Flags and bunting are adorning the Mall and the entire city is in readiness for the biggest royal event London has seen in living memory to mark HRH Queen Elizabeth II’s remarkable 70 years on the throne. Four days of national celebrations will take place from Thursday 2nd to Sunday 5th June, but London will be the centre of the festivities, commencing with The Queen’s Birthday Parade – Trooping the Colour on Thursday 2nd June, with over 1,400 parading soldiers, 200 horses and 400 musicians.
The long weekend of celebrations continues with an historic Service of Thanksgiving at St Paul’s on the morning of Friday 3rd June, but if you’re looking to celebrate the Jubilee in London without being jostled in a crowd and would prefer to be treated like royalty, The Arbuturian have found some rather special ways to mark the occasion, from luxury afternoon teas and private tours of the Tower of London to civilised ‘street’ parties with five star food and service and no paper plates in sight!
The Goring
Proudly holding the only Royal Warrant awarded to a hotel for hospitality services, The Goring, close to Buckingham Palace, is a firm Royal favourite and will be celebrating this remarkable milestone all summer with glorious afternoon teas, resplendent cocktails and coronation-inspired dishes. Guests of the ‘Jubilee Goring Stay’ will enjoy a Jubilee Fizz in The Goring Cocktail Bar, accompanied by Jubilee canapés ‘Cornets de Saumon Fumé’ before a three-course dinner in the Michelin-starred Dining Room, with a glass of Champagne to toast a memorable occasion.
Open to non-residents, the Jubilee Afternoon Tea (available until 1st September 2022 priced £70), has been curated by the hotel’s talented pastry team and features Coronation chicken and roast sirloin of beef sandwiches, along with the most fabulous cakes such as the strawberry and raspberry Crown Diplomat tart and Her Majesty’s Royal fruit cake. For more information and reservations please visit www.thegoring.com.
The Savoy
The Savoy, Britain’s first luxury hotel, which has played host to a vast array of royal events over its history will also be looking her best this June with a special installation for ‘The Grandest of Celebrations’. Both the iconic Savoy sign and the pubic areas will be dressed in gold, green and the Royal Jubilee purple with vine leaves and crown motifs. There will also be fun, interactive elements to surprise guests. Enjoy a Great British breakfast if you’re lucky enough to have checked in for ‘The Grandest of Stays’ luxury package, while the ‘Grandest of Afternoon Teas’ will focus on the best of British produce and dishes that connect with HRH Queen Elizabeth II in different ways from savouries to start to the most refined patisserie.
Over the Bank Holiday weekend The Savoy’s musical entertainment during afternoon tea will ramp up a notch and on Sunday 5th June, The Savoy will be welcoming the Nyetimber 1968 Routemaster Bus, where guests will be able to start their stay in style by jumping on board and enjoying a perfectly chilled glass of English Sparkling Wine. For more information and reservations please visit the website.
The Stafford London
The Stafford London in St James’s will be celebrating The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee just a stone’s throw from Buckingham Palace with their very own street party in The American Bar’s secluded cobbled courtyard (£80pp) on Sunday 5th June from 12-5pm. The terrace will be adorned with bunting and, following a welcome glass of Nyetimber English sparkling wine, guests will enjoy quintessentially British party food and drinks. Quail scotch eggs, Game sausage rolls and Coronation chicken tarts will be followed by traditional British sandwiches and a barbeque serving up the likes of Chargrilled lamb cutlets with courgette, summer pea salad and salsa verde and Salmon with pickled kohlrabi and citrus crème fraîche.
No street party would be complete without classic British desserts and The Stafford’s selection is expected to delight with options including Eton Mess, Battenberg Cake and Trifle. For those looking to partake in the full weekend of Jubilee celebrations, The Stafford’s luxurious Park Suite includes a fifth-floor terrace boasting unrivalled views of London’s most famous landmarks and a prime viewing point for the RAF fly-past on Thursday 2 June at 1pm, part of the age-old Trooping the Colour parade. For more information and reservations please visit the website.
The Biltmore Mayfair
Located on London’s prestigious Grosvenor Square, The Biltmore Mayfair is showcasing the best of British in celebration of her royal highness Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee with a Corgi Afternoon Tea on Friday 27th May (£75 per adult / £35 per child). Dog lovers and corgi owners alike are invited to gather at Café Biltmore terrace to enjoy a Jubilee-themed afternoon tea and doggie afternoon tea (in partnership with Barkers Bakery). Post a picture of your corgi at Café Biltmore, tagging the hotel, and be in with the chance of winning an overnight luxury break in one of the hotel’s suites with afternoon tea at Jason Atherton’s Café Biltmore and complimentary dog bed, bowl, Mut Pups treats and shampoo included as in-room amenities for the winning pooch.
The Jubilee Afternoon Tea menu includes British classics such as coronation chicken, roast beef and smoked salmon sandwiches, scones, jam tarts and sweet treats, along with a selection of teas and a glass of bubbles. The Jubilee tea will be available on Friday 27th May for the corgi event and 4th-5th June 2022. Or why not attend the Café Biltmore Street Party (priced £65 and taking place on Thursday 2nd and Friday 3rd June) with an all day BBQ on the terrace, live entertainment, and a Pimmns and G&T trolley. For more information and reservations please visit the website.
Hotel Café Royal
Located in the heart of the city, only moments away from Buckingham Palace, what better place to celebrate the Jubilee than Hotel Café Royal? Each element of the Queen’s Jubilee Afternoon Tea (from 26th May and priced at £70 per person or £80 with a glass of N.V Veuve Clicquot Brut Champagne) has been inspired by Her Majesty and is served in the Grade II listed Oscar Wilde Lounge, historically decorated with mirrored walls, ornate gold detailing and painted ceilings. Sandwiches are inspired by the royal residences, while sweet delicacies replicate the Queen’s favourite fashion accessories. Having welcomed royalty in the past, including Princess Diana, it is the perfect venue for a royal celebration.
Hotel Café Royal is also offering guests the rare chance to be inside a Royal Palace and World Heritage site on the days of the Platinum Jubilee with the exclusive ‘Queen’s Jubilee Celebration Package’ (available to guests staying in any room or suite from £2,015 for two people) created in partnership with Beyond Curated, offering guests the opportunity to be chauffeur-driven to the iconic Royal Warrant-holding jewellers in Mayfair to see a display of Royal jewels with a Champagne reception in the jeweller’s elegant private salon before being chauffeur-driven back to the hotel for Champagne afternoon tea. The ‘Platinum Package’ (Priced at £14,795 for up to four people, only available on the 5th June 2022) features an overnight stay in the ‘Royal Suite’ and private visit to the Tower of London in a luxury Daimler once owned by the Queen Mother for a tour of the Tower grounds led by one of the Queen’s Beefeaters. The experience concludes with a Champagne reception and a private viewing of the Crown Jewels and Royal Collection. There is also the option to conclude this extraordinary experience with private dining within the Tower. For more information and reservations please visit the website.
