Maximise your Avios, air miles and hotel points

Exclusive: Crowne Plaza Kensington becoming DoubleTree London Kensington

Links on Head for Points may support the site by paying a commission.  See here for all partner links.

Last month we reported that Crowne Plaza London Kensington, a surprisingly pleasant hotel on a fairly grotty road, was leaving IHG.

The hotel is rebranding as DoubleTree London Kensington.

It will reopen on 17th May after lockdown. There is no website yet, and it does not appear on hilton.com. You need to trust us on this …..

EDIT: The hotel website is now available – click here

The new DoubleTree London Kensington

Oddly, this is not the first DoubleTree London Kensington.

When 100 Queen’s Gate, part of Hilton’s Curio Collection, joined the chain, it was branded DoubleTree London Kensington. Once refurbishment work had been completed, it took on the Curio branding.

The new DoubleTree London Kensington is an interesting property. It is a townhouse hotel on Cromwell Road, opposite Gloucester Road tube.

Don’t be fooled by the exterior, however.

For a start, the hotel has a huge garden. In Summer it runs ‘Secret Beach’, importing a pile of sand – here is a picture from the 2019 launch party:

Crowne Plaza Kensington secret beach

If you’re looking for somewhere different for a private lunch or dinner the hotel has also – as you can see just behind the beach in the picture – installed some domes for all-weather outdoor eating.  Each is fully airconditioned, has wi-fi and power sockets and has been set up with a circular dining table and chairs.

The inside of the hotel is also a lot better than you would expect from the exterior. It went through a hugely expensive refurbishment five years ago, and I had a full tour at the relaunch. It had an executive lounge when it was a Crowne Plaza – it isn’t clear if this will continue when it becomes a DoubleTree.

I did a review of the hotel when it was Crowne Plaza London Kensington based on a press tour. It is best known for its duplex suites which are not hugely expensive and, being set over two floors, are totally different to your usual hotel room.

This is a classy hotel and a great addition to the DoubleTree brand. What I don’t fully understand is why it is going to the time and expense of rebranding from Crowne Plaza, which is a more ‘solid’ four star brand.

The upside, of course, is free breakfast for Gold and Diamond members of Hilton Honors and hopefully a more proactive approach to upgrades and late check-out. Lounge access for Diamond members would also be attractive, if it remains.

You can book the DoubleTree or find out more on the Hilton website here.

How to earn Hilton Honors points and status from UK credit cards

How to earn Hilton Honors points and status from UK credit cards (April 2024)

There are various ways of earning Hilton Honors points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses.

Do you know that holders of The Platinum Card from American Express receive FREE Hilton Honors Gold status for as long as they hold the card?  It also comes with Marriott Bonvoy Gold, Radisson Rewards Premium and MeliaRewards Gold status.  We reviewed American Express Platinum in detail here and you can apply here.

The Platinum Card from American Express

40,000 bonus points and a huge range of valuable benefits – for a fee Read our full review

Did you know that the Virgin Atlantic credit cards are a great way of earning Hilton Honors points? Two Virgin Points can be converted into three Hilton Honors points. The Virgin Atlantic cards are the only Visa or Mastercard products in the UK which can indirectly earn Hilton Honors points. You can apply here.

You can also earn Hilton Honors points indirectly with:

and for small business owners:

The conversion rate from American Express to Hilton points is 1:2.

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which can be used to earn Hilton Honors points. 

(Want to earn more hotel points?  Click here to see our complete list of promotions from the major hotel chains or use the ‘Hotel Offers’ link in the menu bar at the top of the page.)

Category

Hilton Honors, IHG One Rewards

Comments (31)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • J says:
    17 Apr17 April 03:56

    Interesting! And good. I stayed here a few times over the years and liked it a lot. Convenient location. Got upgraded to a duplex once (as Spire Elite) and on another occasion was given lounge access (nice enough, though not particularly special in terms of food offering as I recall). The switch to Doubletree and hence (presumably) free breakfast for HHonors gold/diamond would make it quite attractive if the price is right.

    I recall there being a good Asian restaurant to the right of reception – any idea whether it’s staying?

    • DeB20 says:
      17 Apr17 April 13:53

      Looking like it (Umami) will stay. But if it doesn’t, then the next time you stay there, have a wander around the area because there are numerous Asian restaurants that serve better food than this one does.

  • Andrew Wells says:
    17 Apr17 April 06:51

    Each to their own with their opinions, but personally I consider Doubletree to be the more solid brand vs Crowne Plaza.

    • Chrisasaurus says:
      17 Apr17 April 08:55

      Doubletree is a conversion brand and by definition is looser in standards than the main brands.

      • Rob says:
        17 Apr17 April 09:26

        Exactly. US tourists won’t think much of DoubleTree. I think it is the only brand which allows external aircon units in the US for example.

        • Ron says:
          17 Apr17 April 11:23

          May well change hands again by the time any US tourists are here in any great number. Besides, I guess external AC units won’t be top of anyone’s priorities either.

          • Rob says:
            17 Apr17 April 14:07

            That’s not my point. My point is that, in the US, DoubleTree is a brand which crappy old hotels with external aircon units can join, whereas most brands won’t allow them. This impacts how Americans see DoubleTree. They don’t expect luxurious duplex suites and one of the biggest private garden spaces in West London.

