decent hotels around Gloucester Road, London?
Dec 1st, 2002, 08:39 PM
#1
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decent hotels around Gloucester Road, London?
I've always stayed in cheap hotels in London. For a time, I stayed a a dump in Bayswater that has since closed. Later, I stayed at cheap hotels around Gloucester Road or Cromwell Road (not too far from Palace Court and the southwest corner of Hyde Park).<BR><BR>I'm planning to bring my mother and want to stay at some place presentable. In the US, this might be someplace similar to Hampton Inn or Doubletree (sorry for the obscure brands but that's where I stay when on company expense).<BR><BR>How's the Forum Hotel? I've only seen the outside. Any other suggestions in that area? I would consider other areas but I'm a bit stupid and like to do the same things or stay in the same area as before.
Dec 9th, 2002, 02:32 PM
#3
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Rick,<BR>My husband and I just returned from the UK. We spent 5 nights at Harrington Hall which is only a block and a half from the Gloucester Road tube. The room was very large, plenty of closet space and had a great breakfast whether full English or not. I would not hesitate to recommend this hotel to anyone. In fact, it was one of the highlights of our London experience.
Dec 9th, 2002, 04:56 PM
#7
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Holiday Inn has just taken over the Forum. I didn't see much in the way of renovations in the bar, the only part of the hotel we visited last month.<BR><BR>Mariott is taking over the Swallow International, which is just a few blocks west. They've closed it down and appear to be gutting and rebuilding it.<BR><BR>Depending on when you plan to make the trip, that might be a possibility.
Dec 10th, 2002, 11:34 AM
#9
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There are several small, boutique style hotels around Gloucester Road. The following have elevators and include breakfast:<BR>Adelphi<BR>Holiday Inn Forum (but you must manauver your way through the lobby stepping around flight crews checking in at all hours.)<BR>Hotel Europe<BR>Holiday Inn (small one on Gloucester)<BR><BR>Have a great trip, Rick. Nice guy, bringing mom!
Dec 29th, 2002, 05:52 PM
#10
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We stayed at the Holiday Inn Kensington Forum this past September ("we" being my best friend and me.) At first the room seemed very small, but it turned out to be quite comfortable. I agree about dodging the airline crews, but the location was great with the V&A within easy walking distance, and the Glouchester Road tube stop only a 2 minute walk away. The Glouchester Road tube stop was also very convenient to all of the tube lines we needed. There's a small grocery store just a block away and lots of fast food restaurants nearby, When I return in October this year I am considering staying in the same area but will probably try a different hotel, just for variety.
Dec 29th, 2002, 06:04 PM
#11
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Sorry, forgot to mention more about the HI Kensington Forum. There's a little convenience store in the lobby that's open very late, which was great for getting sodas on our way out or for picking up the paper to check out events. The room was small but comfortable. They were renovating the hotel but we never heard any noise and our room had just been redone. We had two twin beds that could have been pished together to make a double. The beds and linens were comfy and there were some nice conveniences in the room, such as a hair dryer, trouser press, iron and ironing board, alarm clock, shampoo and conditioner as well as body wash in a dispenser in the tub, and a mini-bar. We were warned by our tour group that if we so much as moved anything within the mini-bar we could be charged for it since it was on some kind of electronic monitoring system, so we never opened the mini-bar. The hotel was very clean, very quiet, and the staff was nicely efficient. They had a great safety deposit box system that I liked much better than the usual safe in the room, and I used the safety deposit box to keep my passport and back-up credit cards. Our rooms included a continental breakfast, but you could upgrade to a full English breakfast for about five pounds, I think - worth it for me since I follow a low-carb diet and eating a big breakfast allowed me to skip lunch. Overall I was pleasantly surprised by the hotel and would recommend it.
