Claudina

We are traveling with our children (ages 18, 16 and 13) to London for Christmas. We are looking to rent an apartment for a week in a good location. Any suggestions?
We also want to do day trips to Oxford, Cambridge, Stonehenge and maybe bath. Do you know any private tour guides who can pick us up in a minivan and take us for the day?
Thanks!!!!

Tulips

Hi Claudina, what is your budget? There are thousands of apartments in London, in all price ranges.
South Kensington, Bloomsbury, Notting Hill are good areas.
There is no public transport on Christmas day, but it's a great day for walking, or using the rental bikes.

You can rent through Airbnb, or through an agency that takes care of everything, such as Onefinestay.
Do some research and come back with a few options, and we can comment on the location.

You really do not need a tour guide for Oxford and Cambridge; just take the train from London and go on your own. For Stonehenge and Bath there are tours you can take, perhaps others can recommend one as I have never done these.

dotheboyshall

I wouldn't want to pre-plan for that time of year for anywhere outside London. I'd also check if the trains are running as generally the period between Christmas & New Year is when they dig up the tracks

See www.nationalrail.co.uk

janisj

>>There are thousands of apartments in London, in all price ranges. <<

True but at this late date it might be difficult to find one for Christmas. We do need to know your budget to give useful suggestions.

If you are only going to be in London for a week you really don't have time for three day trips. I'd pick ONE between Oxford and Cambridge (one or the other not both - they are very similar experiences/cities so you really only need to go to one anyway). Both cities are very easy to reach by train -- and for Oxford the express bus might be a better option because it drops you in the very center of the town

mjs

Actually I think the Express bus is better for Cambridge as the train station is a pretty fair distance from the centre of town. The Oxford train station on the other hand is fairly central. Agree that I would pick Cambridge or Oxford. Cambridge is prettier.

janisj

>>The Oxford train station on the other hand is fairly central.<<

Yes it is <i>fairly</i> central but the Oxford Tube/X90 buses are more so.

Claudina

Thank you for your responses. As far as my budget, I was thinking between $/200 and $250, preferably on the lower end of the range.

Tulips

American dollars? That is very low for London, for 5 people during a very busy time of the year, if you want to be in a central area. Try Airbnb.

janisj

$200 per night = a bit less than £130 per night/£900 per week - $250 = £160/£1120. £130 is very low for a 2 bdrm flat but £160 should be doable. The big problem is that nice, well-priced flats book up early so any we recommend would likely be unavailable.

What are your exact dates? I do know one company that has VERY well priced apartments just (just under £900) but I checked their website and one of the 2bdrm's they manage is available from check in on the 20th and check out the 27th. If that fits -- JUMP on it asap - like this minute. http://www.hamletuk.com

(their other 2 bdrm is available the 14th to 22nd which is probably too early for you)

I know of no others you could find under about £1200.

flanneruk

It rarely makes any sense at all hiring a tour guide to collect you in central London and take you on a tour to Oxford or Cambridge. Or, if time is short, to waste a day visiting Oxford AND Cambridge - which resemble each other almost completely.

Practically the only significant difference is that they punt from the wrong end in Cambridge - but who'd want to be punting in midwinter?

London's not a terrific place for being picked up from: minibuses can't really navigate central Oxford or Cambridge. Public transport's quicker, easier, cheaper - and on the shortest days of the year, gives you more visiting time

There are no trains from London to anywhere on Dec 25 or 26, and none to central Oxford on Dec 27 or 28. London-Oxford buses run hourly on the route on Dec 25 & 26, and more or less normally (about every 15 mins) over the rest of the holiday period.

Cambridge trains run normally this Christmas - which means no trains on Dec 25 or 26. Buses from London run at about half the frequency of buses from London to Oxford throughout the period.

There MIGHT be a case for hiring some kind of minibus and driver for Stonehenge - though it really does rank as the single British attraction that underwhelms most visitors most. Getting there by public transport's not altogether straightforward, and most of us would suggest you'd be more likely to see things at nearby Avebury - though it's REALLY tricky for public transport.

If no-one suggests how to do this, and you still want to go, come back and pester us. Someone might be able to help.

nytraveler

Organizing a private guide and minivan for the day will NOT be inexpensive - and I doubt will be in your budget if you are trying to keep you lodging budget so low.

There are group bus tours to these various places if you feel you must have guidance - and that would probably be cheaper - although you wold hae to check for 5 people. Although for Oxford or Cambridge (agree not to do both) and Bath you can do it yourself easily by public transit with a guidebook. Stonehenge is the one for which a tour has the greatest benefit.

ducinaltum

janisj that's an incredible apartment that you mentioned! I'm bookmarking it - would love to go back to London and that location/price combo are too good to pass up. Thanks for sharing.

janisj

You're welcome ducinaltum. They are not at all posh but are clean and comfy and about the best bargain I've found in central(ish) London. I've stayed in one or another of them 4 or 5 times over the years (out of MANY visits). For my trip this Christmas I really wanted to stay in the Trafalgar Sq area and would have re-booked the Royal Horseguards in a heartbeat but a river (thus fireworks) view room was more than double what I paid in August. So I'm staying in the Marina for six nights for what 1.5 nights would have cost at the hotel.

Gotta know when to pick my battles

But I really do like the area and it is a lot more convenient than would first seem. Good bus and relatively good tube connections, a very good supermarket on site, lots of cafes/restaurants/pubs on the doorstep, but still really quiet, next door to the Tower and walking distance to Borough Market -- what's not to like.

ducinaltum

I think that was a fine choice! I look forward to getting to know more of the neighborhoods in the future, not to mention accomplishing the long list of places and activities I want to experience. When I was no longer able to stay with a friend of a friend in London this past February I had to find a (very, very) last minute hotel and didn't want to pay much for the short time I would be there.

I picked a (decidedly un-posh) hotel close to King's because I just didn't have the time to look for some killer deal and at least I knew I'd be near to the tube lines I needed and the train to Cambridge.

The battle I had to pick this time around was to leave the door to the bathroom open (and thus make it a palatably warm-ish temperature while having the whole rest of the room smell like a sewer) or to leave the bathroom door closed, meaning it was an icicle. So gross...but a memorable travel story I suppose - so your recommendation is far and away a better option in my opinion

janisj

OK -- compared to that the Marina flats are very <B>VERY</B> posh indeed . . .

Claudina

I guess I will have to up my budget. Any other suggestions on apartment rental sources or suites hotel?

Tulips

Claudina, you're going to have to do some research and come up with a few possible options for us to comment on. See what you can find on sites like Homeaway, Airbnb etc for your dates and budget.
Look at Citadines if you want an apartment in a hotel; though many places will have been booked for Christmas.

janisj

also check booking.com and londontown.com and look for apartments. Then you'll know which have availability.

Claudina

What do you think about this apartment? Is it a good area?http://www.homeaway.co.uk/p6609253?u...1515280#photos

janisj

The listing is confusing. Mentions Times Sq/Hooper street and Canary Wharf which are different places. It Is in Hooper Street so don't worry about the Canary Wharf reference.

It looks very nice but I would be a bit leery since it has no reviews at all. It costs £1134 per week - that would see a bit high for that area .

Not a terrible location but a bit of a hike to Aldgate and Tower Hill stations.

I don't know the actual housing estate -- looks to be brand new.