jgg

Thanks to all of you who responded to my request yesterday regarding locations of apts in London. Despite the fact that on the VRBO website they said that our dates were available, when I contacted the 3 most highly rated (by you guys) they said that those dates actually weren't available - UGH!!

So, I have gone back to the drawing board looking at more sites and have found a few more that I would like to run by you. For those new or to refresh your memory, this was a bit about ourselves and what we are looking for:

We will be staying in London for 4 nights with our daughter (24 yo) and son (20 yo) and his girlfriend (20 yo). We have been to London before for a week (10 years ago) and do a lot of international travel. My son's girlfriend has never been to Europe. We are looking for a 2-3 bedroom apt with atleast 1 King bed, 2 baths and air conditioning. Based on this criteria I started out with 55 options on VRBO and have narrowed it down to these five. I am mostly interested in your thoughts on the location of them based on our location requirements, which are: Close to a tube stop, and near shops and restaurants, and not too far from good, safe nightlife for the kids. Last time we stayed in an apt in Knightsbridge which was in a very nice neighborhood but a bit too residential for our liking - no small cafes nearby and even the closest grocery store was a few blocks. We will not be doing any cooking while we are there, but may want to bring back breakfast items and snacks.

Here are the links for the new options:
1. https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/6385873...354&role=owner
2. https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/6040220...354&role=owner
3. https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/6697153...354&role=owner
4. http://uberlondonapartments.com/Parl...ouse-(5D).html

I have sent requests to confirm availability for all of the above and have been able to confirm that #2 and #4 are currently available for our dates. I am also waiting to here back from this place:
https://www.vrbo.com/814002ha
which was on my list yesterday but the majority of people were encouraging me to go for the Convent Garden apts (which were my first choice too), but unfortunately the Convent Garden ones weren't available. Thank you again to those willing to take the time to look these up! So appreciate it!

thursdaysd

I like the look of #4 - right by the river and a tube station. #2 says it's no longer available. #1 is Chelsea, which usually means a trek to the tube.

jgg

Thanks! #2 is still available - she is holding it for me until tomorrow afternoon, but I am not certain about it's location.

gertie3751

#1 is Chelsea? Likewise not good for tube, you would need taxis or buses. Or walk. Can't see #2 at all. #3 might be noisy if 'near Oxford St'. I too like the look of #4.

thursdaysd

I mean, riverside penthouse (with elevator, lol), what's not to like? Although I might enquire about noise from the trains.

Can't help with #2 as it's blocked.

MmePerdu

#1 has this notice in the reviews: "The host canceled this reservation 23 days before arrival. This is an automated posting." I'd never consider renting from a host who canceled a guest's reservation, especially less than a month before the arrival date.

jgg

Yes, the riverside penthouse looks fabulous and is also at the max of what I want to spend. I just haven't read that much about people actually staying in that part of town - Embankment/Pier area - so is it nice and lovely? Close to shops/restaurants, etc?

gertie3751

Best option for restaurants is to walk across the bridge to South Bank.
Shops up Villiers St on the Strand.

gertie3751

and directly across the Strand there's Covent Garden which has all the shops and restaurants a tourist could want.

janisj

#1 doesn't give the actual location but does say Kings Rd & Sloan Square -- IF you can confirm it is at the Sloan Sq end of the Kings Rd -- that is a terrific location . . . the other end of Kings Rd isn't convenient.

#2 doesn't work so I have no idea

#3 is certainly an OK location but I would like Sloan Sq more.

#4 is great for sightseeing . just down the road from Benjamin Franklin's House.

The vrbo one is certainly OK but I'd like Sloan Sq (assuming that is where #1 is) or Embankment ones better.

janisj

The folks saying Chelsea isn't great for the tube are right . . . up to a point. IF you can nail down exactly where it is located it would help a great deal. IF it is at Sloane Square . . . sorry I misspelled it in my previous post -- it is definitely Sloan<B>e</B>

If it is farther west in Chelsea then it won't be as convenient. There are tons of restaurants all around Sloane Sq too.

jgg

janisj - the address of apt in Chelsea is 47 Elysan Place, which does appear to be more on the Sloane Square end of Kings Rd, and according to google maps a 9 min. walk to Sloane Square tube stop. But I would love your opinion rather than just what I can see on a map - is that area of Kings Rd have more shops/cafes, etc? It looks like we would just be one (longer) block off of Kings Rd (roughly Kings Rd and Markham St. Thanks again for your help!

Tulips

Elystan Place is very nice indeed. There's Cale Street and Elystan Street, with some good small food shops. It's not too far from Sloane Square, and South Kensington is easily doable on foot as well, and a nice stroll past the Conran Shop and Brompton Cross. There's a Waitrose nearby on King's Road.
It's a lovely area. I wouldn't hesitate to stay there.

janisj

That is one of the more convenient parts of Chelsea location-wise. It is practically in South Kensington. Walking distance to the V&A, and two tube stations.

I would be happy there.

But the one next to Embankment Pier would also be a terrific area - walking distance to Covent Garden, Trafalgar Sq, Somerset house, the Southbank, Westminster, etc.

MmePerdu

Excuse my seeming overemphasis of a possible problem with apartment #1, but if you're leaning toward booking, at least ask the owner for an explanation of the cancellation of a guest's booking. It may not be a problem but it could be and while the reason given may be a logical one, if they do it without cause, possibly being offered more rent, family visiting, going away themselves, whatever, you don't want to be another canceled guest.

As an Airbnb host myself, having that notice among our reviews is something we want to avoid at all cost, can be (rightly?) interpreted as having no concern for guests' plans and is frowned upon, to say the least, by the company. I urge you to check.

Tulips

I think the Chelsea one is more residential, with good food shops nearby. There's a great fishmonger on Chelsea Green. And The Pie Man, and Finns - both for take-away meals. I would prefer that area, but that's probably because I used to live nearby. It's a luxury problem, they all look great!

dotheboyshall

<i>#1 has this notice in the reviews: "The host canceled this reservation 23 days before arrival. This is an automated posting." I'd never consider renting from a host who canceled a guest's reservation, especially less than a month before the arrival date.</i>

Wouldn't that depend on why the booking was cancelled.

jgg

Thank you all for the information! It has been extremely helpful.

Mme Perdu - I did notice that review when I first looked at the place. Now that I have decided it is my first choice, I have asked the owner what the issue was, and am awaiting his reply. I did notice that the posting was an automated posting and that the renter did not add any additional information, so will be interested to hear what the story is.

MmePerdu

Replies or reviews can only be posted by guests who have actually stayed. Having a host cancel their booking makes it, obviously, impossible. To those of us who use the site, that cancellation notation is a real red flag, put there by the website to notify potential guests that these are hosts who may not view their guests' plans seriously enough. It's good that you've asked. Read any explanation given with reasonable skepticism and proceed accordingly. It isn't a chance I'd take after seeing that notation. It's a beautiful place, to be sure, but I suggest, if you book, to have a back-up plan and hope you don't need to use it.

jubilada

I would be unlikely to rent after seeing that notation, because of course you only have the hosts word for the reason.