Wandering around the stylish area of St. James’s in south west London, you’d be forgiven for overlooking the grand Victorian mansion block where St. Ermin’s Hotel is set. After all, the area is full of ornate buildings, from Westminster Abbey to Buckingham Palace, and the hotel has a tucked-away location, framed by a lush green archway that makes the entrance hard to spot.
But this discreet, unassuming exterior is precisely why the hotel has such a rich and interesting history. Within this red-brick building, historical events worthy of a spy novel took place. While it may simply be a four-star hotel now, it was long associated with the UK’s secret intelligence agencies.
St. Ermin’s Hotel was recently listed as number six on TripAdvisor’s Travellers’ Choice Awards Best of the Best 2025, putting it among the top hotels in the world. It was praised for its top-notch location, comfy beds, and traditional high teas, all things that a traveller to London will be interested in.
But in the 1930s, many residents and visitors to the hotel were more interested in its strategic location than its full English breakfast. Britain was on the brink of war, and the hotel just happened to be close to government offices such as the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), MI9, a secret department of the War Office in WW2, and the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), which got its handle of MI6 during the war.
It was the perfect spot for secretive meetings and became a place for MI6 to discreetly interview new recruits. In 1940, Winston Churchill held a meeting with several important guests who became founding members of the SOE (Special Operations Executive), otherwise known as Churchill’s Secret Army. Churchill was said to have enjoyed drinking his favourite champagne in the hotel’s Caxton Bar, which is still open to this day. Grab a cosy leather chair and enjoy a cocktail in this relaxed lounge, which would be the perfect place to thumb through your favourite spy novel.
History buffs will be pleased to see that the hotel has preserved many of the artefacts from its history, including an SOE silk, complete with coded messages, and SOE field equipment, which is on display in the lobby.
Just before the war, St. Ermin’s was also the site of guerilla warfare classes, some of which were run by MI6. Notable people in the groups included Noël Coward, who had abandoned his theatre work to carry out secret political missions during WW2, and Anthony Blunt, a famous art historian later revealed to be a member of the Cambridge Five spy ring.
Nowadays, a visit to the hotel is more of a relaxed experience, with over 330 rooms and suites that offer plush surroundings and extras from bathrobes to Nespresso machines. Head to the Tea Lounge, beautifully decorated with ornate Rococo plasterwork, to enjoy an elegant afternoon tea with scones, perfectly-prepared pastries, and the option to add bottomless Cremant.
Overlooking the hotel’s courtyard is the Caxton Grill, which has an ever-changing menu of seasonal produce. In fact, some of its ingredients come from the rooftop of the hotel, where there are beehives and a kitchen garden, growing some of the herbs, fruit, and vegetables used by St. Ermin’s kitchen.
And while you may not be booking the hotel because of its proximity to Britain’s spy agencies, there’s plenty to do on your doorstep. It’s steps away from St. James’s Park tube to zip you around London, or you can walk to the Institute of Contemporary Arts and explore the latest exhibits, take a tour of Spencer House, which was owned by Princess Diana’s family, or see St. James’s Palace where many a grand royal event is still held.
Or you could simply pull up a leather chair in the lounge, and quietly people watch, seeing if you can spot an undercover spy hosting a clandestine meeting.
Have a story you want to share? Email us at webtravel@reachplc.com
This story originally appeared on Express.co.uk
