Hans LOrange

Has anyone had any luck staying outside central London, Greenwich perhaps? Is the cost savings enough to justify giving up the access esp. in the evening? Any suggestions for accomodations? <BR> <BR>Thanks

martha

If the only reason you're staying there is to save money, I'd say it's not worth it. If there's something you want to see out there or there's a charming, historic hotel that's a destination unto itself, it might be worth it. I once tried staying out God knows where (I no longer recall) and lasted all of one night. At the time, I was travelling alone and decided I felt safer in a place that was near where I wanted to go at night. But even if I'd been big and tough, I still wouldn't have wanted to spend a big chunk of every vacation day commuting.

Ayesha Sattaur

<BR>Try some of th neighborhoods south of the Thames. The price differential is amazing. Wimbledon is very nice, also Clapham and Collierswood. Its sort of like staying in Queens or Brooklyn if you were in New York. All of those neighborhoods have Tube stations.

Ann

Last summer I was lucky enough to rent a flat in Hampstead. I don't know if that's considered "outside" of London, but it certainly was not in the hot and crowded heart of town. The ride into town every day was very quick and easy, and the return in the evening was a breath of fresh air during an unusual heat wave. As for nightlife, we didn't stay out late too often, but from the looks of the neighborhood, Hampstead was where the nightlife was happening (at least for the under 30 or so crowd). Also, having a flat rather than a hotel room was worth the tube ride and more! Good luck.

elvira

We stay at a great B&B in Swiss Cottage; like Ayesha and Ann, no need to go as far as Greenwich when the outlying areas (the 'burbs) are 5-10mins away by Tube. Renting a flat, if you're going to be there a week or more, is a great idea; if there's just one or two of you, it might be more expensive than a hotel or B&B. The British Tourist Authority has a list of 'approved' B&Bs, and you can book thru them or directly with the host/ess (that's how we found Martine in Swiss Cottage). Outlying neighborhoods are quieter...

wes fowler

Hans <BR>Check out the website for The Great British Bed and Breakfast Guide. The entire contents of the guide which lists and describes well over 600 B&Bs and cottages is at: <BR>www.kgp-publishing.co.uk <BR>It has extensive listings for B&Bs in London and immediate suburbs as well as throuoghout Britain.

Ben Haines

Dear Mr LOrange <BR> <BR> Trains leave Charing Cross station, next to Trafalgar Square, at 12 and at 42 minutes past each hour up to 2342 (18 minutes to midnight), and take 14 minutes to Greenwich, on theoldest suburban railway in the world. (Not that anything old is left now, except the station building). A one week two zoine card costs 17 pounds and covers the journey, and busses, tubes, and suburban trains all around London. "Greenwich" is a big term, and you want to be sure of a place near or faily near the station. You could get an accomodation list from the Greenwich Tourist Informsation Office, Borough of Greenwich, London. You'll find a fair number of Blackheath addresses in the list. The last train leaves Charing Cross at 0016 and takes 17 minutes to Blackheath station. But Blsackheath is ratgher classier and duller than Greenwich: fewer shops and more expensive restaurants. Decent pubs in both, though. <BR> <BR>With rooms out there you will not be able to pop in for an hour's sleep after lunbch, or to have a wash before a theatre, so easily as you can with a hotel in Bloomsbury or in Victoria. But if you're here in summer you can snooze happily on a park bench in central London most afternoons. I recommend Embankment Gardens for this. <BR> <BR>Another thought, at much the same disatance, is Richmond, 15 minutes from Waterloo by train, and 30 from Embankment on the District Line. Again, the Borough's Tourist office can list places for you. <BR> <BR>Then as a south Londoner I have relutantly to confess that people have been known to stay in Islington and survive. They go to and fro by tube. I think Islingtonians do have pubs, but mostly they have cafes, meant to look French, with bad imported beer in bottles, bad wine in expensive glasses, and tubular steel furniture. <BR> <BR>I live a mile from Greenwich, and have by no means given up access. The very idea. <BR> <BR>Ben Haines <BR> <BR>