Help with London - Where to stay?
 

Hello,

My mother and I are coming from Manhattan and will be staying in London for 5 days in February. It will be her 60th birthday. We've been to London once before, stayed in Knightsbridge, and did the standard sight seeing. This time I am hoping to do more exploring and get a real feel for London. My question is, what area should we staying in? I'd like to be centrally located but more in a neighborhood type setting. We'll probably be doing some theatre, shopping, antiquing, meals out, etc. I'm trying to get an early start on planning this trip! :-) Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Kindest regards,
Rachel

I like the neighbourhood feel of South Kennsington. There are many hotels in the area but it is not dominated by tourists. A B&B would probably be the best way to get a good feel for a typical residential area if that is what you want.

You might like Islington, Greenwich or Richmond. Each has theatres, shops, antiques, restaurants, and a neighbourhood feeling. Islington is 15 minutes from the West End, and the other two are 25 minutes, using the District line from Richmond and the Southern railway from Greenwich to Charing Cross. I see that just now Time Out magazine has a guide to Greenwich and Docklands, athttp://www.timeout.com/london/, then click on the guide: you could copy it now. The London Borough of Richmond lays out its attractions at http://www.richmond.gov.uk/home/leisure_and_culture.htm, and of Islington at http://www.islington.gov.uk/

There are on-line notes on London at
http://nav.webring.org/cgi-bin/navcg...ondonring;list
and http://www.dolke.co.uk/

Welcome to London

Ben Haines
[email protected]

I agree with Gavin - South Kennsington is a very nice area. Since you'll be coming in winter I think it's best to book whatever you can in advanced so you wont freeze your a*s off queuing for tickets. You didn't mentioned what you’re interested in besides theater - so for this end - I would recommend www.broadwaybox.com/london

Rachel, what area of NYC would you suggest to someone asking this question? Maybe the upper westside? I think Notting Hill might work. It's near Portabello Road market for antiques and on the Central train line. Lots of nice shops on Westbourne Grove.

South Kensington is more central and has the benefit of a tube station that services 3 different lines, the one going to Leicester Square (for theater) being one of them. You might want to look at the tube map

http://www.tfl.gov.uk/tfl/pdfdocs/colourmap.pdf

Islington is an interesting suggestion. It is quite residential yet is home to some fantastic (maybe too fantastic ;) ) antique shops. There are a few hotels there that are usually a bit less expensive because it's not as close to the center of London. Greenwich and Richmond are both lovely too but would be what we would consider outer burroughs similar to perhaps Brooklyn Heights, (not in look but in distance to the city center and the fact that it's still on the tube).

While both Richmond and Greenwich are really lovely - they are both quite a distance from the center and would make for some very late nights if you went to any west end theatres. And in the Winter the days are short and cold. I prefer to be closer in so you cab nip back to the hotel during the day if you get wet or just need to drop foo some shopping. That would be a trek if you stayed outside of central London.

The areas I'd look in are South Kensington, the northern slice of Chelsea (the southern bit is too far from any tube stations), parts of Pimlico (closer to the river than to Victoria) or near Russel Square.

A thought - look into Dolphin Square. It is an apartment hotel in Pimlico. short walk to Pimlico tube station and Tate Britain, across the road from the river and you get a roomy flat and all the amenities of a hotel too.

The immediate area is residential, w/ a garden square 1/2 a block away, small shops and restaurants/pubs w/i walking distance.

that should be ". . . so you CAN nip back to the hotel . . ". But I guess cab works too

Thanks guys for all of your posts! mclaurie - I live on the Upper West Side. How ironic! I'm definitely going to do some research on South Kennsington, Islington, and some of the other areas mentioned. Greenwich and Richmond probably wouldn't be my first pick if they are a bit removed from things. I had briefly thought about Notting Hill and then wondered if my interest in the area was solely based on the familiarity of the name. mclaurie mentioned it as an option. Anybody else have an opinion on Notting Hill? Any favorite B&B's, small inns, or boutique hotels in these areas that you'd recommend?

We see lots of shows here in New York. JohnS38 - broadwaybox.com is one of my favorite sites for discount tickets. I can't imagine playing full price anymore.

:-)

And no body suggested Bloomsbury or Mayfair or other West End spots.

Actually I'm not enthusiastic about pickiing an area to stay for just a few days. So many nice spots and all just as meaningful for a matter of short time.

