insideKENT Magazine Issue 96 - March 2020 | Page 120

LONDON
BRINGING ‘LEAN LUXURY’, PLAYFUL DESIGN, A GREAT NIGHT’S SLEEP, AND
ALL THE FUN OF THE FAIR TO LONDON’S SOUTHBANK
RUBY LUCY,
LONDON
BY SAMANTHA READY
How apt to have giant hotdogs, candyfloss machines,
theatrical cabaret, and a clairvoyant on hand to
officially launch Ruby Lucy, Ruby Hotel’s first
London-based, UK offering. Opening it’s carnival-
themed, full of soul doors, it has breathed new life
into the London hotel scene.
The 75-room hotel is the first UK venture for Ruby
Hotels, the Munich-based hotel brand and pioneer
of the ‘Lean Luxury’ philosophy: “a top location,
high-quality fittings, and outstanding design”, but
at an affordable price; not by cutting corners, but
by “rigorously cutting out the superfluous and
focusing on the essential”.
The initial Ruby Hotel opened in Vienna, followed
a wave of openings across Germany and Switzerland,
Ruby Lucy’s launch is part of an ambitious expansion
strategy that will add a total of eleven new hotels -
including a second London fixture - all by 2022!
Transforming former mixed-used and office buildings
afford Ruby Hotels the opportunity of being in the
heart of the city, without the hefty city price-tag.
But behind this strategy is a design team that not
only gleans influences from the neighbourhood in
which it joins (in this case, edgy, theatrical,
independent and cultural), but understands a clientele
that wants life, soul and drama in shared spaces;
followed by total disconnect and relaxation in
private calm abodes.
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Ruby Lucy is just minutes from Waterloo and The
Old Vic, in an area screaming ‘regeneration’ in
Southbank’s Lower Marsh. It’s playful carnival-
theme runs throughout the hotel, rich red plush
velvet seating and swings in the entrance way; large
toy cars and planes suspended from the ceiling and
dark panelled walls; whilst bright and bold letters
spell out ‘Lean Luxury’ against a backdrop of circus
props and guitars (free for guests to borrow to plug
into the bedside Marshall amps in every bedroom…).
There is the contemporary bar - open 24hrs - packed
with speciality cocktails (the Old Fashioneds are
lethal!), cans of beer and artisan spirits; as well as
ipads for easy self-check in. By day, it is an informal
breakfast space offering continental cheeses, breads,
pastries, and juice; or a lounge spot for catching up
on the news with a coffee in hand. By night however,
it is a thriving space perfect for intimate DJ sessions,
live music and theatre.
Yet the rooms, the cosy ‘Nest’ and the more expansive
‘Loft’, are a juxtaposed world of calm. This is
a world of clean-lined simplicity. Floor to ceiling
etched glass shower enclosures and toilet cubicles in
the main bedroom floor space. A sleek worktop
provided space for the in-room vanity sink and
deskspace. Floating bedside shelves and of course a
Marshall amp.
The rooms are in fact designed to showcase Ruby
Hotel’s sleep-scientist approved formula for a peaceful
night’s sleep. Fully soundproofed; so you can not
only crank up that guitar amp or the in-house
Ruby Radio, but also shut out the sounds from the
streets and bar below; they also have blackout
curtains, high-quality linen and extra-long and wide
custom mattresses.
There is no mini-bar or in-room coffee instead there
is a 4th floor maxi-bar, as well as gallery kitchens
with free tea and coffee, vending machines and
ironing stations available by the lift lobby on every
floor. Easy and simple.
With great service, a prime location, just the right
balance between theatrics and drama and an oasis
of calm, and with nightly rates starting from £119
per night including breakfast, Ruby Lucy hasn’t just
opened - it has arrived all batons twirling!
Ruby Lucy
100-108 Lower Marsh
Bishop's
London
SE1 7AB
www.ruby-hotels.com
rubyhotels
rubylucyhotel
rubyhotels