31 Hotels Around the World That Royals Love

Open since 1856, iconic five-star hotel Claridge's has long been associated with royalty. In the 1860s, Queen Victoria visited to see Empress Eugenie of France in residence, helping secure the hotel's reputation as a royal favorite. During World War II, the kings of Yugoslavia, Greece, Holland, and Norway lived here in exile, and suite 212 was even reportedly ceded to Yugoslavia on July 17, 1945, so the king's son and heir could be born on Yugoslavian soil. Queen Elizabeth has visited Claridge's numerous times over the years for parties, receptions, and dinners, while other royal guests have included King Hassan of Morocco, the king and queen of Greece, Princess Diana, and the Queen Mother. The hotel is also home to London's most famously decadent afternoon tea.

Brook Street, Mayfair, London W1K 4HR, claridges.co.uk

Steps away from Buckingham Palace—it's literally around the corner from Her Majesty's back gardens—the Goring Hotel opened in 1910 and has been known for years as a favorite of the British royal family. While the Goring is the only hotel lucky enough to hold a royal warrant for hospitality from the queen, it's now most closely associated with the Duchess of Cambridge; Kate Middleton stayed in its Royal Suite with her sister Pippa and her mother Carole the night before her 2011 wedding to Prince William. Its other royal connections are equally strong; the hotel's dining room, bar and lounge were all redesigned by Princess Margaret's son David Lindley, while the Queen Mum and Queen Mary were both regulars for lunch and tea. (The Queen Mum was reportedly in love with the Goring's eggs drumkilbo.)

15 Beeston Place, London SW1W 0JW, thegoring.com

Overlooking Hyde Park, London's Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park has enjoyed one of the capital's best addresses for more than a century. Repeat royal guests of the hotel have included Queen Mary, Edward VIII, and Princess Alexandra. Queen Elizabeth and Princess Margaret first learned to dance at the hotel, while Prince Philip often held polo and cocktail parties here and frequently brought Princess Anne and Prince Charles for tea. Other highlights: William and Kate's gala dinner honoring special guests and European royalty before their wedding took place here, while Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip were guests at Baroness Margaret Thatcher's 80th birthday party.

66 Knightsbridge, London SW1X 7LA, mandarinoriental.com/london

Open since 1931 in Mayfair, London's Dorchester hotel is closely associated with Queen Elizabeth's marriage to Prince Philip in 1947; it's where Queen Elizabeth got dressed for the wedding, and Prince Philip held his bachelor party here. While children, meanwhile, the young Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret used to attend birthday parties at the hotel with their nanny. Other royals who have visited include King Faisal of Saudi Arabia, King Hussein of Jordan, and Princess Diana.

53 Park Lane, Mayfair, London W1K 1QA, dorchestercollection.com

Opened in 1889 off the Strand, the Savoy closed in 2007 for a $340-million renovation to its 268 guestrooms and suites. When it reopened in 2010, Prince Charles himself was present—along with owner Prince Alwaleed bin Talal—for the ceremony. King Edward VI was a frequent visitor (during his time as Prince of Wales), then-Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret were regular guests at balls, dinners and parties, and the Queen Mother stopped by so often that the private side entrance is known as the "Queen Mother's Entrance." Today, the Savoy features a luxurious Royal Suite with 24/7 dedicated butler, VIP airport greeting service, a chauffeured Rolls-Royce, and floor-to-ceiling views of the Thames.

The Strand, London WC2R 0EU, fairmont.com/savoy-london

Which royals haven't stayed at New York City's Waldorf Astoria? The list is endless, with regulars including Queen Elizabeth, Princess Margaret, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor (who lived in the Royal Suite for years), Princess Grace and Prince Rainier, Princess Caroline and Prince Ernst-August of Hanover, King Hussein and Queen Noor & King Abdullah and Queen Rania of Jordan, Prince Akihito and Princess Michiko of Japan, and King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia. The hotel's Peacock Alley is legendary: both for its decadent champagne brunch on Sunday and its history as the quintessential place to see and be seen in old New York.

301 Park Avenue, New York, New York 10022, waldorfnewyork.com

While visiting New York City in 2014, Prince William and Duchess Kate used the tony Upper East Side hotel as their base of operations. It's no wonder that, of all the five-star hotels in New York, they chose the Carlyle—the 190-room property, which overlooks Madison Avenue, was beloved by Prince Charles and Princess Diana, and has also welcomed the Kings and Queens of Denmark, Greece, Spain, and Sweden. Hollywood royalty loves the joint, too: George Clooney is a frequent visitor, Woody Allen has a steady Monday night gig playing clarinet at the hotel's Café Carlyle, and anyone who's anyone in New York society has passed through iconic Bemelmans Bar at least once.

35 East 76th Street, New York, New York 10021, rosewoodhotels.com/en/the-carlyle-new-york

Arguably L.A.'s most refined property, the Hotel Bel-Air is closely associated with Grace Kelly, who used it for her first photo shoot after winning an Oscar, lived there while engaged to Prince Rainier, and visited after her wedding. (Today, the hotel boasts a Grace Kelly Suite—the same suite where she conducted her post-Oscar photo shoot—as well as a La Prairie spa, Wolfgang Puck restaurant, and swans aplenty.) Grace's son Prince Albert, the current ruler of Monaco, has also visited with his wife Princess Charlene.

