London Hotel Recommendations

[Jewel22]

We (my Sister, Mom and I) are taking a cruise out of Southampton on June 15.  We will fly into Heathrow on the afternoon of June 12, stay in London for 3 nights and get a car service to take us to Southampton on the 15th.  My Mom cannot walk for long distances due to breathing issues, she will be carrying her portable oxygen.   We do plan on a car service from the airport to the hotel.   

 

We would like recommendations for hotels that have good access to the bus.  I am thinking using the bus or taxi to get around the city would be better for Mom, since the stairs involved in using the tube could be a problem.   In searching hotels, I am finding many can only be booked for 2 adults per room (including the Premier Inn).  Our budget is approx $300 to $400 per night.

 

Thank you in advance for any help.

 

Julie

[cft8]

We stayed at the Radisson Blu Edwardian Vanderbilt. They had some “family” rooms that allowed 3 adults. It’s right on Cromwell Road, so it was easy to get the bus or a cab. (It is close to Gloucester Road Tube, but that station does not have step-free access so it would not be easy for your mom.) I will say that there were probably 10 steps up to the front door and no ramp. The hotel is rambling (it was originally 5 town houses that were joined together by the Vanderbilt family) and only has 2 elevators, so you would want to check with them about specific room locations. Also, it has what I consider “British-style” bathtubs, which have much higher sides than what we are used to in the states and are usually a big step up. The hotel did have one handicapped room, but the couple in our group who needed it ended up not coming, so I don’t know what it was like or if it would accommodate 3 adults. 

 

All that being said, if it’s not the right choice for you, I would suggest looking for other hotels that have “family” rooms, which will probably allow 3 adults. 

[Jewel22]

Thank you for your suggestion of the Radisson Blu.   They do have availability for a family room.  They are priced a little over budget but we could make it work.  I will see what Mom thinks of the stairs.

 

Some of the other hotels I read about that do offer accommodations that would work for our group are:

 

The Darlington Hyde Park

Travelodge London Central Waterloo

Holiday Inn Express Earl's Court

Hampton by Hilton London Waterloo

Club Quarters Hotel St Paul

Double Tree by Hilton West End

 

or

book two rooms at one of the Premiere Inn's 

London Kensington (Earl's Court)  (price less than some of above options)

London Waterloo (Westminster Bridge)

London County Hall

 

Does anyone have opinions on any of the above, especially locations.   I am finding this hotel search very challenging!

 

Thank you,

Julie

 

[Turtles06]

1 hour ago, Jewel22 said:

Hampton by Hilton London Waterloo...

 

1 hour ago, Jewel22 said:

Does anyone have opinions on any of the above, especially locations.   I am finding this hotel search very challenging!

 

Thank you,

Julie

 

Hi Julie,

 

My wife and I spent four nights at the Hampton by Hilton London Waterloo this fall.   We thought the location was excellent -- it was a very short walk to the Waterloo Tube station (and rail if you need that).  Also not a bad walk to the London Eye, and we in fact walked one day to Westminster Abbey (and back).   But given what you've said about your Mom, the walking part may not be relevant for you.   There were buses running right outside the the hotel, but I can't tell you where they were going since we relied on the Tube or walking.

 

As for the hotel itself -- our room was fine. (Smaller than Hampton Inns in the U.S.. but I think that's to be expected in Europe.)  The included breakfast buffet was nice; a good start to the day.  There's a small bar in the lobby, which was a nice way to end the evening.  Ice was only available on two floors; no ice buckets, there were paper cups for carrying the ice back to your room.  (I like having ice in the room, so I note these things. ) There's a really excellent Indian restaurant, The Thames, just across from Waterloo Station; we had a wonderful dinner there. 

[John Bull]

Hi, Julie,

 

Definitely strike thro' the two options in Earls Court - its some way from the centre so a slow journey by bus if mum doesn't use the tube. And double that journey if you want to see a show or whatever in the evening.

(most tube stations have escalators, many have lifts. But some have only stairs, and many have long underground tunnels to walk. You need an expert to advise on any tube stations).

 

Waterloo / County Hall are ideal - handy for the London Eye & river trips, riverside restaurants & bars, just across Westminster Bridge from Big Ben, Westminster Cathedral, Churchill War Rooms, Whitehall, etc. 

And on the main ho-ho route - the yellow route on this tour map https://www.theoriginaltour.com/media/3134/the-original-tour-london-map-summer-18-lr.pdf

I'd def recommend the London ho-hos for a leisurely overview and to see all the sights that you won't we able to visit in a short stay in London.

