Hey im currently looking at accomidation in London for our europe trip and its looking at being very expensive. eg like $1600(au) upwards for only 5 nights for 3 people, and as we are traveling europe for a period of two months this is much to expensive. We are planning on staying in london for 1 to 2 weeks does anyone have any suggestions of cheaper accomidation in London or on the outskirts but still close enough to commute each day to site see. However we dont want an absalout dive that is dirty with no bathroom as some places are, but also not very fancy as its to expensive. Please help with some suggestions!

What are the dates of your stay?

dates are 27 april to about the 9 of may this year

Look at apartments. 1600AUS$ is approx 670 GBP - right? You can get decent 1 bedroom (or large studio) flats for less than that a week - let alone 5 nights.

Check out www.eandeapartments.co.uk They have 1 bedrm flats sleeping 3 for 600GBP a week in Pimlico and Victoria, which is very central and excelent for transport. And you would have a lot more space than a hotel triple plus a kitchen and probably a washer/dryer.

If you stay out in the burbs - you would have to get a VERY cheap place to make the extra transport costs and inconvenience balance out.

do pay heed to advice given here as transportation costs from outside of london add up quickly.

check out www.easyjet.com and www.londontown.com and www.gtahotels.com to see hopefully a wider variety of accomodations.

good luck.

in fact, you could probably get two hotel rooms on priceline for a little more than half that.
www.biddingfortravel.com and www.betterbidding.com will help you learn how to bid so you don´t overbid.

very impt to read those websites. no changes allowed later.

The two rooms on Priceline would be a good choice if the third person in your group is not a young child.

nothing much more to add except to warn that the suburbs are often every bit as expensive as london for hotels. reason is lack of competition among hotels and often thriving economy out there around the m25 corridor.

london is much better value for money (when considering travel time/expense and overall experience). food, etc is also generally not cheaper in the suburbs either.

Look into Travelodge. Book directly through their site and read reviews of the location you find before booking. I just booked at the Docklands location--supposed to be clean, boring hotel. (This is our first trip to London.) We don't mind spending a little more time getting into town because we feel like we're getting a great deal on the room. Convent Gardens is supposed to be a good location. http://www.travelodge.co.uk/

A friend who was staying a bit longer rented a room in a private house that she found through a local paper.

It was very cheap, though not as private as a hotel or apartment. This doesn't meet your need but might meet the need of others attracted by your subject heading.

I might try to find something like this through Craigslist.

Yes the Covent Garden Travelodge is a good location. But it costs about 650 GBP a week. A flat for the same amount would be much larger and more comfortable for 3.

What is your comfort level? Must you have a tour desk and all that sort of stuff?

If not, why not check out YHA. Loo and shower might be shared but there will be plenty of them, and they will be clean. Location of hostels is generally excellent.

Much better than an antiseptic international chain. That is if you are really wanting to get value for money; aren't the sniffy sort; value the chance to meet folk from all over the world, and are up for an experiment (if you have never stayed in a hostel before).

the comfort level we are looking at is basically our own bathroom eg. toilet and shower, a clean room with small tv. Not going for big tour desks etc as we are basically traveling through europe by ourselves looking around not going on tours really. More do it yourself. Doing it the cheaper way.
cheers for the ideas people aswell.

Check http://www.yha.co.uk or http://www.hostelworld.com - we found a double room in a hostel in Bayswater for $71 USD a night in early May. Some of the YHA properties have ensuite bathrooms, such as the one in Docklands.

Lee Ann