It would make more sense to me to plan a
schedule of things to do for your stay and then pick one of your nice neighborhoods that are convenient to your activities in terms of transportation, restaurants etc.

Mayfair is the most central, I find South Ken to be rather out of it.

As for properties, you're from Manhattan so I presume you're relatively high budget. For luxury properties I'd normally recommend Claridge's, however, at the moment I'm in favour of The Connaught as it is so very cheap (from 159 per night vs. 279) for such a classy property.

You see, I'm moving and I want to avoid builders in my new property so I've been investigatin hotels for a few months. So far, The Connaught has been the most obliging.

"you're from Manhattan so I presume you're relatively high budget"

Huh? How can one make that leap? maybe yes, maybe no - but I find one's hometown generally has very little to do w/ their travel budget . . . . .

If she was from hicksville I'm quite sure it's different to Manhattan. If one is from say Belgravia then one can assume that they want high-end travel.

Rae the Portobello Hotel is in Notting Hill area and is very quirky and fun. Look at reviews on tripadvisor.com I'm not sure it has 2 bedded rooms though. I had also taken note of the Guesthouse West in that area but reviews on tripadvisor suggest it may be overpriced.

In a totally different area, you might check out the Renaissance Chauncery Court Hotel. People rave. It looks gorgeous from the outside (quite grand) and is in an interesting area near the courts, the law schools (so lots of law students and wine bars etc. to accomodate them). It's an easy trip on the tube to the theater from there.

Someone mentioned Bloomsbury. This is probably one of the most central locations and yet I guess b/c I stayed there as a student, I always find it a bit...I don't know. Myhotel Bloomsbury is probably one of the nicer ones in that area.

What's your budget?

My latest interesting find is the Parkes.

m_kingdom: Apparently you don't understand the States. Some VERY rich people live in hicksville, and some Manhattanites like to travel on a budget.

Rae181: Mclaurie's suggestion of the Chancery Court is a very good one. it is an excellent hotel in a terrific location.

m_kingdom, you don't have a clue. For a comparison you took a rich area of London (Belgravia) and act as if that were the same as all of Manhattan. What kind of logic is that? The comparison should have been --"if you're from London, I presume you're high budget". Doesn't make sense does it? Like London, Manhattan has it's poorer areas as well. Of course, since it's in the United States, I'm sure you'll never lower yourself to go there to find out.

I'd like to keep the room rate under $350 a night. I went through some of the hotels and here are some that struck my eye. Again, I am clueless as to which hotel is located in an ideal area. Some of them I might be able to use my corporate discount to swing a lower rate.

Portobello Hotel
The Ritz
Miller's Residence
The Hempel
Claridge's
One Aldwych
The Landmark
The Connaught
Dorchester
Dukes Hotel

Last time we stayed in Knightsbridge a few doors down from Harrod's. It reminded me of staying at the Waldorf here in New York. During the day it is bustling but once the nights and weekends come the area kind of clears out. This time I'd like to be in a setting that has fun little stores that you can stroll through and plenty of restaurants for late night eats and morning brunches. I'm very used to grabbing a cab or using public transportation so I don't care if I am right on top of things. Ideally on this trip we'll be hitting a few museums, doing some shopping, exploring some new neighborhoods, going to some plays, and having great meals out.

I appreciate all of the feedback!

If it weren't for your budget restriction set at $350 I would highly recommend the Covent Garden Hotel which is close to shopping, theatres, and the Tube but with the current exchange rate you won't get it at your price and I'm afraid you may not get some of those others you listed at that price, either, very unfortunately.

My dear, wealthier people might live in Hicksville, but they're still hicks.

As it turns out, I'm correct in assuming this is an high budget traveller. So I'd recommend Claridge's if you can afford it, or The Connaught if you want to save money. They're in the middle of everything, The Connaught is around the corner from Harry's Bar, and numerous other super places.

Wow! I just called a few of the hotels. I guess I was living in dream land! The cheapest was the Connaught at $415. I can pay that much but I'd prefer not to since I can't take the room home with me :-)

Intrepid - the Convent Gardens Hotel looked very cute and is more in my price range. I looked at the rest of the Firmdale group (The Soho Hotel, Charlotte Street Hotel, The Pelham Hotel, Knightsbridge Hotel, and Number Sixteen) and they all looked nice. Is the Convent Gardens Hotel the best one to go for for location?

If I could pay the Covent Garden Hotel..I wouldn't doubt it for a moment. No better location for me in London.