bbrown1226

Just found a great deal to London that we cannot pass up! This is our first time to London, celebrating our 9 yr. anniversary. We will arrive early friday morning around 7 (coming from Germany) and leave Sunday morning. Any tips on how to make the best of this first time visit? We will not have a car but will take a train into town. I would like to find a bed and breakfast style place in the heart of the city if possible. Any other recommendations for quaint, but affordable lodging? I would like to try to find a place for under $100 a night.

Any romantic itinerary suggestions are very welcome.

bbrown1226

Here is a possible itinerary that I am putting together:

Our plane arrives at 6:50 AM on Friday. The train takes 45 minutes into the center of London, so our goal is to go straight to Trafalgar area to get breakfast, buy tickets for a Saturday night theatre, and grab the famous double decker bus. We are tourist afterall. Am I correct that the double decker buses are about 2 hours? This should be done around lunchtime, which we might want to head back to see if we can get an early check in to our hotel and rest a bit.

So, for accommodations, I would like something nice and clean, but affordable with our awful dollar value. something very close to the subway for easy access.

The rest of friday we will decide which museum/tourist area we would to go back and explore, and then I would love to hit a pub for dinner.

Saturday we plan on going to Buckingham Palace to see the changing of the guard. Am I correct that this is at noon? I was told we should plan to arrive around 11 to get a good spot. Then, a walk around the nearby park and then the train to the Parliament area, a ride on the red eye, and then dinner and theatre in the evening. Is this too much???

Mimar

The CW (conventional wisdom)on Fodors says bidding on a hotel on Priceline or Hotwire is the best deal in London. There aren't many B&B's in central London.

I'm not a huge fan of the Changing of the Guard. It takes a couple hours, and there are many other sights in London I'd do before that. Depends on your interests. Some of my highlights: the Tower of London, British Museum, Cabinet War Rooms, Westminster Abbey, Globe Theatre, the treasure rooms at the British Library.

janisj

You won't find too much for $100 in central London. There are cheap hotels in that range - but nothing "anniversary worthy" IMO. But you certainly can get a nice place w/i your budget if you use Priceline. You can get a very nice 4 star hotel using PL. Don't just jump into PL though - check our biddingfortravel.com and/or betterbidding.com to see what hotels are being won at what prices.

No matter where you end up staying - I'd go there first (are you landing at Stansted?). You can either check in if your room is ready, or drop your bags if it it isn't.

The hop-on-hop-off buses take longer than 2 hours -- they have a sort of schedule - but because of traffic and "stuff" you can count on about 3 hours to do one full loop if you don't get off anywhere. IMO - since you won't be jetlagged, the best way to use the H-o-H-o buses is to ride them all day. Not in straight shots but to ride for a while , get off and visit something that interests you, then jump on another bus and continue to the next place you want to explore. The tickets are good for 24 hours so you could start after lunch on Friday and finish Sat morning if you want. But you also may decide not to take one at all and just explore on your own.

Not really too much in the way of good breakfast places aroudf Trafalgar Square. But if you walk just a little eastwards into Covent Garden you'll find good places. Leicester Square is where you can get the discounted theatre tickets.

I'd honestly skip the changing of the guard. Especially on a weekend (and ESPECIALLY is the weather is nice) you'd have to be there waaaay too early and just stand around waiting. And if the weather is nasty - who wants to stand still out in the rain for 1 1/2 to 2 hours?

You don't take a train from Buckingham Palace/the parks to Parliament - they are less than a 10 minute walk.

PamEwing

Hi BBrown -

I recommend staying at the Radisson Edwardian Leicester Square. It's the perfect location for sightseeing. You can walk to lots of the West End Theatres, Chinatown, and Covent Garden. The tube stop is very close by, and the open-top bus tour leaves from just up the street from the hotel. Jersey Boys at the Prince Edward Theatre is a fab show, and for a special anniversary dinner, I suggest Rules, which is the oldest restaurant in London. It's on Maiden Lane in Covent Garden.

janisj

PamEwing: You often recommend the R E Leicester Square -- and it is a decent property/location. But in NO way does it meet the OP's criteria. He clearly said "<u>under $100 per night</u>". The Radisson Edwardian Leicester Sq will run about £170 to £350+ a night -- 3 to 6 times their budget when you include the taxes . . . .

PamEwing

JanisJ, it's her anniversary, NOT YOURS! She's perfectly capable of deciding if she and her husband want to splurge or not. By the way Miss Know It All, you can save money at the Radisson by paying ahead of time when you book your reservation.

janisj

"<i>you can save money at the Radisson by paying ahead of time when you book your reservation</i>"

Yes I know - but not more that $250 discount.

"<i>it's her anniversary, NOT YOURS!</i>" Exactly - and they specifically said "under $100".

My point was - we tell them about this "wonderful hotel" and they might assume that would be a great place to stay. Then they find out it costs MUCH more than they requested. Sort of like when an OP asks for a €30 dinner in Paris and someone suggests Taillevent. That isn't useful. I don't recommend my favorite hotel/restaurant in every case - I try to recommend what seems to fit the OPs needs. If that makes me a "Knowi it All" - thank you -- I like to be of help . . . .

