London Luxury

A marble fireplace makes an apartment at the Connaught especially cozy.

In the hotels themselves, the two-Michelin-starred Marcus Wareing at the Berkeley lures serious foodies with modern European food in posh surroundings. At Koffmann's, chef Pierre Koffmann has created a seasonally inspired menu of French brasserie favorites. The intimate Blue Bar, meanwhile, is a known celebrity hangout.

Claridge's guests can enjoy all-day dining — particularly a traditional afternoon tea — in the hotel's aptly-named, deco-inflected Reading Room. The hotel's Fumoir bar serves classic cocktails in Lalique crystal. And when guests are ready for a legendary dining experience, celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay is ready to dazzle with his take on modern European cuisine.

The Blue Bar at the Berkeley is a comfortable retreat.

At Helene Darroze at the Connaught, the namesake two-starred chef employs regional and seasonally inspired ingredients inspired by her native southwestern France. In the Connaught Bar, designer David Collins' 21st-century interpretation of the original Edwardian architecture combines with an award winning cocktail menu to deliver the finest traditions of the past with innovative new twists.

The Connaught also boasts the first stand-alone Aman Spa, with an Asian-inspired aesthetic and treatments inspired by the wellness traditions of China, Thailand and India.

"The Greater China and Asia market represents exponential growth potential for London," says Maybourne's Alden. "As luxury hotels synonymous with British heritage and incomparable standards of service, we are keen to ensure truly exceptional experiences for guests from this important region."

That goal is being facilitated by a push for easy visas from the British foreign office. The British embassy boasts that 96 percent of Chinese nationals who apply for a UK visa get one, and the average processing time is fewer than seven days. New procedures allow simultaneous application for a UK and a Shengen visa, and Britain issued about 289,000 visas to Chinese in 2012-13, nearly one-third more than during the same period in 2010-11.

A "mobile visa service", which allows visa teams to collect forms and data at business executives' workplaces, will probably be expanded to cities beyond Beijing and Shanghai. And next year, says the embassy's visa manager Dominique Hardy, a "super-priority" visa for businesspeople can be processed in 24 hours.

That's all great news for Chinese travelers seeking the ultimate taste of London luxury.