Staying at The Clermont? Here’s How to Make the Most of a London Weekend

A weekend in London sounds like plenty of time until you start making a list. Buckingham Palace, Covent Garden, the West End, galleries, afternoon tea, a proper pub lunch, maybe the London Eye, and suddenly two days look rather short.

The trick is not trying to see everything. It is choosing a good part of the city to stay in and building your weekend around places that naturally fit together.

With hotels at Charing Cross and Victoria, The Clermont gives you two very different starting points for a London weekend. Charing Cross suits travellers who want theatres, galleries and busy central streets on their doorstep, while Victoria works nicely for classic London sightseeing.

Here is how you could make either one work.

Friday Evening: Resist the Urge to Do Too Much

After travelling into London, the temptation is to drop your luggage and immediately start sightseeing. Unless you arrive particularly early, save the ambitious plans for Saturday.

If you choose The Clermont Charing Cross, take a walk around Trafalgar Square and the Strand instead. The hotel is beside Charing Cross Station, with Trafalgar Square, the National Gallery and the West End all close by.

It is enough to give you that unmistakable feeling of having arrived in London without turning the evening into a race between landmarks.

Dinner does not need much planning either. There are plenty of restaurants around Covent Garden and the West End, but staying in is also an option. Platform 7 at Charing Cross serves British-inspired dishes, cocktails and wines in a setting that draws on the hotel’s railway history.

That makes the first evening at The Clermont pleasantly easy, especially after a long journey.

Saturday: Give Yourself One Proper London Day

Saturday is the day to put comfortable shoes on and explore.

From Charing Cross, you can reach the National Gallery in around four minutes on foot according to the hotel’s local guide. St James’s Park is around a ten-minute walk, while the London Eye is listed at approximately 12 minutes away.

Rather than treating these as boxes to tick, leave some gaps in the day. Walk through Trafalgar Square, wander towards Westminster, stop when somewhere looks interesting and allow yourself a long lunch.

London rewards that kind of wandering.

If you are staying at Victoria instead, you have another strong base for sightseeing. The hotel’s rooms are just a short distance from Victoria Station, making it easy to travel elsewhere when your plans take you beyond the immediate area.

By late afternoon, returning to The Clermont for an hour can be much more appealing than pushing through until dinner. A shower, coffee and a little time off your feet can completely reset the evening.

Make Saturday Night the Occasion

If you are only in London for a weekend, Saturday evening deserves more thought than squeezing in another attraction.

For Charing Cross guests, the West End is an obvious choice. Have dinner before the performance, see a musical or play, then walk back afterwards rather than ending the night with a complicated journey across the city.

You could also turn dinner itself into the evening.

At Victoria, The Soak offers British dishes alongside an Asian selection in a striking space with high ceilings and arched windows. The hotel also has a Tea Lounge and other options for drinks and dining.

One advantage of staying somewhere as central as The Clermont is that going back to change before dinner does not have to consume a large chunk of the evening.

Sunday Should Be Slower

Sunday morning is not the time for six alarms and a sightseeing spreadsheet.

Have breakfast, leave your luggage sorted and choose one part of London you have not properly enjoyed yet. If you are around Charing Cross, Cecil Court is an interesting alternative to another major attraction. The Victorian street is known for books, antiques and small shops, and the hotel places it about six minutes away on foot.

You could also make afternoon tea part of the final day. Charing Cross serves traditional afternoon tea in its Conservatory, giving you a very British finish to the weekend without needing another journey across London.

And if the weather refuses to cooperate, a comfortable room becomes much more valuable. Charing Cross offers everything from cosy Classic Doubles to Superior King rooms and larger Studio Suites with separate lounge areas.

Leave Some London for Next Time

Trying to conquer London in 48 hours usually results in sore feet and a camera roll full of places you barely remember seeing.

A better weekend has breathing room.

Pick a few things you genuinely want to do, group them by area and accept that another visit will be necessary. Choosing The Clermont as your base helps because you can begin exploring without first spending a large part of the morning getting into central London.

You might not see everything in one weekend. You probably should not try. London is much better when you give yourself enough time to actually enjoy where you are.