One of Camden Town’s familiar hotels has got a new identity and its new voco personality could be a very good fit for the neighbourhood.
Camden has never been short of places to stay. But there is something rather fitting about one of the area’s established hotels getting a new lease of life – and a brand that is all about individuality, local character and being a little less formal.
Today, the hotel on Jamestown Road, beside Camden Lock, has become voco London Camden Lock.
The hotel is already a familiar part of the neighbourhood, having operated for years as Holiday Inn London – Camden Lock. Now, as part of IHG Hotels & Resorts, it is being transformed and brought into the company’s voco collection.
And if you’re wondering what a voco hotel actually is, the short answer is: it’s a hotel that doesn’t want to feel too much like a hotel.
So, what is voco?
voco is one of IHG’s newer hotel brands, launched in 2018 and now established in destinations around the world.
It sits in IHG’s Premium collection – so this isn’t positioned as ultra-luxury, but it is a step above the traditional mainstream hotel experience. Think comfortable rooms, good food and drink, attentive service and plenty of thoughtful touches, combined with a more relaxed and individual atmosphere.
The name voco comes from Latin and relates to the idea of inviting or calling people together. That gives you a pretty good clue about the brand’s personality.
IHG describes voco as thoughtful, unstuffy and charming.
In other words, it is premium hospitality without the stuffiness.
And that sounds rather appropriate for Camden.
A hotel with a sense of place
One of the things that distinguishes voco from some of the more uniform big hotel brands is that its properties are encouraged to have their own identity.
There isn’t a requirement for every voco to look and feel exactly the same. Instead, the idea is to take the standards and reliability of an international hotel group and combine them with something that reflects the place where the hotel actually sits.
That’s particularly interesting when the place in question is Camden. We at Camden Town London have had exclusive access to the goings on behind the scenes, and we’re excited by what we see.
Because Camden doesn’t really do anonymous.
This is a neighbourhood built around music, markets, street art, independent shops, food, nightlife and a healthy disregard for convention. It has its own look, its own soundtrack and its own way of doing things.
So a hotel brand that talks about local character, personality and being “unstuffy” feels like an unusually natural match.
The team behind the Camden hotel has already indicated that retaining its connection with the local community is an important part of the transformation, with the aim of reflecting Camden’s culture, character and quirkiness.
What should guests expect?
Don’t expect a grand, formal hotel where somebody in a morning coat looks slightly alarmed if you arrive wearing trainers.
voco’s approach is much more relaxed.
The emphasis is on comfort, good design, friendly service and spaces where people actually want to spend time.
That means the experience should be as much about the hotel’s social spaces as the bedroom itself – somewhere to have a drink, meet friends, eat, relax or simply take a break from the chaos of central London.
IHG talks about voco’s experience in terms of three ideas: welcoming guests in, giving them space for themselves, and creating social spaces that bring people together.
It’s a fairly simple philosophy, but one that makes sense in Camden.
After all, people don’t generally come here to sit quietly in their hotel room.
They come to do Camden.
And the location?
The hotel sits on Jamestown Road, just moments from Camden Lock and Camden Market, putting guests right in the middle of one of London’s most recognisable neighbourhoods.
Step outside and you’re immediately within reach of the market, the Regent’s Canal, Camden’s restaurants and bars, independent shops and some of London’s most famous music venues.
Camden Town Underground station is only a short walk away, while Regent’s Park and London Zoo are also within easy reach.
For someone visiting London, it is a particularly useful base: close enough to the West End and central London to make sightseeing easy, but with a neighbourhood outside the front door that is an attraction in its own right.
And for Camden, having visitors staying right in the heart of the neighbourhood means more people experiencing the area beyond the headline attractions.
Premium – but not precious
One of the more interesting things about voco is where it sits in the hotel market.
It is premium rather than luxury.
That’s an important distinction.
Guests can expect a level of comfort and quality above a conventional mid-market hotel, but voco isn’t trying to create the hushed, formal atmosphere associated with some five-star hotels.
Instead, it is aiming for something that feels polished without being precious.
Comfortable beds. Good food and drink. Attractive surroundings. Helpful people. Thoughtful details.
And then, hopefully, the freedom to wander back out into Camden and get on with the fun.
The Camden character
Of course, the big question is how much of Camden will actually make it into the new hotel.
The books in the relaxed reception, the artwork on the walls, it looks and feels Camden.
Unlike a hotel that could be dropped into any city and look almost exactly the same, voco actively encourages its properties to reflect their surroundings.
And there are few London neighbourhoods with a stronger visual and cultural identity than Camden.
The challenge – and the opportunity – will be to capture some of that spirit without turning the hotel into a caricature of Camden.
A familiar hotel, with a new chapter ahead
For local people, the most notable thing is that this isn’t a hotel suddenly appearing from nowhere.
The building, the location and much of the hotel’s history are already part of Camden Town.
What is changing is the identity and experience.
The arrival of voco brings a new international hotel brand into the neighbourhood, but one whose philosophy is arguably closer to Camden’s independent spirit than its name might suggest.
Visit voco London Camden Lock here.
