fredajetta

I'm spending 3 nights in London, April 20-22. I'd like to be relatively close to museums and shows (I'm happy to take tube or walk) but out of the tourist craziness. Any suggestions for a clean, but not fancy, moderately priced, safe (I'm a woman travelling alone) hotel? Thank you!

janisj

Can't help much unless you tell us what you mean by "moderately priced".

(just about every hotel is close to some museum or show and easily reachable to others)

fredajetta

My hope is to pay around $150. Is that unrealistic?

janisj

sure - $150 is approx £75 and you can get a decent room for that much. Not posh but definitely serviceable.

However, whenever someone's budget is in the $90-$150 range I always suggest Priceline. You can get quite a nice 4 star hotel w/ all mod cons for around $100 give or take. Sometimes even down in the $75-$80 range. When taxes/fees are added you are looking at $100-$150-ish.

For the same money you'd be talking about a pretty decent but 2 star-ish tourist class hotel.

Check out biddingfortravel.com and betterbidding.com to see what sorts of PL bids are successful at the moment. PL is not great for many cities - but it sure is good for London.

tower

freda:


We booked the Parkwood and then had to postpone our UK visit. When we rescheduled, the Parkwood was fully booked (May) and recommened their "sister hotel", The George...looks pretty good for 79£..it's in Bloomsbury close to British Museum and Euston Station and tube...we booked it for May date. Both hotels offer full breakfast included in rate.

http://www.parkwoodhotel.com/

http://www.georgehotel.com/english/index.html

Stu T.

SavTrav

We really liked the K&K George while we were in London. I felt comfortable in the neighborhood and we were very close to a rail station.

It may be above your price range, but if you consider paying more, I would recommend this hotel.

http://www.kkhotels.com

raspberryberet

we stayed in the Bloomsbury district, close to the British Museum, just off the Goodge St. tube stop at the Arran House B&B. Google it, you'll find their website. We paid 77 pounds/night for a small, clean adorable room with a shared bathroom on the floor which was very clean. Breakfast (big variety) included, friendly staff.

janisj

<i>&quot;We paid 77 pounds/night for a small, clean adorable room with a shared bathroom</i>&quot;

That's my point - the Arran House is a very popular and well-run 2 star B&amp;B hotel w/ some shared baths. It is a great place to stay -- but for less money you could get a 4 star hotel using PL.

Ronda

Aaran House Hotel?

http://www.london-hotel.co.uk/

Janisj, I have never bid on Priceline although I understand the concept and after looking over the FAQ's on biddingfortravel, listening to the tutorial on Priceline, I just find it very intimidating. Do I really want to risk my vacation on chance?

janisj

You could also ask -- do you want to risk sharing your bathroom down the hall w/ three 18 yo's on their high school graduation trip?

PL isn't really &quot;chance&quot; if you bid in the best located zones. We can help you. Any 4 star London hotel in the 2 or 3 best zones will be several rungs above what you can get for &pound;50-&pound;100 booking directly. However, if you are worried and really don't want to try it, that is fine. You can get a perfectly serviceable room w/o going the PL route.

Londonres

You might want to consider the Royal Adelphi Hotel, just off The Strand on Villiers St. For your budget you could get a single en suite room. Be aware that there are lots of stairs, no lifts and the rooms are small and basic, but clean. The location is excellent and safe. Check out:
http://www.royaladelphihotel.co.uk/

For more money you could stay at The Fielding Hotel, in a side street by Covent Garden. They do single en suite rooms for &pound;85. Check out:
http://www.the-fielding-hotel.co.uk/

Momliz

<i> PL isn't really &quot;chance&quot; if you bid in the best located zones</i>

What are the best zones? I will search London neighborhoods as well.

Ronda

Well, Jasnisj, We will be in London in June. I am not sure as yet where my husband's business meetings will be, but I am looking at the hotels and starting to check out rates. I may make a hotel reservation somewhere so we have a backup and then see what I can do with Priceline. How do I get this help you reference?

pilgrim

Hi,
I have booked priceline hotels
in London and elsewhere. I often
travel solo for business, and
find the 4* hotels I get quite
comfortable because of security.
The others can advise you on
the best zones--I like to
stay in Kensington or near
Covent Garden because of business,
but biddingfortravel.com and betterbidding.com are good guides.

janisj

The most central PL zones are:

<b>Mayfair/Soho</b>
or <b>Westminster</b>

Other good zones are:
<b>Bloomsbury/Marble Arch</b> - but this zone can put you into Kings Cross - so I would avoid it personally.

<b>Kensington/Earls Court/Knightsbridge</b> This is the easiest zone to get a good hotel at a cheap rate - but you might end up in Earls Court. That would not be terrible at all - it is just a bit less convenient. But it has excellent bus service and decent-ish tube service.

and <b>City/London Bridge</b> (the info on biddingfortravel is out of date for this zone)

frogoutofwater

I like the West End between Marylebone High Street and Oxford Circus (I used to live there). There is a Holiday Inn on Welbeck Street that might be a little higher than what you're looking for, but it's well-located. Oxford Street itself is a zoo, but the streets just north of Wigmore Street are quieter. You're close to the theatre district, to West End shopping, to Bloomsbury and Regent's Park. There are several different tube lines, so it's easy to get around.

fredajetta

thanks for all the tips. i'm a bit skittish about priceline, but might have to go that route since it's so late in the game. have emailed the arran house and the royal adelphi and started to look at the bidding advice sites, but got overwhelmed... might just take my chances without all their threads of advice!

don1982

Try Travelodge near Euston/St Pancras stations - they have &pound;19 per night rooms on offer NOW

Robertalee

We recently spent 10 nights at the K+K George and found it to be comfortable. They served a large buffet breakfast every morning and the servers got to know us! They also provide soup and sandwiches at the bar in the evening.It is in the Earl's Court area close to the Natural History Museum and not far from the V&amp;A Museum. The walk to a tube station is about 2 minutes. After staying at the Thistle Victoria 2 trips (this is a very good location with the tube and rail station ajoining the hotel,and in the middle between Parliament buildings and Buckingham Palace), we decided to stay in a different area, and this met our needs.

kfulgham

My favorite place to stay is the Royal Adelphi Hotel. It's situated near Charing Cross tube station, the best location for the price. You can walk to all the theaters, Buckingham Palace, Royal Horseguards, National Gallery, Oxford Street, and even the British Museum if you're a good walker. Convenient for tube connections. It should be just slightly above your price.