Where to stay in London as a couple

For a first weekend, we would stay between St James's and Covent Garden, where four hotels on our list stand within walking distance of the theatres, the parks and three starred tables. Sofitel London St James is on Waterloo Place, 300 m from Piccadilly Circus. Raffles London at The OWO is on Whitehall, The Savoy on the Strand facing the Thames, and St Martins Lane London 2 minutes on foot from Leicester Square.

South of the river, Bankside suits a couple who would rather walk to a gallery than to a theatre. The Hoxton Southwark is a minute from Southwark station on the Jubilee line, with Tate Modern, Borough Market and Shakespeare's Globe close by, and Novotel London Blackfriars is 800 m from both London Blackfriars and London Waterloo. East of the City, Novotel London Tower Bridge is 200 m from Tower Hill, and ibis London City - Shoreditch has Brick Lane and Spitalfields at the door. Canary Wharf, Wood Wharf and Royal Victoria Dock are further out, and we think they suit a trip built around the O2 or a flight from London City Airport.

Yes, in three hotels on our list, and the timing decides which one works for you. All three starred restaurants close on Sunday and Monday, so the evening has to fall between Tuesday and Saturday. At Sofitel London St James, the Sofitel Spa stays open until 18:30 from Tuesday to Sunday and Wild Honey St James starts dinner at 17:00, which leaves an afternoon for the couples' suite, the hammam and the jacuzzi for two before dinner in the old banking hall.

At Raffles London at The OWO, treatments run daily 10:00 to 19:00 and Mauro Colagreco serves dinner Tuesday to Saturday 18:00 to 21:30. A treatment of 90 minutes or more includes an hour of access to the spa facilities before and after. At The Savoy, Beauty & Fitness books treatments daily 10:00 to 18:30, though it publishes no double room, and Restaurant 1890 by Gordon Ramsay has only 10 tables. The hotel gives the restaurant's hours as Tuesday to Friday 16:00 to 22:45 and Saturday 12:00 to 22:45, while the MICHELIN Guide prints a shorter evening, so confirm your time when you book.

The best views in our London hotels come from a rooftop bar or restaurant more often than from a bedroom. BOKAN 38-39, on the top two floors of the 39-storey Novotel London Canary Wharf, looks 360 degrees over London, though its terrace is not served in winter and children of 12 and under may stay only until 20:00. Seabird, on the roof of The Hoxton Southwark, faces the skyline and holds what the MICHELIN Guide calls London's most expansive oyster selection. Kioku by Endo, on the sixth floor of Raffles London at The OWO, looks over Whitehall and serves Tuesday to Saturday 18:00 to 22:00 and Sunday 17:00 to 21:00.

For dinner with a view, Bōkan 37, one floor below BOKAN 38-39, calls itself an AA Rosette restaurant and serves Tuesday to Saturday until 23:00. At The Savoy, the best seats in The River Restaurant by Gordon Ramsay look onto Victoria Embankment Gardens and the river, and it opens every day. From the room itself, Novotel London Canary Wharf sells its 26 suites on their panorama, and The Savoy's River View Suites face the Thames.