The Penthouse Suite, Fit for a King, or Queen. (Or Even Robbie Williams as the Case May Be.)

Time was that saying you were spending the night in Soho had somewhat insalubrious connotations. During the swinging 60s, this area of London became firmly embedded as the capital’s gleefully defiant den of debauchery – the go-to destination for illicit activities and louche late nights. Euphemistic signs advertising ‘large chests for sale’ enticed punters to examine sellers’ wares in backrooms upstairs while side streets led to innumerable drinking dens awash with drunken would-have-been-were-it-not-for-gin creatives.

But times have changed and Soho has moved on. Recently the buds of gentrification have nipped around its edges and spruced the place up a bit, but while the profusion of strip clubs and brothels that perforated Soho’s warren of laneways have retreated somewhat, the area remains one of the capital’s most decadent districts. London’s loud-and-proud gay scene is firmly settled here; jazz bars and late-night cafes provide refuge to an assortment of waifs and strays; and Soho’s setting between Oxford Street and Trafalgar Square leaves it pretty much slap bang in the centre of all that’s happening in swinging London town.

An indication of the area’s burgeoning status as a newly respectable (if not entirely respectful) contemporary to neighbouring districts Mayfair and Fitzrovia came in late 2004, when its first luxury hotel, The Soho Hotel, opened. And despite all the changes that have happened in the area since then, it remains the district’s defining hotel, deftly straddling the line between charming cheek and effortless chic.

Part of Tim and Kit Kemp’s London-based Firmdale Group (which includes the Haymarket Hotel and Number Sixteen Hotel among its ranks), the hotel comprises 85 bedrooms and suites plus six one- and two-bedroom apartments. Like every other member of the Firmdale Group, the Soho Hotel’s interiors were developed by Kit herself. Her personal touch is visible throughout, with each room unique in its layout and decor, but all so uniformly spacious that they’re recognised as among the largest offered by any hotel in central London.

Certainly our own room had enough capacity, colour and character to satisfy our requirements – our suite was so awash with bright citrus colours that it seemed almost effervescent. However an oversized bed, bounty of plush cushions and cluster of cosy chairs extended a wholehearted invitation to recline, relax and revitalise in surroundings simultaneously homely and contemporary. And, of course, there’s also no lack of gadgetry to hand, with each room also containing the prerequisite DVD and flatscreen TV combo, as well as Tivoli radios.

Ready to get fired up at the hotel's bar, Refuel?

But it would have been a self-indulgent shame to have spent our entire stay within the confines of our own pastel-coated four walls. As well as the rooms themselves the hotel’s common areas are a focal point, with the Kemps’ personal art collection distributed throughout the hotel. Highlights include a Peter Clarke collage and a bronze cat sculpture by Colombian artist Fernando Botero, literally unmissable as it’s over 10 feet high and stands guard at the entrance hotel.

Artistry in miniature is also visible in the hotel’s restaurant, Refuel. Led by head chef Robin Read we sampled beautifully presented and nuanced interpretations of classic British dishes, before bypassing dessert in favour of two of the bar’s signature cocktails. The Ciroc, an apple, grape, ginger infusion given extra kick through Ciroc vodka and Manzana Verde, was excellent, while the daintily named English Lady, a mixture of Tanqueray 10, Extase XO and lemon juice, packed quite a punch. Admittedly at £13.50 each we couldn’t allow ourselves more than one apiece, but it did give us licence to linger in the bar, often a stopover for whatever celebrity may be traipsing the haunts of Soho on any particular evening. Shortly after our stay Kylie dropped by for a night out, while viewers of the British version of The X Factor might be interested to know that Robbie Williams’ tutorial of the contestants was filmed in one of the hotel’s jaw-dropping penthouse suites.

Of course, with culinary and dietary immoderation so hard to avoid (or justify given you’re on holiday), the hotel has made a concession towards those who wish to keep fit with a fully equipped gym. Bedecked with copious complicated-looking contraptions we certainly thought it looked impressive as we walked past.

Unfortunately the hotel’s two private cinemas are placed alluringly at either side of its entrance and every Sunday sees the hotel host a dinner-and-cinema programme for both hotel guests and members of the public. Given the choice between the two, we submitted ourselves to 90 minutes gasping at a screen from cowhide Poltrona Frau armchairs rather than 90 minutes grunting from atop a treadmill. But in recognition of Soho’s age-old reputation for satisfying the more immediately clamorous physical urges any other decision simply wouldn’t have been in keeping with our surroundings.

The hotel's luxurious screening room

Rooms at the Soho Hotel cost from £290. The Film Club takes place every Sunday, and includes a Champagne Afternoon Tea or a three-course lunch or dinner, and the movie (which starts at 3.30pm). Cost is £35.00 per person.

For more information about the Soho Hotel, see online here.