laurie_ann

Not trying to make it harder but Lime Tree would be a good choice too. Elizabeth Street right there is on of those kind of "villagey" streets in London that has a lot of atmosphere and fun restaurants making it very "homely" (in the English way not the American way). Not as convenient to tube to Heathrow although Sloane Square and Victoria are both close stops on Circle/District line that will get you easily to loads of other places in London by tube or bus.

tuscanlifeedit

I've said this before, but I really like Apex hotels in London. This isn't for someone looking to stay at The Ampersand, but Apex rooms are very big, very modern, and very nice. Service is spectacular. We've stayed at the one near Tower Hill tube station, and also at Temple Court.

http://www.apexhotels.co.uk/en/hotel...e-court-hotel/

not quite the best location but still very good. I would go back to either in a flash.

ChicagoDallasGirl

You guys! Ya'll are awesome to share all this good info, but also have made this a tougher task. I did find an adorable flat via onefinestay, but it'd be about $54 more per night.

http://www.onefinestay.com/london/meriden-court/

Galactus - Of course now I need to go back and read TA reviews again for GH. ;-)

welltraveledbrit - I do like Flemings. I wish their booking estimate would give its total including VAT. Also, thanks so much for the link. Had not heard of this site. Looks promising.

laurie_ann - your description is exactly the feeling I got via street view.

tuscanlifeedit - I was SO on board with Apex Temple Court. It's gorgeous. But then I read a few reviews of folks who were "overcharged" or "pre-charged" for "anticipated services" and that kind of turned me off... Assuming your experience was different?

raincitygirl

Flemings looks very nice and the Apex looks nice too, I think it depends which area appeals to you most.
For a five night stay personally I wouldn't stay in a flat.

The Lime Tree has always appealed to me but it sounded like you were looking for something more upmarket for this trip.

The area around the Ampersand has that "people live here, villagey feel" too. It is quite busy in the immediate blocks around the hotel but you don't need to walk far at all to see lovely streets full of pretty houses, parks and little shops and cafes. We walked to Chelsea and back a few times, down side streets, I could spend hours doing that.

My favourite street for that sort of feeling though is Marylebone High Street.

ChicagoDallasGirl

raincitygirl - Thank you very much for the added details about the area. Line Tree is walking distance to many tourist sites, but somehow I've always imagined us in Kensington, years ago when we first disussed London. With a the great options, I find myself going back to Ampersand with its beautiful interior and race reviews. I went ahead and made a reservation for a standard double and praying they'll offer a complimentary upgrade for our special ocassion. We have a 24 hour cancellation period prior to arrival so if by chance something better arises, we aren't locked in. With all the searching I've done, I can't imagine what could be better (and in budget) than Ampersand.

ChicagoDallasGirl

iPhone errors! That should have said "With all the great options, I still find myself going back to Ampersand with its beautiful interior and rave reviews.

Tulips

'My favourite street for that sort of feeling though is Marylebone High Street'

The Marylebone Hotel is great, and usually quite reasonable for what they offer. Very friendly, nice bar, and great location. And a gym and indoor pool too. Smallest rooms are, as often in London, very small.

ChicagoDallasGirl

The Marylebone seemed like a great option, too, Tulips. I checked to see what rates would be for our dates, but looks as though they are booked.

raincitygirl

You can still enjoy Marylebone High Street ChicagoDallasGirl. Take the tube to Bond street station, exit onto Oxford Street, cross the road and look carefully for the entrance to St.Christopher's Place, it is easy to miss it but you should see a purple clock.
It is a pedestrian only street full of shops and restaurants, gorgeous in itself but if you keep following it you will come to Marylebone High Street which is delightful, I wish this was my shopping street. Full of lovely shops, pubs, restaurants etc all along this charming meandering street.

If you walk all the way up Marylebone High street eventually you come to Regent's Park which is lovely also.

ChicagoDallasGirl

Sounds lovely, raincitygirl. I SO wish our trip was during spring or summer, but we've been known to enjoy cold weather travels just as much! Can't wait! Thanks a bunch for the directions to Marylebone High Street!

raincitygirl

You will have a good time even if it is January!
I hope that January means it will be quieter and you will get an upgrade. The standard double rooms are likely to be really tiny. We had a superior twin room and it was small but well set up and we made it work.That room is 216GBP which is slightly over your budget but might be worth it.

I can recommend the coconut/banana porridge off the breakfast menu and the yogurt and muesli in a jar which was on the continental table...yum. We also had breakfast a couple of times across the road near the tube station at Paul ( it's a French chain), great coffee and pastries.

If you read all the rave reviews on Trip Advisor you likely read mine too!

I hope you have a great time.

dorfan2

Here is a USA based London rental agency I have used twice now and really like.
http://londonconnection.com/
Money is handled in dollars, instead of pounds and they have USA time for phone calls - very obliging. They have a London based staff that handle everything for you there. They also provided airport pickup (extra charge) and return. Have always researched the location of apt. and how near it is to a tube station with easy access to where I plan to go. I have stayed at the Bramham Gardens apt. and the Villiers St. apt. (great location, that one!). You can read my trip reports to see comments about them.

Tabernash2

Sounds like you've moved past St Ermin's, but I'll just comment that we liked it. Location is great for the palace and Westminster. Close to the tube.

But, we had reserved a deluxe double on-line, and it was shown on their website with a specific square footage and layout. When we arrived, we were shown to the smallest room possible. There was no furniture except the beds, and no place to even set luggage on the floor. It was nothing like the floorplan they advertised.

We were a late check-in, and attending on a conference rate, so I wonder if they shuffled us into this room as a result. We went back to the front desk and told them we weren't happy. The young lady at the desk did not seem very experienced, and she told us since it's an historic building, all the rooms are different. Well, yes, but don't promise a specific size and shape on-line, then.

The room was completely not acceptable for our 5 night stay, so we agreed to an upgrade to a suite at 50 extra pounds per night. We ended up in a gorgeous one-bedroom suite. A far cry from the tiny double double we were shown.

Being persistent, I e-mailed management and complained. After a couple of days, I got a reply saying they were very sorry my e-mail had been overlooked. They sent a nice wine bottle up to our room with some chocolates and their apology. And they waived the extra 50 pounds/night fee.

Our rate included a breakfast buffet with hot made-to-order food, too. It was a lovely restaurant and gorgeous way to start the day.

So, in the end, we were extremely happy there. But it was a bit of a hassle.

latedaytraveler

ChicagoDallasGirl,

You mentioned ROYAL HORSEGUARDS above – that would be my choice if I had your budget. What a fabulous location so near Whitehall, Trafalgar Square, and Westminster Bridge…

tuscanlifeedit

ChicagoDallasGirl,

I'm just checking back on this thread. Sorry for the delay.

I have not experienced any sort of billing or overcharging with Apex hotels, and have used them twice in London and once in Edinburgh for a client.

I can't even tell you how highly I rank their service and desk. TO me, they are the best.

And the Temple Court hotel is gorgeous in a modern way. Very very nice. Great linens. I want to go back right now.