London Hotel
We are a couple who will be spending 4 nights in London in May. Looking for a recommended hotel or B&B with good location for seeing the sights. Trying to keep less than $300 per night if possible. Any favorites?
Brian
Fort Lauderdale, FL USA 11/19/12
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There is no one good location for all the sights in London. But being close to a tube station/bus stop makes them all easily accessable. It would help to know how and where you are arriving and departing London. For example, we fly into Gatwick airport and like to stay at the Grosvenor (formerly the Victoria Thistle) which is right inside Victoria station. We really like this hotel! Makes arrival and departure days very easy because we use the Gatwick Express train. Once when we were going to be leaving from Heathrow we stayed at the Hilton in Paddinton Station. We have also stayed at the Mountbatten in Covent Garden/Seven Dials area - but it has also changed names and is now the Edwardian Blu Mercer St.
All are great for using the tube and are close enough to some sites to walk. All have plenty of restaurants to choose from (though the Paddington locaiton wasn't quite as good). If you are arriving or departing on the Eurostar from Paris, you might want to check out hotels in the St. Pancrass/Kings Cross area.
That's a great budget for London. Have you been to London before? Seeing THE sites is fairly easy as many are close to one another and public transport is plentiful. The beauty of London is it's neighborhoods. With that thought in mind here are a few ideas for accommodations:
In Notting hill: http://www.themainhouse.com
In S. Kensington: http://www.asterhouse.com
In Clerkenwall: http://www.thezetter.com
In Marylebone: http://www.montagu-place.co.uk
And if you'd like to stay in some one's home you could peruse this website:
http://www.athomeinlondon.co.uk
Simply remember to stay in zones 1 & 2 to keep your public transport costs in check.
Try Vancouver Studios, 30 Prince's Square, in Bayswater. It's about 2 blocks off Queensway, just north of Kensington Gardens, in a very interesting and diverse section of the city. All rooms have a mini-kitchen, complete with sink, 2-burner stove, fridge, microwave, and all necessary utensils.
It's a very comfortable and pleasant place to stay. My wife and I have stayed there four times, and will stay there again in April.
Room are about $200 per night.
My husband and I have stayed at the Kensington Base2Stay twice. It has a "kitchen in a closet" with sink, fridge and microwave that was convenient for breakfast and/or evening meals. It is close to two tube stations and grocery stores as well as lots of other things.
We spent three nights in Base 2 Stay which is in Kensington. We thought it was a great hotel, the price was reasonable, and we were able to easily get to all the attractions. Here is a link to the review I wrote about the hotel:
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g186338-d189735-Reviews-Base2stay_Kensington-London_England.html
Good luck!
During the Olympics, we stayed at the Premier Inn Belsize. Only 135 pounds even then! It's quiet, across the street from the Belsize tube station, on a street with numerous inexpensive restaurants, and down the side street a quarter mile is the wonderful Belzize Village, complete with a fantastic bakery across from the laundromat and bookstore. Highly recommended!
Dave
Great info....Thanks to all.
For location, our favorite place is Sanctuary House Hotel, which is just a block away from Westminster Bridge (and Big Ben). It is an easy and pleasant walk from there to the South Bank walk, or through St. James Park (which is beautiful in spring) to Buckingham Palace or to Covent Garden, etc. Because it is in the financial district, it is quiet at night, which is great for sleeping (even tho' the rooms are over a pub). The downside is there are no neighborhood restaurants, but we usually walk to one we like and then walk or cab back.
They have particularly great rates on weekends.
We have been to London four years in a row. We have stayed at the Crowne Plaza (Kensington) three times in a row. It is right across the street from the Gloucester tube. This last July we stayed at the Doubletree in Westminister. We could see the Thames, as it was right outside and to the left of our window. We walked along the Thames everyday. It was a quick walk to Westminister Abbey, Big Ben, the Tower of London, etc. We walked over and took a two hour tour of the Parliament Building also. The hotel was extremely close to a bus. We also walked to Horse Guards Parade area. We took the buses all over this time, instead of the Tube.
I have also stayed in the Kensington Base2Stay and loved it. Very convenient, near to two tube stations, two grocers and within walking distance of two great museums , the Victoria and Albert( one of my personal favorites) and the Natural History Museum.
The bedding is nice , I love duvets.
The rooms are clean, modern, my room was quiet, the bathrooms modern, and loved the mini kitchen in a closet thing( there is so much great take out in London) .
The rooms are not large, they almost never are in Europe in general, so if you need a large room you may need to keep looking, but I would stay in that Base2Stay again in a minute.
PS I was solo woman there and liked the safe feel of area even walking around at night.