Hester Gray London – stay in London’s best houses and flats

How we wish Hester Gray London had been up and running when we got married in London a couple of years ago, and had friends and family coming from abroad who wanted to stay somewhere as comfortable as a hotel, but with more flexibility and space and a smaller bill to pay. Hester Gray, whose professional background is in architecture, has set up a sort of cross between a flat agency and a club, whereby she rents out privately owned homes to people wanting to stay in the city. What’s different about Hester Gray London though, is that all of the properties on her books have been carefully chosen by her because they are architecturally interesting, incredibly beautiful, or just great, great houses. Gray doesn’t put details or photographs of the houses she has on her books on her website or in the public domain, but instead specialises in matching the right guests to the right houses, so you get in touch with her via her website and then go from there. (Potential guests are given a user name and password so they can then see the range of properties that have been specifically chosen for them). Meanwhile, though all her properties are private, individual homes, she takes care of all the hassle. She and her team store personal effects, take inventories, supply really great linen, towels, bathroom products and basically jzoosh up each house so that while it is still a home, it has all the advantages of a hotel. She welcomes guests in, shows them round, deals with keys, provides a concierge service, and is on hand for any queries or questions throughout the guests’ stay. Each property is also given a dedicated Little Gray Book, recommending the best things to see and do in the surrounding area, where to eat and shop, as well as a food hamper filled with things like Poilane bread, really delicious cheese and perfectly seasonal fruit (Gray knows all about good food: her mother was Rose Gray, who co-founded and ran the River Cafe until she died in 2010). You can see why people who otherwise wouldn’t dream of renting out their lovely houses are happy to hand over their keys to Gray, and if you are on the other side of the deal it works perfectly too. Gray has a wide range of houses and flats on her books, from Mayfair townhouses to Hoxton lofts, so you can stay somewhere amazing, have total privacy, lots of space, be looked after and still save money – renting a flat or house, even a really great one, nearly always works out cheaper and often significantly cheaper than staying in one of London’s good hotels.