sunswhtdog

Greetings,
We are traveling to London December 2009. Before we travel I read everyone's posts. This will be our first trip across the "Pond"... I would like help deciding what area and where to stay in London. We are in our 50's and not the nightclub crowd type. A nice dinner, wine or a good beer fit our style. Good music or a theater show would be nice too. We have 3 nights and plan to see and do as much as we can while there. I understand there is a hop on-hop off tour we could do. I have not purchased the guide book yet. Even then I will have many questions! Your ideas are most welcome. After London we travel to Krakow, Gdansk and Warsaw.

THANKS BUNCHES!
Sunny

janisj

Specifically when in Dec? Over the Holiday, or earlier in the month? It will make a big difference re what you can see/do.

You can stay absolutely anywhere in central London (basically inside the Circle tube line) and be w/i easy transport of all the main sites. Can't really give you concrete advice w/o a bit more info from you. What is your budget and what sorts of hotels do you prefer -- traditional, modern, trendy??

jent103

You'll get many different opinions on what area is "best" to stay in. Really, anywhere in zone 1, you'll be within several minutes' tube or bus ride to whatever you want to see. (The Underground system is laid out in concentric circles, with the "bull's-eye" being zone 1, the next ring zone 2,... out to zone 6.)

All that said, my personal choice would be Bloomsbury, in the area around the British Museum. I like it because it's quiet at night but not dead, it's really convenient to a lot (Covent Garden, Oxford Street shopping, Piccadilly Circus and tons of theatres are all within pretty easy walking distance, assuming you have no mobility issues; even more within a long walk or just a few minutes' bus ride). I wouldn't stay in the City area, around St Paul's or the Tower. It's just very quiet at night without much open. Others like Mayfair or South Kensington... really, you'll get lots of answers.

The hop-on-hop-off tour: For me, it would not be worth it. It's expensive, relatively speaking, and you can see a lot of what they cover on your own very easily. For example, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, Trafalgar Square and Buckingham Palace are all close together; it's a fun and easy walk to see them all at your own pace rather than racing by on a tour bus. Just my opinion, though.

Iowa_Redhead

What is your budget and style? Some want to spend $100 a night and don't care about space or how fancy a place is, and others are happy to spend $600 a night and expect a very lavish hotel.

What are your interests other than seeing a theater show? Art? Architecture? You can stay anywhere and then travel that one night for the show. Also, what type of travelers are you... do you like a very relaxed, slower paced few days or do you want to cram absolutely as much as you physically can into a short time? (I'm in the second group, but many on this board are in the first group, there's nothing wrong with either way). When planning a trip to somewhere I don't already have a list of sites I want to see, I google the area name and click to see Images. It's the amazing pictures that so often make me say "I want to see that!"

Places to research a bit to see if you're interested include:
Tate
Tower of London
Westminster Abbey
St Pauls Cathedral
Buckingham/changing of the guard
British Museum
London Eye
Winston Churchill War Rooms
Windsor Castle
Hampton Court Palace
and many, many more

yk

Take a look here:
http://www.fodors.com/world/europe/e...ure_30003.html

BobbyPam

Hi - Sunswhtdog

I just returned from a trip to London, so I hope I can help.
I recommend that you stay at the Radisson Edwardian Leicester Square. Leicester Square is the perfect base for sightseeing. You can walk to several of the West End theatres, the tube stop is very close, and an open-top bus tour leaves from right up the street. You can hop on and off the bus as you like, and you even receive a ticket for Thames River cruise. For a special dinner, I would go to Rules, which is the oldest restaurant in London. It's on Maiden Lane in Covent Garden, and their rhubarb apple crumble is fab! (You can walk to the restaurant too, if you want.) I think you would enjoy the show Jersey Boys at the Prince Edward Theatre. (As the Brits say, it's brilliant!) Make sure to take a "flight" on the London Eye because you get amazing views of Buckingham Palace, etc. There can be long lines, so I would recommend taking the first flight of the day at 10 a.m. You can save money and time by purchasing you tickets ahead of time on-line before you leave for your trip. ( Londoneye.co.uk ) Big Ben is just a short walk across the Westminster Bridge from the Eye, so after your flight head over to see BB. Then if you're interested in going to the Churchill War Room Museum, you just walk past BB and walk around the back of the Royal Treasury building, and then you'll see the War Room Museum. The Tower of London is also worth a visit. The Beefeaters are fun to talk with, and who doesn't enjoy seeing lovely jewels? The Charles Dickens Museum (Russell Square tube stop) is worth a visit if you enjoy his books. I also liked the Victoria and Albert Museum (South Kensington tube stop). They have a lovely cafe. When I was planning my trip, I started by going to Barnes and Noble one night, had a cup of tea, and read tons of guidebooks to help me make a list of what I wanted to see and do. Once I made my must do list, I looked a map of London to see where the different places that I wanted to go were. (That's how I discoved that the Eye and BB were so close together.) I planned my days around what was on the way to the theatre that I was going to that day. I used a terrific website called Londontown.com to print maps for all of the places that I wanted to go and then I put them in a thin plastic binder that I packed in my carry-on. Each morning I just pulled out the maps that I needed for the day, folded them in my purse, and then threw them out at the end of the day. That system worked really well for me. Londontown.com will also give you info about West End shows, restaurants, museums, etc. It will even tell you what other attractions are near the one that you pull up. The Brits are really friendly, so I think you'll have a great time.

janisj

I'd definitely NOT pre-book tickets for the Eye. Enjoying the Eye is <u>totally</u> weather-dependent. What if you book a flight for Tuesday morning and that is the middle of a heavy rain storm? You'd be out of luck.

