Rosewood London – an insurance palace of 1914 on High Holborn

The former headquarters of the Pearl Assurance Company became Rosewood's first hotel in Europe in 2013 – with a marble staircase seven storeys high and a suite that has its own postcode.

At the heart of Rosewood London, a staircase of Pavonazzo marble rises through all seven storeys of the building beneath a cupola 166 feet high. It was built for an insurance company: this Edwardian palace on High Holborn was the headquarters of the Pearl Assurance Company, and since October 2013 it has been Rosewood's first hotel in Europe.

The hotel stands at 252 High Holborn, in the borough of Camden, between the West End and the City of London.

01The Pearl Assurance building

The building dates from 1914 and is listed Grade II. Its street frontage, its dome and the great marble staircase were all restored when the hotel was created, in a renovation that Rosewood puts at £85 million.

02Tony Chi's interiors

The rooms, event spaces and public areas were designed by Tony Chi and Associates, while the bar and the Holborn Dining Room were designed by Martin Brudnizki. Rosewood today gives the hotel 263 rooms and 45 suites, nine of which are signature suites known as houses.

03A suite with its own postcode

The largest of them is the Grand Manor House Wing, with six bedrooms, a private lift and its own entrance from the street. The hotel describes it as the only suite in the world with a postcode of its own, and in 2016 it was named best hotel suite at the European Hospitality Awards. Its guests have access to the Manor Club, with butler and concierge service.

04Scarfes Bar and the Holborn Dining Room

Scarfes Bar is named after the caricaturist Gerald Scarfe, whose drawings hang on its walls, and serves cocktails to live jazz. The Holborn Dining Room offers British classics with a modern touch, while the Mirror Room serves contemporary dishes and afternoon tea.

The hotel's spa, Sense, a Rosewood Spa, has seven treatment rooms, among them a suite for couples, together with a sauna, a steam room and a fitness suite. It is open to non-residents.

05Holborn and its neighbours

Lincoln's Inn Fields and Sir John Soane's Museum are a few minutes' walk to the south, the British Museum a short walk to the west, and the Inns of Court and the City lie to the east. The whole city is in VERA PI's guide to London, and more great hotels are collected on metromode.co.

06Making the most of a stay

Take the marble staircase at least once rather than the lift. Spend an evening in Scarfes Bar for the jazz and the drawings, and book the Holborn Dining Room for a British lunch. Sir John Soane's Museum, across Lincoln's Inn Fields, makes a fine morning visit.

For a weekend. For a lifetime.