London United Kingdon Hotels

[oshawa]

Has anyone recently stayed in a moderately priced central hotel location in London that they would recommend. Preferably contemporary accomodations?

 

Anyone used one of the hotels recommended by HAL that they were satisfied with and would stay in again?

 

Also, how does one get from London to the port in Dover? Are there trains or a bus service?

 

It is my understanding that if you stayed in one of the HAL hotels the bus transfers would either be included or at least if you paid for the transfer they would pick you up at that hotel. The bus transfer price is quoted at $167.00 approx. Dover to port and return to airport I am assuming.

 

 

 

the

[debsjc]

I like The Hoxton, it's very contemporary, and sometimes you can get a very good price. However some might not describe it as central, it's 5 mins walk from a tube station.

 

http://www.hoxtonhotels.com/#/home_sleep

[Hawaiidan]

both are best positions for exploring london and an easy walk to either train or underground... :cool:

[navybankerteacher]

Park International Hotel on Cromwell Road - a 5 minute walk from the Gloucester Road underground station on the Picadilly Line - about a 30 minute direct ride from Heathrow Airport (fare about 3.5 GBP- much less than Heathrow Express which just dumps you at Paddington Station requiring a taxi ride to whatever hotel you pick) and vastly less than the 60-100 GBP taxi fare. Hotel would be about 80 GBP for a double room.

 

Trains to all ports are much less expensive than bus -even when you figure in taxi fare from hotel to train station.

[Krazy Kruizers]

One year HAL used the Hype Park Hilton -- we stayed there and liked it.

[boards]

We stayed at the Hyde Park Inn, now called the Lancaster Gate Hotel and it is very near the Lancaster Gate tube station. Near Buckingham Palace, very easy walk to it.

[taxmantoo]

Park International Hotel on Cromwell Road - a 5 minute walk from the Gloucester Road underground station on the Picadilly Line - about a 30 minute direct ride from Heathrow Airport (fare about 3.5 GBP- much less than Heathrow Express which just dumps you at Paddington Station requiring a taxi ride to whatever hotel you pick) and vastly less than the 60-100 GBP taxi fare. Hotel would be about 80 GBP for a double room.

 

Trains to all ports are much less expensive than bus -even when you figure in taxi fare from hotel to train station.

 

Cromwell Road or the South Kensington area within walking distance of the Gloucester Road Tube Station is indeed a great location. That tube station actually has three main underground lines going into it so access to all Central London locations is greatly simplified. The Picadilly Line, the Circle Line and the District Line all pass through the Gloucester Road Station.

 

There are numerous medium price hotels (well, by London standards anyways) close by... Holiday Inn, Best Western, etc all have locations within a block of the station. We have stayed at the Ashburn Hotel (one block from the tube station) a few times and can highly recommend it, although a bit pricier.

[Stevesan]

Has anyone recently stayed in a moderately priced central hotel location in London that they would recommend. Preferably contemporary accomodations?

 

Anyone used one of the hotels recommended by HAL that they were satisfied with and would stay in again?

 

Also, how does one get from London to the port in Dover? Are there trains or a bus service?

 

It is my understanding that if you stayed in one of the HAL hotels the bus transfers would either be included or at least if you paid for the transfer they would pick you up at that hotel. The bus transfer price is quoted at $167.00 approx. Dover to port and return to airport I am assuming.

 

 

 

the

 

Have you tried the "Britain" message board? You'll find a ton of info about london hotels, and there are locals always happy to provide suggestions regarding travel, both in and out of town.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=233

[Twickenham]

Has anyone recently stayed in a moderately priced central hotel location in London that they would recommend. Preferably contemporary accomodations?

 

Anyone used one of the hotels recommended by HAL that they were satisfied with and would stay in again?

 

Also, how does one get from London to the port in Dover? Are there trains or a bus service?

 

It is my understanding that if you stayed in one of the HAL hotels the bus transfers would either be included or at least if you paid for the transfer they would pick you up at that hotel. The bus transfer price is quoted at $167.00 approx. Dover to port and return to airport I am assuming.

