Alphabet soup

Sometimes, words fail you. Home to two Scrabble enthusiasts, the beauty of Crawford Street hardly needs spelling out. Marylebone puts you right in the middle of the board, while the open-plan sitting room, dining room and kitchen is a triple word score in elegance. The colour palette is soothing and each bookcase is a verbivore’s dream. Extra points are awarded for the oriental touches, a truly luxe master ensuite and, of course, your location. From Oxford Street’s hurly burly to the peace of Regent’s Park, getting around is as easy as ABC.

Love letters

When not supporting the local Scrabble club, your hosts have no trouble keeping busy. She owns a portfolio of homes across the capital, while he is a freelance TV producer who travels the world making documentaries.

Top score

Along one of Marylebone’s characteristically chic backstreets, you’ve many a boutique and café to distract you on the way home. Once you do arrive, skip upstairs, flick off your shoes and slump into the spacious sitting room. Daylight sings off its honeyed floorboards and pure white walls, while accents of light green lend a natural, fresh tone. Here you can relax with a book, test your wits at Scrabble or swap letters for lettuce with a light lunch whipped up in the kitchen.

You’ve a small and snuggly double, as well as a shower room stocked with our fluffy towels and White Company goodies. The master is at once sleek and serene, while the rain shower and sparklingly high-spec surfaces make its ensuite as modern, and enticing, as they come.

The last word

You’ll find a parade of pavement cafes, neighbourhood grocers and marvellous restaurants at your service just downstairs, while galleries like the Wallace Collection are certainly worth the short stroll. On sunny days, you’ve the restful expanse of Regent’s Park, the canals of Little Venice or the shimmering Serpentine. And, no matter how loaded those shopping bags, Oxford Street is within an easy amble.