 

JB 

 

 

Edited January 2, 2019 by John Bull

[Jewel22]

Turtles - Thank you for sharing your experience at the Hampton by Hilton London Waterloo.  This does sound like it might be a good choice for us.  They offer a queen plus a sofa bed.  I like the fact that buses are running past the hotel.  I will research to see if the buses stop along here.  You sound like my husband as far as the ice, filling the ice bucket is his first priority wherever we stay!    

 

John Bull -  Thank you for your recommendation to stay in the County Hall/Waterloo area.  I will concentrate my searches to that area.  I like the idea of the hop on hop off bus to see some of the sites.  Thank you for the link.  I have found a step free guide for the tube that also might help us. 

 

Thank you both for your replies.

Julie

[Post Captain]

Hi Julie ~

 

I've not stayed at any of these hotels, but I'm familiar with the locations of all of them.  Here's my two cents' worth:

 

>>>The Darlington Hyde Park<<<

No.  I don't know this hotel per se, but I'm not enamored of the general location (near Paddington Station)--there are numerous old hotels/ "guest houses" (aka transient accommodation) in the area, many of them at the lower end of the scale in terms of quality, amenities, comfort, etc.  Moreover, Paddington isn't really convenient as a base for sight-seeing.  What John Bull says about Earls Court applies to Paddington as well.  Strike this one off the list.

 

>>>Travelodge London Central Waterloo<<<

Again, this is slightly on the fringe of central London; perhaps slightly more convenient than Earls Court or Paddington, but it still wouldn't be my choice.  Travelodge is a popular and very affordable "superbudget" chain, a notch or two down from Premier Inn, although I gather that this particular hotel has been recently refurbished.

 

>>>Holiday Inn Express Earl's Court<<<

I agree with JB re. the location.

 

>>>Hampton by Hilton London Waterloo<<<

Two acquaintances of mine (a well-traveled couple from New York) stayed here a couple of years ago before a transatlantic voyage and said they were quite satisfied with the accommodations.  However, again, it is slightly on the fringe of where you ideally would want to be.

 

>>>Club Quarters Hotel St Paul<<<

Nice location.  St Paul's Cathedral is right in front of you when you come out of the door and turn left.  I'd give this hotel serious consideration.  (You might also want to take a look at the Club Quarters hotel at Lincoln's Inn Fields--another great location.  Excellent reviews on Tripadvisor.)

 

>>>Double Tree by Hilton West End<<<

Located in an older (Edwardian era, if I'm not mistaken) building; formerly the Bonnington Hotel.  On the fringe of Bloomsbury, my favorite part of London.  It's on a very busy road (Southampton Row), but otherwise well situated as a base for sightseeing in central London.

 

>>>or

book two rooms at one of the Premiere Inn's 

London Kensington (Earl's Court)  (price less than some of above options)

London Waterloo (Westminster Bridge)

London County Hall<<<

 

The PI Waterloo (Westminster Bridge) and PI County Hall hotels are practically across the street from one another.  PI County Hall is in an older building; PI Waterloo is a relatively new building.  Good location as a base for London sightseeing.  (The two "Waterloo" hotels in your first list, above, are in a different section of Waterloo, not as central or convenient as the location of these two Premier Inn hotels.)

 

(I agree with JB, again, about deleting Kensington/Earls Court from your list.)

 

FWIW, I've stayed at other Premier Inns elsewhere in England.  The standard Premier Inn rooms I've experienced are basic but well designed, attractive, and very clean, with extremely comfortable beds.  The chain compares very favorably with Holiday Inn or Hampton Inn in the U.S.

 

So...  to summarize:  I'd put the Club Quarters (either the St Paul's or Lincoln's Inn Fields location) at or near the top of my list, alongside the Premier Inn County Hall or Waterloo (Westminster Bridge).  IMHO, these choices should offer the best combination of quality, comfort, budget, and location.

 

If you want to go a little more upscale, here are a few other possibilities to check out--though off the top of my head, I don't know if any of these have triples/suites or are in your price range:

 

Apex Temple Court Hotel

The Bloomsbury

Kingsway Hall Hotel

Radisson Blu Edwardian Kenilworth

 

Ask if you have more questions or if you come across other hotels that catch your interest.

 

Cheers,

PC

 

 

 

Edited January 2, 2019 by Post Captain

[Jewel22]

PC  -  This is great information!   Thank you so much.

