We put the Royal Lancaster’s ‘Plug In, Change Off & Recharge’ package deal to the check…
If you happen to’re planning a visit to the capital and also you drive an electrical car, there’s a brand new approach to make your keep greener and extra restful.
The enduring Royal Lancaster London, which overlooks Hyde Park and is a brief stroll from Marble Arch and Oxford Road, has launched a brand new package deal known as ‘Plug In, Change Off & Recharge’.
The in a single day stick with breakfast contains free automobile parking, free EV charging and complimentary entry to the resort’s bicycles to discover the town.
What’s extra, the Royal Lancaster London will plant one tree for every night time of your keep by way of the Inns for Timber initiative to compensate for any CO2 affect of your journey.
We tried out the package deal for ourselves, driving up from Somerset in Ford’s flagship electrical car, the Mustang Mach-E GT.
Not solely did we arrive in type, however we prevented paying the £15 per day London Congestion Cost as a result of the zero emissions Mach-E is exempt.
After a greeting from the good doorman (full with bowler hat), we have been ushered as much as the towering 5-star resort’s safe, personal automobile park. There we linked the automobile to one of many free chargers out there.
The 411 visitor rooms and suites at Royal Lancaster London supply basic type and spectacular panoramic views of Hyde Park and the Metropolis skyline, making it the right place to chill out – and recharge your batteries too.
Since opening its doorways in 1967, the Royal Lancaster remained largely unchanged till 2015, when the celebrated family-run property underwent a two-year, head-to-toe, £83 million renovation.
It reopened in 2017 and the whole lot from the trendy open-plan foyer space to the redesigned, redecorated rooms and suites have been completed to a excessive customary.
We stayed in a Park Suite, on the 14th ground, which included a spacious residing space with luxurious velvet sofas, a lavish marble rest room with twin sinks, bathe and bathtub, plus a separate bed room with king-size mattress.
Regardless of the luxurious, it was the 180-degree vista of London’s well-known skyline that was the most important deal with – particularly an evening.
Frankly, it was onerous to fault our keep – from the very good service ranges by way of the pleasant workers, the eye to element and general cleanliness, to the superb breakfast high quality and selection.
After checkout the next morning we returned to our automobile with zero vary anxiousness for the journey forward as a result of the Mustang Mach-E GT was totally charged.
Not that vary is a big problem when the battery pack of the Mach-E GT has been topped up.
Like most EVs, it could fall in need of its claimed vary (as much as 304 miles), however 250 miles upwards is greater than sufficient for many getaways. If you happen to do must cease off, a speedy 150kW public charger can ship round 73 miles in simply 10 minutes.
We took a extra scenic route residence, turning off the A303 earlier than Stonehenge and heading over Salisbury Plain – the right place to let a thoroughbred just like the Mach-E GT stretch its legs.
Blisteringly quick in a straight line (0-62mph in 3.7 seconds), it’s additionally a refined cruiser and delivers an enticing journey.
Not fairly as dynamic to drive as its appears recommend, the Mach-E GT has a few occasion items. First, it’s fitted with a noise generator which simulates a combustion engine. Second, extra spirited drivers will take pleasure in unleashing the GT’s extra playful facet, as a result of the rear-biased all-wheel-drive system permits you to kick out the tail, must you so want.
The entry-level Mustang Mach-E is priced from £50,830. Nonetheless, a GT will set you again £74,540. For that, you get a second 240bhp electrical motor put in up entrance. Mixed, the 2 motors ship a whopping 480bhp of energy and an equally beefy 860Nm of torque.
With room for 5, plus a good 402-litre boot capability and house beneath the bonnet for cables, the Mach-E GT is likely one of the efficiency EVs available on the market.
Do you know? Key scenes of the basic British crime caper, The Italian Job, have been filmed on the Royal Lancaster in 1968 – not lengthy after the resort opened. Additionally, The Beatles held their Yellow Submarine movie premiere after-party on the venue in the identical 12 months.
Get the lowdown on the Royal Lancaster London resort’s Plug In, Change Off & Recharge package deal.
