I did not have a great experience with them, and I'd be reluctant to rent from them again. My family -- four of us, three generations -- rented a flat near Eaton Place. The flat was roomy and just as described. It was the agency I didn't care for.

All correspondence and financial matters were handled well. But there were a bunch of other problems, some of which I'll describe:

The trouble began when we arrived at the airport, and the driver we'd hired through them, a rather expensive service, was nowhere to be found. Our flight plans had changed since I made the booking, but I'd contacted the agency and received confirmation that they were aware of the change. The emergency contact number in London went to an answering machine/voice mail every time I called over the course of more than an hour. Not helpful.

When the driver did appear, closer to the time of the original flight, I told him we'd been waiting over an hour. His response was a brusque "Well, no one tokld ME!" Again, not helpful.

The agent who met us seemed in an awful hurry to be through with us and on her way. She didn't seem too well-informed about either the flat itself or the neighborhood. One simple question we asked was where the nearest big supermarket was. She told us definitively that we'd need to go to a Sainsbury's near the Gloucester Road tube, not exactly close, when in fact there was a Waitrose right nearby.

We had no heat in the flat for two days. Calls to the "emergency contact number" were eventually returned and the heat was eventually restored.

The worst thing was unscheduled appearances of various estate agents with clients: the flat was for sale(!) and none of them was expecting to see US staying there. So that was unpleasant, to put it mildly.

This rental was at the end of an eight-week trip; by the time we returned home, I didn't have the time or energy to follow up with the agency about any of the disappointments. And I've never described this part of our trip to anyone before. So you can put all this down as one person who had an unlucky experience against a host of happy customers. Or consider me one of many who just didn't bother to report the problems.

But as they say, it's a point on the graph.

I actually feel like a weight's been lifted. So I thank you for the chance to vent.

Better luck to you with your plans, whatever you decide!

I haven't used them but they do have a good reputation.

I can sort of understand the after hours requirement for using their car service since they'd have to meet you. But generally transfers arranged by rental agencies cost quite a bit more than just doing it yourself through justairports or Ray Skinner. Or of course, using the tube would cost a fraction. If you want to know how they do it and the cost - you need to contact them.

Smith St is near the Chelsea Hospital and in quite a posh neighborhood. Not too far from the Sloane Sq tube station. Palace Gardens Terrace is just behind Kensington Palace and near Notting Hill Gate tube station - also a very nice area.

of the two, I'd probably personally stay in Smith St (unless the Palace Gardens Terr property is to die for fabulous) It is a bit closer in and a shorter tube ride to most major tourist areas.

I was posting the same time as pavot - we were posting at the same time. Sounds like they had a special situation because of the estate agents.

As I said - transfers arranged through rental agencies are never my first (nor third) choice since they cost more and you are sort of stuck.

Thank you both, this is very helpful. Should we go with London Connections, I'll make other arrangements for the airport transfer and ask a lot of questions about how much privacy we can expect.

janisj, can you give me an idea how long the tube rides might be? Location is the most important thing to us, and while we'd really prefer to find a flat, will go with a hotel if these flats are too far out. For comparison, if we were going to NY and the choice was an apt. in Brooklyn or Queens, I'd just book a hotel in mid-town Manhattan. Thanks!

Oh - neither is far out. Both are in central London (basically w/i the Circle tube line). It is just that the one near Sloan Sq is more central. For instance it is walking distance from Chelsea Hospital (not a "hospital" but a Wren masterpiece that is home to the Chelsea Pensioners and where they hold the Flower Show each May) and 1 tube stop from Victoria Station, 3 stops from Westminster Abbey/Big Ben/the Eye, 1 stop from South Kensington and the V&A (though I'd walk it instead) and 8 stops in a straight shot to the Tower of LOndon.

Notting Hill gate is walking distance to the parks, Kensington Palace and Portobello Rd. But just about everywhere else will be longer tube rides w/ changes. It is a straight shot to the tube stations along Bayswater/Oxford street for shopping and to Holborn for the British Museum.

Either location would be fine - and I generally much prefer flats too. But the one inn Chelsea is just closer to more things.

Thank you, janisj! That is a huge help. I'll look into the Smith St. Chelsea address as a first choice.

We used London Connections in 2004 to stay for seven nights in Mayfair and found it a good experience, good enough that we've again booked a flat through London Connections, this time for six nights in July in Knightsbridge. We've not had to be picked up from Heathrow since in our three previous trips we've traveled by rail to London. In 2004, we traveled by rail from Bath to London after two weeks in Scotland, York and Bath. I don't recall the rail station at which we stopped, but we just boarded the underground for a quick trip to the Mayfair flat near Grosvenor Square (the Green Park underground station). This year we'll be travelling by the Eurostar Channel Tunnel train from Paris to arrive at St Pancras rail station in London and an easy transfer to the underground for the trip to Knightsbridge. By the way, if you can locate close to, or close to an easy transfer to, the Picadilly Line, that line goes to Heathrow for a fairly easy "getaway" to your US or other flight.

Thanks, mohun!

Found 2 that look OK, now trying to decide between 1-21 Smith St. or 15 St. Martin's Lane. The location at St. Martin's Lane looks good - but google maps shows what may be construction in the street. Anyone know if that's still happening? Plan to book before the day is out - help appreciated! Thanks to all.

I don't know about the construction - but Google Maps images can be quite old. The one of my house shows an empty lot 2 blocks down - that has been a small shopping center for 3+ years. One thing to know - MANY streets in the central area are badly torn up since they are replacing just about all of the old Victorian water mains. I attended two theatres in the very immediate area just 2 weeks ago and didn't notice much out of the ordinary construction - except for the street works and the fountains in Tr Square being fenced off. But that was all over - not just along St Martin's Lane.

St Martin's Lane is a super location - less than 5 minutes walk from Covent Garden, Leicester Sq, Trafalgar Sq/National Gallery, Piccadilly Circus, Soho etc etc. And great for transport since it is very close to Leicester Sq on the Piccadilly line and Northern lines.

But it is also much less "residential". There are many theatres in the area and it is pretty busy.

For central - St Martin's Lane really can't be beat (I'd choose it since I like to go to a lot of plays). For peace/quiet - not so much.

I know this is a year old thread, but just wanted to say that we had a very good experience with London Connections.
Rented the Palace Gardens Terrace flat. Its location was perfect, in a quiet and subtley elegant area. The condition of the flat was nearly perfect (except for an old "moist odor" box spring mattress which they planned to replace--but do check on this if you rent this apartment). Other than that ,it is lovely, cozy, and very clean, with a modern kitchen and bathroom.
For the price, is is unbeatable, IMHO. The website photos do not do it justice. Everyone, both at the home office in Utah, and the on-site people in London,were great to work with. I'd re-rent this flat in a heartbeat--if it is available.
This is not my first time renting a vacation flat--you win some, you lose some-- so i try to go into it with an open mind.This one , thank Heaven was far better than I allowed myself to expect!