This new London hotel offers everything from a biohacking lounge to a fermentation lab

Once one of London’s great department stores, Whiteley’s, in Bayswater, had lost some of its grandeur in recent decades as the retail landscape changed. But a growing trend for large-scale restoration and transformation in favour of demolition was its saviour. The Grade II-listed landmark underwent a £1.5bn redevelopment by Foster + Partners that encompassed 139 luxury apartments, which launched in 2023, alongside a Six Senses hotel and spa resort, which opened last month.

The opening marks the UK debut of the pioneering luxury wellness brand, with the new hotel offering 109 rooms and suites, alongside 14 branded residences. The serene interiors, courtesy of design firm AvroKO in collaboration with EPR Architects, unfold as a layered dialogue of the site’s past, amalgamating post-Victorian, art deco and early modernist influences.

Wallpaper* checks in at Six Senses London

What’s on your doorstep?

Long overlooked yet astutely positioned, Queensway has been smartening its act over recent years through substantial investment, replacing luggage shops and mobile phone repairers with luxury residences and high-end restaurants. As such, minutes away from the hotel, one can go for a stroll around Hyde Park, followed by an epicurean moment at Jeremy King’s mid-century diner, The Park, or open-fire gastronomy at Nela.

Who is behind the design?

‘The interior design is driven by the narrative of the building that houses it,’ says AvroKO partner Adam Farmerie, referencing both the department store and its founder. William Whiteley’s vision was shaped in part by his visit to the Great Exhibition of 1851 in London’s Hyde Park, where the vast offering of manufactured goods all displayed under one roof would go on to inspire his eclectic retail identity.

This lineage carries through spatially in retail display-led elements across the space, taking the form of vitrines, haberdashery cabinets and counter-like interventions. Furniture moves between bespoke pieces and items sourced from across Portugal, Turkey and the UK, while much of the lighting, designed by AvroKO, draws on references ranging from steamship interiors to Parisian street lamps.

The room to book

Whisking guests up to their private quarters are three colourful lifts, playfully decked out with graphic details. Across all guest rooms, more restrained elements, including hardware, modesty curtains and chevron timber floors, imbue a softer, more residential feel. Little details, such as the gold hand-shaped handles set into dark, art deco-inspired cabinetry and the handmade zellige tiles in the bathrooms, add character.

Even the smaller bedrooms feel generous, aided by open-plan bathrooms with glass shower screens that can be veiled with curtains, while around 30 guest rooms come with private terraces. The crowning glory is the Whiteley Suite, which encompasses two huge bedrooms, two marble bathrooms, a large kitchen and a tree-lined terrace with sun loungers. ‘It channels the spirit of how William Whiteley’s personal residence might have looked if it had been frozen in time shortly after the building’s opening,’ says Farmerie.

Staying for drinks and dinner?

Leading back down to the public spaces is the sole surviving feature from the original property – a restored cast-iron staircase with marble treads and brass balustrade. A preprandial drink can be enjoyed at Whiteley’s Bar, where hangovers can be avoided as all cocktails are designed to work with or without alcohol – signature offering Clouds Over Islay is equally delicious with either Bruichladdich whisky or nonalcoholic apéritif Everleaf Forest. The neighbouring café, where caffeine-free hot drinks, wellness-blend teas and protein-rich flapjacks are among the health-focused treats, is anchored by a large-scale abstract rendering of the Thames by artist Rachael Addis.

Elsehwere, a tea lounge serves botanical infusions developed with Old Tree Brewery, while Whitley’s Kitchen centres on an open kitchen, its domestic scale recalling a manor house. The dining room leans towards a European grand café, defined by its timber ceiling. Executive chef Eliano Crespi, who visited 30 British farms to select his suppliers, doles out a vegetable-forward menu with subtle Asian inflections – a Suffolk pork chop with shio koji and mustard jus among the standouts.

Where to switch off

Members’ club Six Senses Place offers access to a series of private lounges, dining rooms, bars and wellness options, while the Earth Lab, a dedicated space within all Six Senses properties worldwide, demonstrates the brand’s practical approach to conservation and sustainability, offering hands-on workshops in repurposing and botanical preparation. There’s also a Hum2n longevity clinic providing blood diagnostics, IV nutrient therapy and hormone optimisation, alongside a hyperbaric chamber.

The 2,300 sq m spa occupies the building’s former vaults. At its centre, a suspended ceramic installation by Ula Saniawa unfolds in petal-like forms, catching light and movement as you descend. Arched openings and raw textures define the space, while the art deco-style pool is anchored by a backlit glass-block wall. The spa also includes a magnesium-enriched pool, cold plunge, sauna, steam room, hammam and relaxation flotation capsule, alongside a biohacking recovery lounge and state-of-the-art gym. All guests are encouraged to book an integrated wellness assessment, which scans more than 40 biomarkers, such as galvanic response and oxygen levels. Another must-try is the Alchemy Bar, a kind of contemporary apothecary where guests are invited to transform locally foraged herbs and botanicals into personal skincare products.

The verdict

If Whiteley’s once promised that it could provide ‘everything from a pin to an elephant’, Six Senses recasts that breadth for a different era. The London landmark’s eclectic spirit very much lives on.

Six Senses London is located at 1 Redan Pl, London W2 4SA, United Kingdom

A version of this article appears in the June 2026 Travel Issue of Wallpaper*, available in print, on the Wallpaper* app on Apple iOS, and to subscribers of Apple News +. Subscribe to Wallpaper* today.