The Bloomsbury

An elegant townhouse hotel steps from the British Museum, in an Edwin Lutyens building of 1932 that originally housed the YWCA — and home to the double-height Coral Room, one of London's prettiest bar spaces. An evening cocktail beneath the Coral Room's pink hues and original Art Deco chandelier is the move, and the Negroni is reliable. Come early evening for the best light in that room, with the British Museum next door for morning culture; courtyard-facing rooms are quietest. It pairs genuine architectural pedigree with a bar worth visiting in its own right — Bloomsbury elegance with a room people come just to drink in.