London, United Kingdom

The Zetter Bloomsbury

The Zetter Bloomsbury Photos

Style

Collector's cornucopia

Setting

British Museum neighbour

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Backed by the British Museum and bedecked with its own cabinet of curiosities, The Zetter Bloomsbury echoes its creative surroundings with a welcoming ease. Resting across six townhouses on Montague Street, this boutique hotel feels closer to a private residence than anything else, with thoughtful interiors, curated corners and lived-in lounges soundtracked by the crackle of a wood-burning fire. Breakfasts unfold in the Orangery, before the buzzy Parlour bar takes over for cocktails, and manicured gardens make the most of London’s sporadic sunshine. 

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Facilities

Photos The Zetter Bloomsbury facilities

Need to know

Rooms

68, including nine suites.

Check–Out

11am, and check-in is at 3pm. Both are flexible, subject to availability and an additional charge.

Also

Two of the Deluxe rooms have adapted bathrooms for guests with limited mobility. There are lifts servicing all floors, level walkways around the gardens, corridors just about wide enough for wheelchairs, and level access to the bar, restaurants and living areas. The main entrance is staired, but there's a lift available on request for step-free access.

At the hotel

Garden with an outdoor yoga deck and gym; communal living rooms with wood-burning fireplaces; charged laundry service, and free WiFi throughout. In rooms: Roberts radio and speaker, air-conditioning, hot water bottle with a hand-knitted cover, minibar, tea- and coffee-making kit, free glass-bottled water, bathrobes, slippers and Verden bath products.

Our favourite rooms

Vintage furnishings, regal Georgian windows and comforting additions (including hot water bottles with hand-knitted covers) give every room character and warmth. If you're looking to maximise on natural light, avoid the lower-ground-floor Cosy Courtyard Rooms and opt instead for a Superior or Deluxe Garden King for their west-facing vantage points. The Terrace Suite elevates things further still, with private outdoor space, a grand four-poster bed and in-room bath tub.

Packing tips

A well-loved copy of anything by the Bloomsbury Group — we’re particularly partial to ‘Mrs Dalloway’ and her idyllic London musings.

Also

You’ll find the hotel’s small gym in a timber-clad cabin at the edge of the garden, equipped with Nohrd equipment and an outdoor space for away-from-it-all yoga flows.

Pet‐friendly

Small, well-behaved dogs are welcome in all but a handful of Superior rooms for £25. They can’t be left alone in rooms, but are welcome to join you in the Parlour or outside at The Orangery. See more pet-friendly hotels in London.

Children

Children of all ages are welcome; over-16s are charged as adults. Cosy Courtyard Rooms can interconnect (subject to availability); a free cot can be added to all rooms for under-twos, and some Deluxe rooms accommodate a free extra bed for under-16s.

Food and Drink

Photos The Zetter Bloomsbury food and drink

Top Table

As the weather warms, the hotel’s garden comes alive with barbecued goods and sun-trapped tables. In early July, a large projector descends to stream Wimbledon’s must-see matches.

Dress Code

Anything in one of Liberty London’s Tana Lawn prints to match the botanical interiors of The Orangery.

Hotel restaurant

Watching out over the manicured gardens from its back-of-the-townhouse perch, The Orangery is all arched Georgian windows, hanging houseplants and colour-cloaked seating. Breakfast and afternoon tea are the only meals served here, but à la carte options — featuring buttery eggs royale and hearty full Englishes — are enticing enough to let you forgive the lack of evening dining. A little after noon, you’ll find a selection of delicately prepared finger sandwiches, tiered alongside jam- and cream-coupled scones and ceramic mugs of artfully brewed breakfast tea.  

Your central locale ensures revered restaurants are never more than a few minutes’ walk away; but should you find yourself longing for a quick bite, the laidback Parlour has a selection of comforting small plates (homemade cheeseburgers, fish finger sandwiches, triple-cooked chips) served throughout the day. 

Hotel bar

The Parlour’s drinks menus move with the day: artisan coffees and hand-picked teas provide morning fuel, before signature twists on classic cocktails welcome evenings with just the right kick — the Apiary will have you buzzing with its small-batch bourbon and Black Bee honey hints.

Last orders

The Orangery serves breakfast from 7.30am to 10.30am, afternoon tea is from 12.30pm, and dinner ends at 9.30pm. The Parlour is open between 10am and 11.30pm.

