Think champagne and oysters while a midwife changes your newborn’s nappies.

More than just a hospital, The Portland offers a five-star hotel service to mothers and their children, for these are the only patients they accept.

It makes sense then that celebrities have chosen to give birth there – also, it’s right in the middle of London.

Delivering 2 000 babies a year, The Portland has 36 private rooms and suites – the cheapest being £1 200 a night (R25 000). The more luxurious version costs around £1 800 (R37 000) a night and includes a separate lounge area and en-suite bathroom.

The cheapest of births at the Portland (natural and midwife-led) are unlikely to leave parents with much change from £10,000.

An epidural, available on demand at a minute’s notice, costs £995 (plus £85 for each top up), while an induction is £630 and a forceps delivery costs an extra £138.

A consultant-led package, with planned C-section, costs in the region of £20,000 depending on how many nights the mother chooses to stay afterwards, while CEO Janene says some patients spend £500,000.

‘Sometimes patients want a whole floor to themselves. They might want to refurbish and redecorate and it’s important for our brand that we meet those needs,’ she says.

A new BBC series will take us into the lives of those who use the hospital’s services:

An unnamed Saudi princess seen in the BBC show sends her PA ahead of her visit to give instructions on her requirements, along with an interior designer to make over the rooms to her specification.

She required four luxury suites: one for herself, one for the baby, one for family and one for visitors.

Women are usually unable to fly after their 36th week of pregnancy due to airline restrictions, but if you’re Arab royalty with your own private jet, such constraints don’t apply. Also arriving with her were her own catering assistant and florists, while her maids brought her own soft furnishings, linens and towels.

The princess’s stay resulted in the arrival of a healthy new prince… and a £250,000 bill.

The hospital offers so much more – watch the above intro video or go HERE to read all about it. Oysters and champagne, the rumoured tummy tuck, complimentary celebration meals and a four-poster cot that costs £14 000 (R30 000) – they’ve got it all.

[source: dailymail]