  • Andrew Wetton says:
    17 Apr17 April 08:28

    Great because one of the worst hotels I’ve stated in ever in London is Hotel Indigo Kensington – a real Fawlty Towers experience from start to finish.
    Firstly it’s not really in “Kensington” as you picture it in your mind. It’s in Earls Court. A lot of staff don’t speak English at all. The rooms are so cold in winter that you will need the staff to bring in portable electric heaters. Under the bed filthy dusty never cleaned. Housekeeping staff don’t speak English they are “just” cleaners so point to things to show & tell. Cracked cups in the cafe at breakfast. I could go on & on it was utterly terrible.

    • Lady London says:
      17 Apr17 April 10:52

      Gloucester Road rather than Earls Court. It’s almost opposite the Waitrose and on the hotel side of the road in the opposite direction just around the corner is the quite good former West London Air Teminal branch of Sainsbury’s.

      • Rob says:
        17 Apr17 April 11:24

        The Indigo is at Earls Court. CP is opposite Gloucester Road.

        • Alex Sm says:
          17 Apr17 April 23:59

          All these locations are well within the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea so no reason to complain

          • Rob says:
            18 Apr18 April 10:37

            I think anyone expecting to be amongst the boutiques of Sloane Street would be a little narked to next to the fried chicken shops, betting shops and general human detrius found outside Earls Court tube!

            Not that CP Kensington is any better on that score.

            The ‘thing’ with Kensington is that people assume South Kensington is Kensington but its not (as the name, to be fair, does suggest). If you being picky I’d say real Kensington starts at Cromwell Road / Brompton Road to the south and with Kensington High Street bordering it to the north. Problem is that this area contains vortually nothing except housing so no-one ever goes there. The Indigo is clearly Earls Court, being south of Cromwell Road / Brompton Road. The CP is ON Cromwell Road so has a better claim to the name.

    • Aston100 says:
      17 Apr17 April 12:34

      Andrew, I stayed at the Indigo for a few nights in October last year.
      I agree the location name is a bit ambitious.
      The bathrooms have no heating so it does get cold in there.
      However, the comment about staff being unable to speak English is just plain ridiculous.
      Just think about it for a moment, a hotel in central London with staff unable to speak English – just nonsense really.

      I spoke to 7 members of staff including receptionists, restaurant staff and a facilities engineer. No issues with English.

      I found the hotel to be really good, other than the cold bathrooms.
      The breakfast was excellent, the rooms were well decorated and a reasonable size and were thoroughly cleaned.

      • James says:
        17 Apr17 April 12:46

        Also never had problems at the Indigo, stayed there numerous times and will do again.

        • Rob says:
          17 Apr17 April 13:59

          I’ve eaten there. I would say it seems better than you would expect given the location ….

    • Alex Sm says:
      18 Apr18 April 00:00

      If this is marketed for tourists, it’s even better when the hotel staff speak their languages

    • Yorkieflyer says:
      18 Apr18 April 10:52

      I’ve stayed at the Indigo a number of times and it’s fine, the basement rooms to be fair aren’t great though. I’m a fan of the location, round the corner from Earl’s Court tube and a handy stopping point on the Piccadilly line if going out to Heathrow for a morning flight having trained down from oop north. Some nice pubs and a sprinkling of reasonably priced restaurants in the neighbourhood

  • Andrew Wetton says:
    17 Apr17 April 08:32

    Crowne Plaza (as was) on Cromwell Rd, now to be a Doubletree is much better. It has a really lovely garden at the rear and I was lucky to get an upgrade to one of their duplex suites on my last stay.

  • Sam says:
    17 Apr17 April 08:49

    If they are already generous to elite members under the stingy IHG system I’m pretty sure things would even be better under Hilton who are known to be generous to diamond and gold members.

  • Safety Card says:
    17 Apr17 April 08:55

    Will they do the cookies though?

  • TGLoyalty says:
    17 Apr17 April 16:39

    Voco is a conversion brand and that hotel very much needs a refresh!

  • Anna says:
    17 Apr17 April 19:39

    So a DoubleTree with breakfast for gold & diamonds instead of a CP with no breakfast – sounds promising!

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

New to Head for Points?

Welcome!  We’re the UK’s most-read source of business travel, Avios, frequent flyer and hotel loyalty news. Let us improve how you travel. Got any questions? Ask them in our forums.

Latest Forum Posts

Get 40,000 bonus points (worth 40,000 Avios) and £300 dining credit with The Platinum Card

Check reward flight availability instantly for free!

See a whole year of reward seat availability on one page at SeatSpy.com

Get £10 when you spend £150 on your free Currensea card

Booking a luxury hotel?

Our luxury hotel booking service offers you GUARANTEED extra benefits over booking direct. Works with Four Seasons, Mandarin Oriental, The Ritz Carlton, St Regis and more. We've booked £1.7 million of rooms to date. Click for details.

SME? SPECIAL OFFER TO 12TH MAY EARN POINTS WORTH 30,000 AVIOS WITH CAPITAL ON TAP

Get 20,000 bonus points, four airport lounge passes and your first year free with American Express Gold

The UK's biggest frequent flyer website uses cookies, which you can block via your browser settings. Continuing implies your consent to this policy. Our privacy policy is here.

Got it!