London

London is one of the few cities where the neighborhood you stay in changes your trip entirely. A suite overlooking Hyde Park from a Mayfair hotel is a completely different experience from a converted Georgian townhouse in South Kensington, which is different again from a river-facing room at a Bankside hotel with the Tate Modern at your feet. The city rewards you for being specific about what you want.

Where to Look

Mayfair and St James's are where the flagship suites live -- The Connaught, Claridge's, The Beaumont. These hotels have suites that actually feel like apartments, with separate sitting rooms and the kind of quiet that feels impossible for central London. Prices start high, but mid-week stays and shoulder season (late January, early November) can turn up surprisingly reasonable rates on junior suites.

South Kensington and Knightsbridge are where you get more space for the money. Boutique hotels like The Pelham or Number Sixteen have suites with real character -- fireplaces, garden access, rooms that were clearly bedrooms in someone's townhouse a hundred years ago. If you care more about atmosphere than lobby grandeur, this is the area.

For something different, look at Southbank and Bankside. Hotels like the Mondrian at Sea Containers have Thames-facing suites with floor-to-ceiling windows. You get the skyline view (St Paul's, the City) at roughly half the price of a comparable view from north of the river.

What Makes London Suites Different

London suites tend to be smaller than what you would get in New York or Las Vegas at the same price point. What you pay for is location and character. A 500-square-foot suite in a Mayfair hotel carries decades of service culture that a 1,200-square-foot Vegas suite cannot replicate. The trade-off is worth knowing about before you search.

The other thing to know: breakfast matters here. A suite rate that includes full English breakfast at a good hotel saves you 30-40 pounds per person per day. Filter for it.