I am looking for recommendations on where to stay in Londay. We will be there for a week in late March. I am wondering about specific hotels or which areas might be more convenient. I want to stay someplace central, so that we can walk a lot. Being close to restaurants would be a plus so that we do not have to worry about transport in the evening after a day of sightseeing.

My choice has been Bloomsbury. Right near British Museum, many pubs and restaurants, good access to Heathrow, good Tube location. From my hotel I walked to City, St Paul's, Covent Garden, Trafalgar Sq,etc..

There is a good selection of hotels and B&Bs in this area.

Depending on what your budget is and how many of you there are but I stay at The Rubens at the Palace http://www.rubenshotel.com/

just some things to think about:

• a week is an awfully long time in a cramped London hotel room IMO. I definitely consider renting as flat- more space, a washer/dryer, and less £££.

• What is your budget?

• There is no one area to aim for. Just about every neighborhood in central London has great public transport, pubs and restaurants, is walkable and convenient to at least some of the major sites. The areas I personally <i>avoid</i> are Earls Court, Queensway/Bayswater, Kings Cross and a very few others. Not because they are awful- but just because there are so many better lo0cations. Which exact area works best for you depends partly on your budget . . .

I think a flat is a great idea. Are there companies that specifically rent flats for such short stays? Are there ammenities with it?

There are many agencies, private owners (through sites like vrbo and Homelidays or individually), and even university student housing.

The amenities vary from property to property. But if you want more services like concierge, maybe room service, etc - there are several apartment hotels and/or hotels w/ apartments attached.

But we do need to know your budget. (there are MANY threads on here about flats in London to get you started.)

Who/how many are you and what is your budget?

Apts can be a good idea if you don;t want hotel services - but most tend not to be as central as many hotels are.

I was thinking of spending $200-$300/night. I assume $300/night is much more realistic and that would be fine. I feel search for the threads about flats in London. As for services, we do not need much. It would be nice to have someone to talk to about recommendations - theater, restaurants-but for the most part, we are self sufficient. Other services, like room service are not important and we usually do not eat at hotels, preferring more interesting options than hotels usually offer. Location, however, is very very important. I want to be as central as possible so that we can walk and not spend too much time in transport mode.
What do people think of Westminster? There seem to be so many appartment options there.

I have just booked the Mandeville hotel just off Oxford Street for under 200 E/night. Both location and hotel rooms look fine.

Another option was The Cavendish (Jermyn St), but it turned out a bit too expensive for us. We were considering The Rembrandt as well, however I was not sure about the location. I've been to London before and stayed at a couple of hotels in/around Soho. Location was always great but the quality of rooms was never even close to my expectations for the money we paid, including a five star hotel (Le Meridien Piccadilly), which I am afraid is part of the London deal unless you pay a fortune for your room.

I really like the Mayfair area. Last Spring we stayed in an apartment from a US based company, London Connection www.londonconnection.com that was great. It was during the volcanic ash cloud debacle and they took good care of us. Have also stayed at the Curzon Plaza in the same area (www.curzonplaza.com) Pretty basic it very comfortable and convenient and had everything we needed. That area near the Green Park tube station is walking distance to many things and the station is served by 3 lines so easy to get around.

"<i>but most tend not to be as central as many hotels are.</i>"

Sorry -- There are Hotels in Mayfair, Knightsbridge, Covent Garden, Bloomsbury, Victoria, Westminster and other very central neighborhoods -- AND flats for rent in all the very same places.

JulTravels: $200-$300 = approx £125-£190-- that is more than enough to get a very nice flat in most any area.

Here are some websites with flats, there are a lot to choose from so once you have narrowed it down, it's a good idea to check on forums or by web searches to see what others think of it. We have used Citadines before in France and rented through Deep Blue about 5 years ago. Both were fine.

One Christmas we ended up at a flat on the Coach House London website but didn't book through them. We had a problem with the flat we were given, bit of a debacle really, and ended up at a nice place eventually.

http://www.aplacelikehome.co.uk/home.aspx
http://www.astons-apartments.com/
http://www.chslondon.com/vr/index.htm
http://www.deepblue-apartments.com/
http://www2.citadines.com/

Kay

Janisj;

The areas you listed in the note Mayfair, Knightsbridge, Covent Garden, Bloomsbury, Victoria, Westminster and other very central neighborhoods -- I am assuming you are recommending these as convenient places to stay. Right?

Thank you!
Julia

"<i>I am assuming you are recommending these as convenient places to stay. Right?</i>"

Yes -- those are all very central and near or w/i easy reach of sites. Plus there are other nice areas as well. South Kensington for example is convenient because even though it is a bit farther west -- it is on the direct tube line from LHR and easily w/i reach of many sites. Limited areas along the Southbank are great too.

What do you think of Kensington/Chelsea? Are they less convenient. There seem to be many accommodations options there.

You have to give the specific address or post code to know for sure. For one thing some owners take 'liberties' describing their locations. A lot of 'Kensington' flats are actually in Earls Court. Kensington (real Kensington) is a a very nice, upscale area close to Kensington Palace/Gardens. But it really isn't as convenient as South Kensington. A wonderful place to live, but not necessarily for a short term visitor

As for Chelsea -- again a very upscale area and parts are truly wonderful. But there are parts w/ no tube access (a very unusual situation in central London) Some areas are still good w/o the tube because of good bus service. But a few areas are a pretty long slog from anywhere.

I personally wouldn't book a place in either Kensington or Chelsea w/o knowing its exact location.

This might help with location - once you have the exact street address including post code - the post code is crucial in London - then key it into Google Maps and zoom into the area. You will be able to see how close you are to a tube station and if it looks like a 10 min walk or less, that's going to be good. (You might have to also click on More, then Transit - at the top - this then shows the tube lines.)

If it's within walking distance of more than one tube line (say, Picadilly and District) then that's even better, as sometimes on weekends they close lines, or parts of lines, for maintenance. You can check that out on www.tfl.gov.uk
That website also shows how long it takes to get from A to B, just key in your departure tube station and where you want to go, say Covent Garden.

There are buses everywhere, all over London, and they usually run pretty frequently but I think having the tube nearby is better, though the bus is cheaper if you're on a tight budget.

Kay