701 Stone Canyon Rd, Los Angeles, California, 90077, dorchestercollection.com

A 592-room hotel perched at the top of tony Nob Hill, the Fairmont San Francisco offers panoramic view of both the City and the Bay and has played host to a slew of royals, including Prince Charles, the Duchess of Cornwall, King Hussein of Jordan, and Crown Prince Haakon and Princess Mette-Merit of Norway. While the hotel is known for serving the city's best Mai Tai at the Tonga Room, its crown jewel is the expansive 6,000-square-foot Penthouse Suite, which spans the entire eighth floor, can host up to 150 for a private reception, and was created in the 1920s by archaeologist and art historian Arthur Upham Pope.

950 Mason Street San Francisco, California, 94108, fairmont.com/san-francisco

Beloved by royalty such as Prince Albert of Monaco and Prince William, Zurich's palatial Dolder Grand has (since 1899) welcomed guests including Prince Philip, Prince Charles, and Maria Alexandrovna, Duchess of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Featuring one of the world's best hotel art collections, the Dolder's masterpieces include works by Warhol, Dali, Murakami, Miró, and even a painting by Sylvester Stallone.

Kurhausstrasse 65, 8032 Zürich, Switzerland, www.thedoldergrand.com

An extravagant palace on Paris's rue de Rivoli, Le Meurice makes it easy to imagine what it must have felt like to stay at Versailles. The hotel's over-the-top, decadent charm is no doubt why royals like King Alfonso XIII of Spain set up his exiled government here in the 1930s, and why other royals such as King Paul and Queen Frederica of Greece, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, King Nikola I of Montenegro, the Shah of Iran, the Maharaja of Jaipur, and the King of Belgium have temporarily called Le Meurice home. (It has, appropriately, been nicknamed the "Hotel of Kings.")

Le Meurice 228 rue de Rivoli, 75001 Paris, France, dorchestercollection.com

Avid skiers, Swedish royals King Carl XVI Gustav and Queen Silvia of Sweden are loyal to the old school Suvretta House Hotel in St. Moritz, Switzerland. The über-traditional hotel—which has an old-world, fairy-tale appearance, complete with turrets—hosts a daily five o'clock tea, and dark suit and tie are required for men at night.

Via Chasellas 1, 7500 St. Moritz, Switzerland, suvrettahouse.ch

St. Moritz's most iconic hotel, the decadent, ostentatious Badrutt's Palace is always stocked to the rafters with royals. King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands honeymooned here, and other regal regulars include Pierre Casiraghi of Monaco and his wife Beatrice Borromeo, and Prince Edward and the Countess of Wessex. The hotel is home to the most famous nightclub in the Alps, the King's Club, and also has three Rolls-Royces, including a Phantom once owned by Queen Elizabeth.

Via Serlas 27, 7500 St. Moritz, Switzerland, badruttspalace.com

Long one of the world's buzziest cities for the international jet set, Gstaad, Switzerland is home to the Alpine castle-like Gstaad Palace. Andrea Casiraghi, son of Princess Caroline of Hanover and grandson of Princess Grace of Monaco, celebrated his wedding here to heiress Tatiana Santo Domingo (who attended local boarding school—the world's most expensive—Le Rosey.) The Monagasque royals have been coming to Gstaad for years, so Prince Rainier, Princess Grace, Princess Stephanie and Prince Albert have all stayed here during their regular ski trips, and other royal guests have included Princess Diana, the Emperor and Empress of Persia, King Bhumipol and Queen Sikrit of Siam, King Hussein of Jordan, Queen Anne-Marie of Greece, Princess Soraya of Iran, and the Aga Khan.

Palacestrasse 28, 3780 Saanen, Switzerland, palace.ch

A cliffside hotel in Praiano on Italy's Amalfi Coast, Casa Angelina is a favorite stay of the royal family of Morocco. HRH Princess Lalla Asma (sister of the King) has spent the night in a suite designed by Philippe Stark, loving the white-on-white decor so much that she reportedly reproduced it at her own home. The minimalist hotel features private beaches, rooms carved into the cliffs, and access to a private boat.

Via Gennaro Capriglione, 147, 84010 Praiano SA, Italy, casangelina.com

Kenya's Treetops Lodge—set beside a waterhole in Aberdare National Park—is most famous as the place where Elizabeth Mountbatten-Windsor arrived as a princess and left as a queen. (She was staying here with Prince Philip and Lady Pamela Mountbatten in 1952 when her father King George VII died.) The hotel burned down a few years later but was rebuilt, and Her Majesty returned for an undoubtedly emotional visit in 1983. Other royal and notable visitors have included Lord Louis Mountbatten, Charlie Chaplin, Joan Crawford, and Paul McCartney.

Aberdares National Park Entrance Gate, Nyeri, Kenya, treetops.co.ke

Consistently named one of the world's best luxury retreats, Huka Lodge features 25 suites spread out over 17 acres on the banks of New Zealand's Waikato River. With a garden rated as "of National Significance," the magnificent property has played host to both Queen Elizabeth and the Queen Mother. The Owner's Cottage, the hotel's premier accommodation, contains works by well-known Kiwi artists, antique furniture, under-floor heating, and a heated spa pool.

271 Huka Falls Rd, Taupo 3377, New Zealand, hukalodge.co.nz