Hi! I'm in the process of planning my first trip to London. I know that quite a few people have stayed at Melia White House but has anyone stayed at either Henry VII Hotel (cosmopolitan Bayswater) or Craven Gardens (between Queensway and Lancaster Gates off Bayswater Road)? <BR><BR>Also, is there a specific area anyone would recommend to stay at? This may be my one and only trip to London and I am pretty good at maximizing my trips. Thank you n advance.

Sorry, I've stayed at the Melia White House,. but not the others. It doesn't really matter what section of town you stay in...all the major sites are just tube rides away. Good Luck.

hi fellow sandy,<BR><BR>Although I have not stayed in either hotel I just wanted to let you know something about the area you have selected.<BR><BR>I just got back from a trip to london and paris in october and we stayed at the comfort inn bayswater on craven hill gardens.<BR><BR>this area is sadly in decline. from say this area west to queensway it has become somewhat trashy looking and is not very convienent and does not really have a lot to offer. east of this area seemed much nicer, had more restuarants and many more underground stations. the bayswater road and hyde park was nice but the area north of the park was run down. also the metro's are not at all as close as they seemed on the map. 10 blocks to queensway for us and 6 or 7 blocks to paddington. that got kind of a hassell after a while, especially at the end of a long day. because we didn't purchase that travel pass before we got there we ended up with day passes and money for the buses.<BR><BR>i would try for a hotel much closer to a main station. look at any of the hotels west of craven gardens closer to paddington. we saw some really nice moderate ones closer in.<BR><BR>also,,do not let anyone talk you out of purchasing the london visitor travelpass voucher prior to leaving the states. a 7 day pass for central zone is only 30 pds and we regret not purchasing it because it covers both metro AND buses. you exchange the voucher at a main station the 1st day you get there and it really save time and effort. <BR><BR>the 7 day travelpass you purchase in london maybe a few pds cheaper but DOES NOT cover buses and sometimes they can be more convienent. <BR><BR>i love the paris metro because they have stations on just about every other block. stations in london are more spread out. <BR><BR>email me for site to purchase the london visitor travelpass.<BR><BR>we enjoyed our hotel because we had a 3 bedroom efficiency apt and were 5 people splitting the cost but didn't realize until late in the trip that the area east of hotel was much better. <BR><BR>hope this helps some.<BR><BR>sandy c

I'm no expert, but the 7 day pass,Zones 1 & 2, we purchased in London (the pass which requires a passport-sized photo) was cheaper than anything we could get in the US and did cover the tube and the bus.

Have to second the previous poster--I always purchase the 7-day at the tube stops and they work on both bus and tube. To clarify, I'm talking about the one the locals who take the tube to work use--take a passport photo or get a strip of three done for 2lbs in the photo booth at most tube stops.