Canon

My husband and I are planning a trip to london March 27 to April 4. We are trying to find a good area to stay. So far I like Holiday Inn Kensington Forum, but seems a bit pricey for the week we will be there. Can you suggest a good place to stay in that area that is more resonably priced?

Also I have found travel cards available to purchase online. What is the difference between the Oyster Card and the Travel Card. I think the travel card is about $45 pp for a 7 day peak pass. Should I get this in advance or would it be better to get oyster card when we get there?

Thanks for any help.

PonyUp

We got the Holiday Inn Kensignton Forum for $95 per night for a triple through Hotwire for April 8 & 9. You might take a change and see if you can get it.
Good luck.

janisj

Don't buy any travel card/pass ahead of time. There are more and cheaper options available at any tube station in London

As for where to stay - there are quite literally hundreds of good options. What is your price range - and what rate did you find at the HI Kens Forum?

FYI - that hotel often is "won" on priceline for well under $100 (unfortunatley though you could not specifiy it and might end up in the Hilton Olympia since it is in the same PL zone)

Check out biddingfortravel.com and look over some of the recent successful PL bids.

cruzan19

i actually booked on priceline yesterday. Won a bid for Holiday inn kensington for $75! try your luck.

Robespierre

Load a 7-day Travelcard on your Oyster, plus some extra for Pay-As-You-Go fares (to avoid exorbitant cash fares).

You can order your Oyster from home here: http://www.tfl.gov.uk/tfl/fares-tick...7/visitors.asp

Canon

Thanks for the info. I will check out the priceline option. So far Holiday Inn Ken. Forum for those 8 nights are about $1800 through the Holiday Inn site and Travelocity. Asiarooms.com has it listed for $165 a night with taxes and breakfast, but I have read some horror stories about them.

travelbunny

..IMO when on a budget in London, priceline is the way to go. read biddingfortravel first. I usually bit 4* as thery are more like 3 stars..My last bid was 4 nights Kennsinton for $78..Not bad considering a very mediocre BB will run you more and the avg hotel seems to be about 100 pound sterling/night.

Canon

So if I bid on a 4 star in Kensington area on priceline am I most likely going to get something decent no matter where it is? How about the Bloomsbury area? Is that a good area to bid for a 4 star. I am just a little worried about bidding on a place to stay and just taking the luck of the draw.
Thanks

LCBoniti

ttt

Robespierre

You really can't go wrong with the luck of the draw. If you bid for a 4*, that's what you'll get.

lincasanova

if you are worried about that, then try to trust users´reviews and book your hotel and choose.

bloomsbury area will probably be more expensive than kensington on priceline. remember the priceline areas are quite large and the hotel may be on the perimeter (like the olympia kensington hilton.)

but i have stayed there and at another 4* in kensington, and for what i saved on the hotel bill, i did feel it was worth every bit of slight inconvenience or non-perfection.

we ended up paying about the same as for a B+B.. so .. how can i complain?
however, if i could choose, i would stay closer to the river, but you will be looking at high prices there.

janisj

The best PL zones for most first time visitors are probably Mayfair/Soho and Westminster - but they tend to need higher bids to win 4 star properties than Kensington/Knightsbridge/Earls court or Bloomsbury.

The problem w/ Kensington/Knightsbridge/Earls court is it includes Earls Court, and the problem w/ Bloomsbury is it includes Kings Cross. Bloomsbury is a great area - but Kings Cross isn't. I've bid Kensington/Knightsbridge/Earls court myself when I was on a real budget (like this coming Feb) but I knew ahead of time I'd probably get the Hilton Olympia - and did.

tudorprincess

Canon,
Just booked through Priceline this morning and got the HI Kensington Forum for $80/nt. in March. Our first try at Priceline and I stayed at this hotel last year so I'm very pleased with the results.

cruzan19

What cool sights are there close to Kensington Forum? Is it possible to buy Tube tickets before getting to london.....only will be there an afternoon/night, so dont want a 'travel card' like Canon listed. and dont want to exchange to much $$ to pounds. Thanks for any info!

Robespierre

By the time you take two rides on public transit, you will have paid for an all-day Travelcard.

Single Tube trips cost £4 cash. A one-day Travelcard is £5.10 if all your travel is after 0930. Even a lowly bus trip costs £2 cash.

Can you say "no-brainer?"

cruzan19

That is a 'no brainer!" great to know. ill look online further to purchase one.

ad55nyc

Hi

I'm probably going to London in September and a few coworkers stayed at the Russell Hotel in Bloomsbury--I think it's a 4-star hotel.

However, the HI Kensington Forum sounds good to me--as long as it's near restaurants and night life.

Can anyone tell me which areas are good for night life as well.

Adrienne
NYC

janisj

What do you mean by "night life"?

There are clubs, pubs, theatres, wine bars, etc all over London.

tudorprincess

Adrienne,
We're not into clubs but I can assure you that there are plenty of restaurants and pubs all over S. Kensington in walking distance. We usually stay in S. Kensington as we like the neighbourhood better than some other areas of town.
As Janis said, London is filled with nightlife.

ad55nyc

I guess when I say nightlife-maybe a pub or restaurant that stays open late.

I know nothing about where to stay in London but everything is so very expensive.

So is the Holiday Inn Kensington Forum a good idea and a good location?

Thanks for any recommendations.

Adrienne