 

 

 

the

 

It would help if you defined 'moderately priced'.

Both the bus and train go to Dover. I'd take the train just 'cause I prefer trains.

Second the suggestion of checking out the Britain board - lots of info there.

[debsjc]

It would help if you defined 'moderately priced'.

 

 

I agree with Twickenham. Most of the hotels people have recommended I would describe as quite expensive :)

[oshawa]

Thanks everyone for the helpful info. I will also check out the British Boards.

[navybankerteacher]

I agree with Twickenham. Most of the hotels people have recommended I would describe as quite expensive :)

 

British hotels are quite expensive. For some reason, as soon as the prices approach what appears as reasonable in the US ((say $60- $90) acceptable quality is just not there -- not clean, shared bathrooms, and worse. I do not know why, - maybe there is a secret password Brits use to get reasonable prices - or maybe they just live with the outrageous prices.

[Bispham Boo]

I find hotels in most capital/major cities expensive - London, Paris, NYC (I know its not a capital but I've not been to Washington DC yet :)) and no, we Brits don't know a secret code! I do like the City Inn - a small chain which has a hotel in London - not mega-central but quite near the River Thames & Westminster (Houses of Parliament) and Pimlico has a charm of its own (a lot of Notting Hill was filmed there I believe). Very modern hotels, Mac tvs, free internet etc.

Have a look at cityinn.com. They do some good deals depending on when you're going.

[Mary Ellen]

British hotels are quite expensive. For some reason, as soon as the prices approach what appears as reasonable in the US ((say $60- $90) acceptable quality is just not there -- not clean, shared bathrooms, and worse.

Where do you stay in Boston, NYC, D.C., Chicago, San Francisco, Seattle, Vancouver.... in that price range that even approaches "acceptable quality"? I'm sure you can get places in the outskirts, but in town, near sightseeing????? I can't think of any "world class" city (the category I consider London to be) with hotel prices that low. I know I'm not finding them in Sydney or Singapore.

[debsjc]

I would say London hotels are expensive, rather than British hotels. There are lots of bargains around in other parts of the country.

 

We stayed in a lovely hotel near Warwick this year- a 2 night package with dinner, bed and breakfast for 2 people was £99 total.

 

These are websites I sometimes find bargains on

 

http://www.lastminute.com/

 

http://www.travelzoo.com/uk/

 

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/forumdisplay.php?f=80

 

http://www.devere.co.uk/offers/leisure-offers/19-pound-autumn-rooms.html

[DrTee]

London is indeed very expensive, but there are some tricks. Go to bidding for travel and get some pointers on using Priceline, then make a bid on Priceline. I got a room at The Trafalgar, a Hilton hotel right on Trafalgar Square, for under $150 a night a couple of years ago. It was a great deal, and you can't beat the location.

 

I also like the Victoria Park Plaza.

 

For more affordable, I agree the Hoxton is good, though not what most would consider centrally located.

 

It kind of depends on what your standards are, what you are willing to pay, where you want to stay (what part of London), and how much research you're willing to do to get a good deal. But even a good deal is going to be expensive.

 

As for the secret word, I think the British just have much lower standards than we spoiled Americans have.

[navybankerteacher]

Where do you stay in Boston, NYC, D.C., Chicago, San Francisco, Seattle, Vancouver.... in that price range that even approaches "acceptable quality"? I'm sure you can get places in the outskirts, but in town, near sightseeing????? I can't think of any "world class" city (the category I consider London to be) with hotel prices that low. I know I'm not finding them in Sydney or Singapore.

 

I was referring to British hotels generally -- rarely do you find a good, clean regional hotel in the $60 -$75 range easily found in the US. When it comes to "world class" cities -- The Murray Hill ($179), Pennsylvania ($179) and Roosevelt ($215) are all centrally located and offer far more comfort than a 125 to 175 GBP ($200-$275) London hotel - which is hard to find anyway, and likely to be far below US standards.

