Massage in Bayswater, on Leinster Gardens itself

Bayswater is the part of W2 people actually live in — the stucco terraces around Queensway and Westbourne Grove, the mansion flats on Inverness Terrace and Porchester Gardens, the hotels along Bayswater Road facing the park. The studio is in the middle of it, on Leinster Gardens, the street known locally for the two false house fronts at numbers 23 and 24 that hide the Tube line beneath. One room in a residential building, no signage, a few minutes from everything.

Guests from Bayswater tend to be regulars rather than passers-through: a monthly full body session, a deep tissue appointment when a week at a desk has gone wrong, an aromatherapy hour when the head will not switch off, and — for those who want warmth rather than pressure — the slow sensual full body session on an evening that belongs to them. Many walk over in ten minutes and walk home slower.

What you get is the same whoever you are: a single private room, a proper table, warm oil, a shower, fresh linen, and a masseuse who sees four guests a day and is not tired by the fourth. Evening slots after six go first on this side; daytimes are usually free the same day.

Getting here from Bayswater

From Bayswater station (Circle and District), walk east along Porchester Gardens and turn into Leinster Gardens — eight minutes, flat all the way. From Queensway station (Central line), head east along Bayswater Road to Leinster Terrace and up into Leinster Gardens, also eight minutes. The door number and entry instructions arrive with your confirmation.