 

Julie

[Bob++]

I did a dummy booking at London Waterloo (Westminster Bridge) hotel for three adults in two rooms at a shade under $900. This does not include breakfast, which is an extra £10.50pp. The main problem is that this price does not allow amendments or cancellations, but your insurance should cover you if you have to cancel.

 

https://www.premierinn.com/gb/en/hotels/england/greater-london/london/london-waterloo-westminster-bridge.html

Edited January 3, 2019 by Bob++

[john watson]

In terms of getting around I think you should look at the "Transport for London" official government website.  A huge amount of information is available on the site.  If you click on the "Maps" section it is surprising how many tube stations now have the "wheelchair icon" on them.  Recently, certainly before the 2012 Olympics, they have been trying to get an "AFA" (access for all) set up so people with wheelchairs, prams, pushchairs can be accommodated conveniently. The newer lines incorporate this step free arrangement from the start and conversions are being installed. Generally DLR is totally disabled friendly,  This can affect hotel choice as coming into the more central area on the tube lets you stay in a cheaper rate hotel area.

 

One thing that shocks newcomers to London is that you cannot pay in cash on buses!  An Oyster Card or Contactless Credit Card (not chip and pin) can be used to touch in on buses at a flat rate per journey, tubes need touching in and then out at final destination.  All the information you need is on the official government website.

 

Regards John

[katrina915]

My elderly father and I stayed at the Park Plaza Westminister.  Good location and fairly new.  We booked a handicapped room, but were too tired from overnight flight so took first available and worked out fine.

 

You might want to consider renting a wheelchair before you go (much cheaper if you do it at home).  There is a LOT of walking on the ship and to/from transportation.  I got a tube guide without stairs but I wasn't comfortable counting on it.  The buses are great, but there will be some rocking of wheelchair if you take one.  London is a very walkable city, so wheelchair worked great for us eventhough he just used rollator at home.  And then we had it for the rest of the cruise/ports.   We took a cab in London when I got tired of pushing him (cabs are accessible). 

 

I would also recommend researching the places that you are going even if you decide not to get wheelchair.  If you look for wheelchair accessible routes, that will give you a good idea of distances, stairs, etc.   I found London attractions to be very accurate on what was accessible.  Not so much in rest of Europe.  For example, a restaurant in Eiffel tower website listed it as wheelchair accessible, but you have to climb 14 steps to get to it which was not listed on their website.

 

You might also want to post on the Disabilities board- they can give a lot of tips on hotels and what to do in ports.

 

Good luck.

[Jewel22]

Bob - Thank you.  We are definitely considering this hotel, two rooms might be nice for the extra space.

 

John - That looks like a website I will need to study before our trip.  Thank you for pointing me in the right direction.

 

Katrina - Thank you for that information.  The Park Plaza Westminster is not available for our dates but it lead me to put the Park Plaza County Hall or Waterloo on my short list.  It looks like County Hall may be right across the street from where you stayed; Waterloo a little farther out (maybe not as convenient).

My Mom is renting a scooter for the cruise portion of the trip, they will deliver to the ship.  I had to convince her that it would be good to have as a back up even if she decides not to use it all the time.  The more I research, the more I wonder if she should have something for London.   She does not use anything at home, just limits the distance she walks and sits to rest when she gets winded.  This will be our first big trip since she has been on oxygen.    

[Post Captain]

1 hour ago, Jewel22 said:

The Park Plaza Westminster is not available for our dates but it lead me to put the Park Plaza County Hall or Waterloo on my short list.  It looks like County Hall may be right across the street from where you stayed; Waterloo a little farther out (maybe not as convenient).

 

Julie,

 

The Google map linked below will give you a good idea of the locations of several of these hotels in relation to one another and the close surrounding area.  As you'll see, there's a cluster of five hotels all very close to one another in this section of Waterloo--two Park Plazas, two Premier Inns, and the (somewhat more expensive) Marriott County Hall.  Indeed, the two Park Plazas and the Premier Inn Waterloo are  virtually side by side by side one another, with the PI County Hall just a block* or so away from them.   

 

https://goo.gl/maps/MXBXzDMWqCG2

 

Use the Streetview mode to take a look around the neighborhood.

 

*(The British don't use the term "block" to describe the distance from one street corner to the next, but in North American parlance, the distance I'm talking about is indeed a block.  Or a block and a half.)

 

 

 

[Jewel22]

PC - Thank you, this is helpful.