[NoWhiners]

I stayed at the Crescent Hotel in Bloomsbury last June. Very clean and comfortable, great price--relatively speaking. i think it was 70 British pounds, about $130 US. Included full English breakfast (unusual). You can select single or double, shared or private bath (en suite). I was in room 7--in back, a few steps down from main level, right on a private courtyard. Be sure and request a low floor--no elevator!!

 

link:

http://www.crescenthoteloflondon.com/Facilities.asp?Rooms_Facilities=true

 

contact them thru web site--they don't list with other sites.

 

ML

[NoWhiners]

oops, forgot to say it is near British Museum and a tube station (Russell Square?). Also has a few pubs nearby! I walked to quite a few places from here, including Oxford Street.

 

ML

[Pam in CA]

Cromwell Road or the South Kensington area within walking distance of the Gloucester Road Tube Station is indeed a great location. That tube station actually has three main underground lines going into it so access to all Central London locations is greatly simplified. The Picadilly Line, the Circle Line and the District Line all pass through the Gloucester Road Station.

We stayed at the Crowne Plaza Kensington on Cromwell Road, right across the street from the Gloucester Road Tube station for a very reasonable price during "high" season in August. I think we paid about $150/night through hotels.com.

 

Not only is the Tube located right there but the Hop-on/Hop-off bus stops there as well. We went to a great pub right across the street on Gloucester Road for dinner one night and the next, to an Indian restaurant around the corner for the best Indian meal I've ever had. Very reasonable as well.

 

There's free WiFi in the lobby and a Starbucks and similar places near the Tube station. We found it VERY convenient.

[room010]

As usual it depends on location. If you are willing to commute to the tourist spots in central London then you can probably find something 30 mins away on the Tube. If you want to stay somewhere within walking distance of those tourist spots then I'm afraid you will have to pay for it. It depends on what you are willing to compromise over but if you find a "bargain" hotel in central London then do your research because there's probably a reason why it's so cheap. Even chain hotels like Hilton, Holiday Inn, Best Westin, etc are way more expensive than the US and it's not just about the exchange rate. They charge what they do because they can. :(

[Vic The Parrot]

It probably depends on when, and how you book the hotel room.

 

 

One time, I was able to reserve a room at the Hilton Olympia for only 96 pounds per night ... with breakfast included.

 

There are deals out there if you look.

 

 

As for Dover, the train is the best bet. The coach will indoubtedly take longer.

 

You'll find more info at nationalrail dot co dot UK.

Good luck, and have a good time!

[Lady Chew]

We just returned from a trip to London/UK (got back in just last night). We stayed at the Marriott Marble Arch, which is probably more than you want to spend based on your original question ... but we like staying in Marriotts because we know what the product will be no matter where we are. (we also like the rewards programs). We did take one organized tour and met some other Americans who complained about their hotels, a Hilton and a Holiday Inn, I don't know which ones, just somewhere in Central London ... the main complaint was about the size & condition of the bathrooms. Our bathroom was great, and our room was very nice as well. Worth every $$ to us.

 

We found the Marble Arch area to be very central to the things we wanted to see ... we walked all over and rode the tube as well. There was a 24-hr strike on the tube while we were there, and there are apparently a few more planned during the next few months.

 

We did take a day trip to Dover. Taking the train was easy. From Charing Cross Station to Dover ... took around 1 hr 40 minutes. There were taxis available outside the station to take you to the port ... it's not a good walk, especially with luggage.

[Vic The Parrot]

We did take one organized tour and met some other Americans who complained about their hotels, a Hilton and a Holiday Inn, I don't know which ones, just somewhere in Central London ...

 

 

 

Surely, it wasn't my Hilton.

 

 

Everything was in working order in the loo, and the room itself was huge for London standards.

 

Guess it's the luck of the draw.

[Lady Chew]

I dunno ... they were busy complaining about their hotels and about the weather ... I was busy looking out the windows and not paying enough attention to my eavesdropping!