janeog

We are thinking of taking a short trip to London at the end of November to celebrate a milestone, our 40th wedding anniversary. We know what the weather will be like but will concentrate on indoor activities and my husband is keen to see the Christmas decorations and so on. We are very familiar with the city and usually stay at one of the Bloomsbury B & B's however we would like this trip to be a little more special and have been scouring the internet looking for a place to stay that is convenient, i.e. close to a tube station, has a little character but is not extravagantly expensive so not the Ritz or the Savoy. I'm wondering if anyone has a personal recommendation which would help us?

janisj

>>but is not extravagantly expensive so not the Ritz or the Savoy<<

What is your actual budget? I like the Royal Horseguards for a 'mid-luxury', not-the-Ritz-rates. But there are a hundred equally good properties.

janeog

So I knew someone would ask the question and then laugh at my answer! I was hoping to keep it at 200 pounds a night - in North America, there are often reductions for longer stays, 3 nights or more, 7 nights or more but that doesn't seem to happen in the UK. And it seems that none of the proper hotels (as opposed to B & B's) include breakfast either. We did think about an apartment but aren't very comfortable any more with air bnb. Perhaps we will just have to go back to Gower Street!! Royal Horseguards looks lovely but not sure we can bring ourselves to pay the equivalent of over $400 Canadian!!

Bedar

Didn't Dukey1 get a good deal at The Savoy not so long ago ?

janisj

Look at Dolphin Square -- apartments but with hotel amenities.

http://www.dolphinsquare.co.uk/dolphin-house/

Very nice and reasonably priced (I'm actually staying there myself end/Nov/early Dec because it is a 'squeezed in' trip and I didn't want Horseguards or Waldorf Hilton-type rates.

In Pimlico -- close to the river, Pimlico tube station, Victoria and Tate Britain.

BigRuss

<< We know what the weather will be like >>

Really? You could make a mint off that. The bloody Brits don't even know what the weather will be like next week.

If you sell stock in those prognostication abilities, I'll buy in.

Underhill

Have a look at the Washington Hotel in Mayfair; great location. We stayed there at Christmas one year, before it was sold and renovated; looks quite nice now from the photos.

janisj

The Washington (or any other hotel on Curzon Street for that matter) will likely cost more than the OP's budget.

. . . Just did a dummy booking there for 4 nights at the end of Nov/beg. of Dec and the cheapest room was £259/CAN$435 per night.

A little less IF pre-paid non-refundable.

historytraveler

Just have a look at the booking.com website. They often have specials where you can get a l
uxury hotel at a fairly reasonable price. If you want personal recs then come back here with some options. It's really difficult to make suggestions without knowing your budget and actual requirements. Most hotels are located
near a tube station.

janisj

I don't know your exact dates -- But Dolphin House will be considerably cheaper than $CAN400. It is usually listed on both booking.com and hotels.com (I prefer Booking.com myself )

. . . Just did the same dummy booking using booking.com and got a 1 bdrm apartment for $US 818 no breakfast (or $US 940 w/ a full breakfast) for the four nights.

So $CAN 1021 total = $CAN 255 per night. Very nice property, on-site restaurant/bar, sundries shop, small grocery, green grocer, pool, fitness centre, free wifi, less than 5 minute walk to Pimlico tube station, etc.

Boveney

If you are ‘very familiar with the city’, you may enjoy exploring the East End.
Take a look at the Hoxton Hotel – the original shows a ‘cozy double’ available Thursday 23/11 for £219, going down to £169 the next night, £189 Saturday and £119 Sunday. In other words, rates vary by day – you will need to plug in your schedule. If you want to stay more ‘Central’ (keeping in mind that the axis of London has shifted), the new Hoxton Hotel in Holborn shows similar availability though the ‘shoebox’ is sold out. The range goes: shoebox, snug, cozy, roomy.
The Town Hall Hotel Bethnal Green is a five-star in a beautiful old building with a famous restaurant. Advance purchase rates for a suite for November 23 show on the website as £197, otherwise best rate £219. Includes taxes and fees, excludes breakfast.
The City (meaning the actual City of London) is walkable from the Hoxton; the Town Hall runs a free shuttle to the Square Mile. Breakfast shouldn’t be a problem: lots of cafes and artisan bakeries in both areas. The Hoxton is walking distance to Old Street Station and Liverpool Street Station, the Town Hall to Bethnal Green station.
BigRuss, I think OP simply meant she was prepared for bad weather and short daylight hours and didn’t need anyone pointing out it would be better to visit in June....

Sue81

Just for the heck of it, check out the Savoy, great location and you just might get a deal. Great hotel with a great history in WW II. Sue

janisj

I like the Hoxton properties . . . but at least me personally would not want one of their shoebox/snug/cozy rooms for a special anniversary celebration. the 'cozy' are less than 175 sq feet. The 'Roomy' are decent sized but are pricey.

The Savoy is much higher -- Nov. is an expensive time in London.

Boveney

Sue81 - yes, the Savoy is a great historic hotel. And for the November 23 date for comp with the hotels I referenced above, rates start at £654. Would love to know what sort of deal you think may be available to bring the rate down to the OP's specified budget.

janeog

Thank you very much for all the suggestions. We need to book flights first then we do like the sound of Dolphin House - and the price! Thanks Janis and if we bump into you there, will owe you a drink!

Tulips

Late November is a busy time in London - I'm always there then, and not easy to find deals on hotels.

I know Dolphin House, but wouldn't advise it if you want something special and central. It's a very residential area, not particularly convenient, nor charming. Great for families, though.

Have a look at the Marylebone Hotel - not sure if you'll get a room for your budget, and the smallest rooms are very small, so take the next size up if you can. It's a great hotel in an excellent location, lots of restaurants, shops on Marylebone High Street. Also a nice bar, and even an indoor pool. Bond Street would be the closest tube station.

Another hotel I like a lot is the Laslett, a new boutique hotel in Notting Hill, just a few steps from Notting Hill Gate station. Easy access to anywhere as that station is on the Central and District lines.

Tulips

Oh, and if there is somewhere special you want to book for dinner, book it now! Use opentable for searching and booking restaurants.

massimop

Any interest in the Captain Bligh Guest House?

https://www.captainblighhouse.co.uk/

flanneruk

"Would love to know what sort of deal you think may be available to bring the rate down to the OP's specified budget"

The blunt truth is: the chances of a deal in that kind of hotel are, short of a sudden nuclear war threat, zero.

Occupancy in decent London hotels between mid Nov and mid-Dec is just about a high as it can possibly get. Whatever price you're seeing now will only get higher.

With the greatest of respect - and we all know what that's code for - your claim that "in North America, there are often reductions for longer stays, 3 nights or more" isn't just irrelevant, it's manifestly ridiculous.

North America's huge: any generalisation about it is meaningless. No useful generalisation can possibly be true even of very large subsets, like New York.

Assuming such generalisations can have any use implies bizarre ignorance of North America, disgraceful ignorance of how to reason or an extraordinary tendency to shoot your mouth off without thinking. Most probably all three.

None do you any credit. And none have anything at all to do with the questions that really matter in this case.

nanabee

janeog...So according to flanner, why bother to travel? In fact, you shouldn't be allowed to ask questions being so disgracefully ignorant.


Do you not hear how you come across flanner? Why bother to post such rubbish? It makes you sound arrogant.