Rubens at the Palace awarded five stars after multimillion-pound refurbishment

The Rubens at the Palace hotel in London's Victoria has been awarded a five-star rating by the AA following its multimillion-pound refurbishment.

The 163-bedroom hotel is situated opposite the Royal Mews of Buckingham Palace and is owned and operated by Red Carnation Hotel Collection. It is now one of 116 five-star hotels in the UK.

All of the hotel's bedrooms were refurbished as part of the project, which included the introduction of two new restaurants: the brasserie-style English Grill and the Curry Room, which features dishes from sister property the Oyster Box in Durban, South Africa.

The refurbishment, which has been overseen by the group's in-house design team headed by Bea Tollman, the founder of Red Carnation Hotels, highlights the hotel's proximity to Buckingham Palace, with ‘regal colourways' and 18 royal bedrooms featuring portraits of the Queen, Prince Charles and Prince William.

Red Carnation managing director Jonathan Raggett said: "We're incredibly proud that the Rubens has been recognised following the extensive refurbishments earlier this year. The new five-star classification is a testament to the efforts of our talented design team and passionate hotel staff, led by general manager Malcom Hendry.

"The investment we made has moved the property into the same league as the very finest in the capital, and the team looks forward to welcoming guests to London's newest five star hotel."

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