’s iconic beef stall guards.
After the tour, guests will be taken to a champagne reception and see first-hand the real jewels and royal collection at Jewel House.
“Treasures on display at Jewel House include the world’s largest diamond, the 17th-century solid gold St. Edward’s Crown and the Sovereign Orb, used in the coronation and Crown of the House. 20th century royal country”, according to the hotel.
It’s certainly enough to satisfy the palate of the wildest of royalists.
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After your exclusive tours, another limo driven by your driver will take you back to the Royal Suite.
If money isn’t an issue, it can be a great way to spend 24 hours. However, if $15,868 is too high for your liking, here’s how to do something similar for a fraction of the price.
Expensive but not completely forbidden way
Hotel
Find a luxury hotel suite – let alone one with plenty of royal ties – in the British capital for the week King Charles’ coronation (takes place on May 6) for a reasonable price is not easy. However, it can be done. Have some London hotel used by actual royals.
For example, you could choose Claridge’s, a classic Grade A property with more royal history than you could shake the golden scepter at (Prince Charles and Princess Diana had their wedding reception here) . Rates start at $2,125 (£1,740) per night for the Deluxe Junior Room.
If you want to up the bet, choose a room rate with all the amenities, including a full English breakfast delivered to your room, two Claridge’s Frette bathrobes with your initials, and a bottle Laurent-Perrier rose water on arrival. It will cost you around $2,357 (£1,930).
Just in case you want to leave with some of your own jewels around coronation time, this Mayfair shopping district is within a short walking distance of the famous high-end shopping strip on Bond Street.
Tourism
Just because you’re paying for a smaller hotel space doesn’t mean you have to save on the size of your vehicle. A leading London-based luxury car company (who declined to be named) quoted around $1,099 (£900) — or about $1,318 in total when you factor in 20% value-added tax. — for car rental services. The cost includes four hours aboard a Rolls-Royce Phantom VIII with a private chauffeur.
When renting a luxury car worth about half a million dollars with your own driver, it’s not uncommon for you to pay for a minimum of four hours. Also, if you’re looking to tour the Tower of London, you’ll need more time.
Visit the VIP Tower of London
You can book your VIP Tower of London tours without a middleman by booking directly through Historic Royal Palace. Deals include an evening excursion away from the crowds that culminates in the ancient “Key Ceremony”.
Prices start at around $1,172 (£960) per person with tax. This package includes 20 guests, which works out to just $58.60 (£48) per person, if you have a large enough family or group of friends.
total cost
Factoring in a base room at Claridge’s with lots of accents, using a Rolls-Royce with a private chauffeur and experiencing the VIP Tower of London outside of regular visitor hours, you’re looking to spend a total of around $4,852.59 (£3,970) .
While you won’t get to see the gems alone, it will be around $12,228 (£10,000) less than you’d pay for the Hotel Café Royal package.
Affordable but flashy
Hotel
If you don’t want to pay for a set but want to stay somewhere with royal approval, The Goring is a must. This upscale hotel a short distance from Buckingham Palace has welcomed the great and the good on behalf of the British royal family for generations.
In April and May you can book a Superior Room for a slightly more reasonable $830 (£680) per night. However, you can’t actually book a room on coronation night because the hotel doesn’t take reservations publicly.
Tourism
Book a ride with Uber Exec, or better yet, Uber Lux, to enjoy all the luxury of a private ride in a premium vehicle with just one hat.
You can hire an Uber Lux to get you from The Goring to the Tower of London during daytime rush hour for around $67 (£55). Prices are likely to drop significantly during non-peak hours.
Two adult tickets to the Tower of London (experience includes crown jewels, White Tower, battleground, Medieval Palace, Bloody Tower and “Torture at the Tower” exhibit) will cost you around $73 (£59.80).
Traveling with family? The day after King Charles’ coronation, you can get free tickets (while they’re still available) for Coronation at the Royal Mews at Buckingham Palace.
Here you’ll be able to get a closer look at many of the chariots used at the coronation the day before, including the Gold State Coach. Families can also head to the Livery Room to see coronation-inspired arts and crafts and more fun activities.
total cost
Price it all — round-trip Uber Lux ride, overnight stay at The Goring and two tickets to the Tower of London — this royal stay with a total budget of $1,036 (£849.80).
By opting for this less expensive ride over the coronation holiday, you’ll save around $14,676 (or around £12,000) over Hotel Café Royal’s hugely eye-catching 24-hour package.