Room service

Anything from The Parlour’s menu can be ordered up to your room from 10am till 9.30pm.

Location

Photos The Zetter Bloomsbury location
Address
The Zetter Bloomsbury
2-7 Montague Street
London
WC1B 5BP
United Kingdom

The Zetter Bloomsbury in London sits along an esteemed street in its namesake West End district, right next to the British Museum.

Planes

Most international flights will touch down at London Heathrow, which is a little over an hour’s drive depending on traffic. If you can land into London City, it's a slightly closer 45-minute drive; and from Gatwick, it’s more like 90 minutes. For all, you may find public transport faster.

Trains

Russell Square is a five-minute walk and your nearest Tube station for Piccadilly Line routes. If it’s the Central Line you’re after, Holborn is a 10-minute walk; and for Northern and Elizabeth Line links, Tottenham Court Road is a similar distance.

Automobiles

You won’t need a car in London, public transport is reliable and traffic makes driving a feat best left to locals. If you consider yourself one of the brave ones, there are two NCP carparks nearby, one on Bloomsbury Square and another by Brunswick Square.

Worth getting out of bed for

The Zetter Bloomsbury situates you along the spine of London’s literary heart. The British Museum and its catalogue of cultural artefacts sit (quite literally) in your backyard; but if you’re here to cosplay as a scandalous, post-Victorian novelist, a ramble around Tavistock Square and Gordon Square should provide ample inspiration. The Charles Dickens Museum and Foundling Museum showcase earlier chapters of this neighbourhood’s history, while the Horse Hospital flips the script with a rotating cast of contemporary artists. 

For storytelling of a different sort, Curzon Bloomsbury is an intimate cinema set in the Brutalist Brunswick Centre. And if its idle shopping you’re after, Lamb’s Conduit Street plays host to legendary names from 40 Colori tailors to book and stationary staples like Persephone Books, Pentreath & Hall, and Volte Face. 

Local restaurants

Tradition-steeped Mama Pho comforts as much as its name suggests with bowls of broth that have been brewed for over eight hours, enlivened with fragrant Vietnamese fillings. Since opening in 1983, Ciao Bella has earnt itself institutional status among locals for its no-frills Italian food and rounded wine pairings. Speaking of grapes, family-style dinners at The Life Goddess bring the finest of Greek fare and oinos to Store Street. 

Local cafés

Fortitude Bakehouse hides behind Russell Square station and sells its slow-fermented pastries and speciality beignets for takeout from behind its iconic, bright blue stable doors. And if you'd rather somewhere to idle a while, Honey & Co sweetens Store Street with its Middle Eastern brunches and handmade, shelf-adorning pottery. 

Local bars

Bloomsbury’s noted novelists had more than writing in common — they all understood your finest prose comes after a pint or two. OK fine, that might be an assumption, but Charles Dickens and Karl Marx were both rumoured to have spent a fair amount of their time at local haunts The Lamb and Museum Tavern; whether or not they were searching for inspiration or just a really good drink is your call. 

Reviews

Photos The Zetter Bloomsbury reviews

Anonymous review

By Mr & Mrs Smith

Every hotel featured is visited personally by members of our team, given the Smith seal of approval, and then anonymously reviewed. As soon as our reviewers have returned from this cosy hotel beside the British Museum and finished admiring its treasure trove of artefacts, a full account of their city break will be with you. In the meantime, to whet your wanderlust, here's a quick peek inside The Zetter Bloomsbury in London… 

First came Charles Dickens, then came Virginia Woolf — now comes The Zetter Bloomsbury. Anticipating the third outpost from these Smith-approved hoteliers, we had our expectations set somewhat high; and once we heard word they’d chosen London’s literary quarter as the hotel’s location, our hearts were already won. 

Much like the creatives that came before him, interiors-expert James Thurstan Waterworth (ex Soho House) turned to his surroundings for inspiration. Defining architectural features — Georgian sash windows, piano nobile entrances, quirky corridors — were carefully maintained during renovations. But look to its curio-filled corners and you’ll see hand-picked references to the British Museum’s worldly artefacts in intricate African tapestries, Turkish ottomans and antique furnishings.

It’s a well-to-do design that extends to ensconcing rooms, too, while fire-warmed living spaces, a front-of-house bar and plant-laced conservatory gives this boutique hotel its welcoming, domestic rhythm. Out back, a surprisingly sprawling garden invites the very sort of idling that inspired Bloomsbury’s brightest.

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