Also - most feel the very best time to ride is just before sunset. You start up in daylight and land 30 minutes later having seen the sunset and lights coming on all over London. I've flown the Eye several at least 6 or 7 times in morning afternoon, and evening-- last was just about a month ago. There really aren't the massive lines like there were back when it was a new attraction.

But if you do want to pre-buy to jump the queue - you can do it by phone or e-mail the morning the same day you want to ride.

As for theatre - there are MANY plays/musicals and most days 80% of then are available at the TKTS 1/2 price ticket booth, located in Leicester Sq. Only go to the real TKTS, not any of the other "half price" ticket sellers in the area. It is easy to tell the difference - TKTS is a stand-alone building on the south side of the square.

jent103

Totally agree with janisj on the Eye; sunset is a GREAT time to do it, but see what the weather is like before committing.

I will also say that I've used the ticket agents around Leicester Square a couple of times with no problems whatsoever. I'd check TKTS first (and would not buy from a guy on the street), but it's not as though all the other agents are complete scam artists.

Gordon_R

...and remember also that in London in December, sunset is about 4pm.

Cholmondley_Warner

It's quite hard to make a hash of London. If you're based reasonably centrally (ie zone one or two one the tube map) you can get to pretty much everywhere else.

As to what to do - that depends on your tastes.

You say you like beer. You are coming to beer central. English beer, despite what you may have read, is not flat and warm,. It's bloody wonderful.

rogeruktm

I'm with C W on English beer...nothing like a cold Stella or Foster's.

Cholmondley_Warner

Roger is taking (and drinking) the piss.

sunswhtdog

WOW! what great ideas thank you!!!!
We will be in London the 1st week of December. We Like Reasonable and clean hotels. Nothing lavish required, but a nice Pub nearby for an evening Beer would be nice. We are in the $100+ range (US dollars)for a hotel. So, no $600 dollar rooms. We don't want super low budget either. I am working a lot of overtime and call hours so, I can only check this site a few times a week. Please put down more Ideas. Thanks again!

Sunny

stokebailey

Hi, Sunny,

May I suggest Priceline or Hotwire for hotel? London is an especially good town for these. We recently stayed at two hotels, one a 3.5 star and the other a 5 star, for roughly $80 and $160 dollar bids, plus tax. I agree with Cholmondley-Warner that most any area is fine.

janisj

You won't find too much in London for $100 (approx £60 currently but who knows next Dec.) except for pretty down market B&B hotels -- not bed and breakfasts but tourist grade hotels w/ a breakfast room in the basement and no other public spaces.

But if there are only two of you, Priceline is wonderful -- PL only deals in double/twins in London. It is much too early to bid on Priceline yet. If you've never used PL before, some of us can give you bidding suggestions. Check out biddingfortravel.com and betterbidding.com to see hotels/winning bids.

I've never paid more than $90 for a 4-star and usually less. But even $90 will come to about $110-ish w/ taxes/fees.

(if there are more than 2 of you, you can still use PL - but you'd have to get two rooms)

Cholmondley_Warner

$100 a night is a bit tight - frankly £100 would be tight.

Have a look at Ibis and Travelodge hotels - they're usually around the £80 mark.

That's about as cheap as it gets....

sunswhtdog

well $100 was a thought...we do usually spend more. There will be 5 adults travelling together. Are most rooms in London small? My cousin would like to save a little $ on rooms and share one with myself and my husband. Her sister and husband are also travelling with us. I purchased one of the fodors books with the map, but, I left it at the cousins. I was wondering about the Picadilly circus area? Is that a good place to look for hotels.
We only have a few days but we are interested in all these places.
Tower of London
Westminster Abbey
St Pauls Cathedral
Buckingham/changing of the guard
British Museum
London Eye
Winston Churchill War Rooms
Windsor Castle
Hampton Court Palace
and many, many more


Thanks for your ideas!!!
Sunny

jent103

Hi Sunny - yes, the rooms are small, generally speaking. Others might have suggestions, but I think you may have trouble finding a room with a double and a twin bed in the smaller, less expensive hotels. (I've never tried, but in the hotel I just stayed in, an extra bed would not have at all fit in our room. We had two twins and it was tight, but that's what I was expecting.) You might try londontown.com to see what you can get. It will let you select three adults for a room.

If you mean a hotel right on Piccadilly Circus, I would be hesitant to stay there; it can be a pretty happening place late at night, and I'd be concerned about noise. However, if you've found a place nearby, that's a central area and you should be fine. As several others have told you, anywhere in central London will allow you access to just about everything on your list (except for Windsor Castle and HCP, of course, and honestly with three days in December I would skip those). The only thing I would say is to not stay near the Tower or St Paul's, ONLY because the City area is pretty dead at night.

yk

$100 is really not quite realistic. And December, if it's right before X'mas, London is quite expensive.

For 3 adults, you really should look for hotels or B&Bs with triple rooms. You can't assume a regular "double" will have enough sleeping space for 3 adults. Most hotel rooms in London are small, and many "double" rooms in fact have just two twin beds. You may want to investigate Hotwire for 3 adults.

Otherwise, try www.travelodge.co.uk

I also agree not to be near Piccadilly Circus. It's like staying IN Times Sq, really crowded with flashing neon lights.

Cholmondley_Warner

Try some of the universities - they let out the halls of residence duringthe holibobs.