Review: Hyde & Seek, Lancaster Gate’s £42m New Hotel

A hotel is only as good as its staff. You can spend £42m giving a hotel an entirely new identity, but if the staff aren’t top-notch, a lick of paint won’t cover it. But at the former Corus Hotel at Lancaster Gate, the Goddard Littlefair-led interiors overhaul is overshadowed by the warmth of the team recruited for its grand reopening as Hyde & Seek. Rebecca Cox checks in, and is utterly charmed. 

Hyde & Seek: Design & Location

For anyone who knew the Corus, you’ll notice that this refurb is more than just a standard upgrade. Immersive Hospitality Management (IHM) closed its flagship London property in September 2025 and spent a year (and £42 million) turning it into something completely new and design-focused. The result is Hyde & Seek, a 309-room hotel that now sits in Marriott Bonvoy’s Tribute Portfolio, the brand’s collection of independently-minded hotels that promise personality over cookie-cutter familiarity. More on the hotel’s personalities to follow. 

The design brief appears simple: take a grand Victorian building on the edge of Hyde Park and bring the park in. Interiors studio Goddard Littlefair has done exactly that. The palette runs green and blue throughout, walls in the all-day café are covered in foliage, rooms feature floral and garden-themed motifs and artworks. The effect is calming, rather than twee. There are a few more jarring bold brights worked throughout, and a few of the artwork choices feel like a swing and a miss; but the fabrics and soft furnishings, particularly in the common areas, are chic, cosy and welcoming. The themes of the hotel are tied to the colourful characters who lived in Bayswater and Lancaster Gate over the years. For example, J.M. Barrie lived a few minutes’ walk away on Bayswater Road, overlooking Kensington Gardens, which feels apt for a hotel called Hyde & Seek, which brings playfulness into its design and food and beverage offerings, too. 

The rooms are cosy and comfy, with smaller rooms offering large comfy beds and neat shower-only bathrooms, and bigger category suites offering freestanding baths and luxe marble details. Some of the finishing touches are a work in progress; our air con ran cold no matter what we did, and the Japanese toilet wasn’t wired in yet, but hopefully these are teething issues that the team of helpful staff can troubleshoot on demand. 

Food & Drink

Speaking of the helpful staff, it was in Seekers Restaurant & Bar that we met Nathan, the most charming man in the building. We took every recommendation he gave us, and all were outstanding. He told us about the transformation of the hotel, the highlights of the area, his favourite features and hidden gems not to be missed. His enthusiasm was contagious, upgrading a decent meal at a decent hotel restaurant to a memorable dining experience. Highlights included the chicken and tarragon pie starter, the dover sole main, and the sticky toffee pudding – it sounds like standard British pub grub, but under the direction of Executive Head Chef Ranjitkumar Sukumaran, the food hits a really high note. And for an extra special (and incredibly delicious) surprise, order the Mrs Seek cocktail. 

 

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C&TH Key Notes 

• The drink to order: Mrs Seek cocktail
• The dish to order: Sticky toffee pudding with miso caramel sauce
• The room to request: The Townhouse Suite if you want more than a modest crashpad
• The unexpected extra: Charming conversation with every member of staff we met
• Best for: A comfy, budget-friendly park-adjacent bolthole

The Key Facts

• Address: Hyde & Seek, London Hyde Park (a Tribute Portfolio Hotel), 1 Lancaster Gate, London, W2 3LG, United Kingdom
• Star Rating: 4 stars
• Phone: +44 20 7262 5022 
• Website: hydeandseekhotel.com
• Rooms: 309 guest rooms and suites in total
• Room rates: from £270 per night
• Accessible rooms: Yes; Deluxe and Superior rooms are fully accessible; the property has accessible travel paths, accessible bathrooms, lifts, and features such as lower sinks and grab rails in some rooms
• Check-in / check-out: Check-in from 15:00 (3 pm); check-out by 12:00 (noon). Contactless and express options are available
• Sustainability credentials: Marketed as climate-positive via a partner scheme that removes 1 tonne of CO₂ per stay through verified direct-air capture (Climeworks), with removal certificates issued to guests
• Nearest Tube: Lancaster Gate (Central line), about a 2-minute walk; Paddington Station (Elizabeth line, Bakerloo, Circle, District, Hammersmith & City, plus National Rail/Heathrow Express) is a 10 minute walk
• Parking: No on-site parking. Paid street parking is available nearby

The Last Word

A four-star chic city crash-pad with seriously memorable five-star service. Pop in for a chat with Nathan if you want an instant mood lift.