(BTW Leicester Square isn't even the nicest Radisson Edwardian in London -- have you stayed anywhere else?)

retired_travelers

After an exhaustive search of B&Bs in London, including using Trip Advisor extensively, I have chosen to stay at St. Magarets Hotel in Bloomsbury.
Go to Trip Advisor and check them out. Take a look at their website for more information about the recent move to Guilford Street.
I chose the St. Margaret/Celtic because the offer a full breakfast, good rates, and have excellent reviews.

Larry for the retired_travelers

rogeruktm

I think that if someone only wants to pay $100 for a room and someone recommends a hotel that cost much more, they are doing a dis-service to the person asking the question.

When I read the recommendation to stay at the Radisson, I assumed that it could be booked for the price of $100. as asked by the OP.

yk

Whoa, PamEwing, please chill out. The OP asks for lodging that's under $100 per night. I don't see the point of suggesting places that cost several times more. I mean, we can all suggest the OP to stay at the Ritz or the Savoy or 200 other hotels in London for the OP's anniversary, but that's just not useful for the OP.

bbrown1226, apart from Priceline, you can also try Hotwire (with the help of betterbidding.com). I have gotten the Holiday Inn Regents Park in the past for just around $100/night.

Also, consider skipping the HOHO bus - it is £22 <u>per person</u>. If you skip it, you can add £22 ($~35) to your hotel budget, making it $135/night.

PamEwing

JanisJ, people do indeed post here to find out about "wonderful hotels" that "would be a great place to stay" because they want to avoid staying in an awful hotel or eating at a lousy restaurant even if it cost them a bit more to make their trip more enjoyable. Since that is the whole purpose of this forum, not recommending your favorites isn't "useful" to them at all. Unlike you, I know that the OPs are the best judges of "what seems to fit their needs".

janisj

" . . a bit more?" Come on!

"<blue><i>Since that is the whole purpose of this forum, not recommending your favorites isn't "useful" to them at all. </blue></i>"

I recommend good places that fit what they ask for -- my very favorite place might be TOTALLY inappropriate for their situation. Unlike some, I like to help them find what works for <B>them</B> -- not what works for <B>me</B>. But then I've stayed lots of places so have more than one I can recommend.

"<i><blue>Unlike you, I know that the OPs are the best judges of "what seems to fit their needs"</blue></i>"

Absolutely - and the OP made it very clear what's best for them - a budget hotel under $100.

PamEwing

YK, all of our suggestions are indeed "useful for the OP" because then she and her husband can make an informed decision about where they stay. What isn't helpful to this OP, or any other for that matter, are the personal attacks that Janisj and you direct at me.

ssander

My advice...skip the commercial hop-on bus.

A good intro is to ride the #11 bus from Victoria to St Paul, and you'll see tons of great sites quickly...Parliament, Whitehall and all its statues, Trafalgar Sq, The Strand, Temple Bar, Fleet St to St Paul. If you have a 1 or 3 day-pass, you can hop off and hop on all you want.

If you have a walking tour book that also walks that route, you'll get all the "commentary" you need. (Rick Steves used to have a written guide of that bus ride - not sure if he still does, since we only used his book on our first visit four years ago.)

The #11 is a real double-decker, not a tourist version.

SS

PamEwing

JanisJ, it's too bad that you haven't learned any courtesy in the "lots of places" that you've stayed. Your personal attacks at me don't help any posters on this forum.

yk

Personal attack at you? I was simply pointing out what the OP is looking for and why your suggestion doesn't apply here. Feel free to continue to post your Renaissance Edwardian recommendation on other threads if someone is looking for a London hotel with a budget that can afford that hotel.

I asked you to "chill out" because you were yelling in CAPS. You simply want everyone to agree with your suggestions here and you don't like any sort of criticism.

I don't know why you're singling out me and janis; is rogeruktm is not "attacking" you too?

My apologies to the OP ~ I am done with my suggestions for you here.

janisj

PamEwing: You suggested a totally inappropriate hotel for the OP's request. When I said it cost more than their budget -- you are the one who attacked. I didn't attack you - I merely quoted your own words. Not a single person attacked you personally - your suggestion yes, but not you personally. You are the one who did that.

The poor OP must wonder 'what the H*LL happened to my thread???' Please calm down and let this get back to helping them plan a nice anniversary trip to London.

PamEwing

Janisj, if she is thinking that it's only because you are too busy being an obnoxious bully to realise that I am only offering a suggestion "to help them plan an nice anniversary trip to London."

No, YK, you and Janisj are the ones who expect everyone to cow tow to you. People are free to either disregard or follow my suggestion as they see fit.

Rogeruktm, I was able to get my room at the Radisson for $100 a night by pre-paying, so no I wasn't trying to do anyone a dis-service.

janisj

OK - since you insist -- I plugged in a weekend in late Sept and the pre-pay rate is £166.50 plus taxes. That was the PRE-PAY special. So perhaps you should share your secret. Was it Hotwire or Priceline.

£166.50 is a hecka long ways from $100.