London Lodging--Thistle
 

We (two parents and 23 yr old daughter) will be in London for 4 nights in mid-May. A friend recommended Thistle MarbleArch which has a triple room for 130 pounds per night. Does anyone have an opinion on this hotel and the rate? Any other recommendations for a nice place, centrally located for less money? Thanks

Thistles apparently vary greatly in quality, as do hotels in any chain. We visited some friends at a Thistle in Scotland that was really very nice, but I have read bad reviews of London Thistles on Tripadvisor, and would check there if I were you. The price, unfortunately, sounds about right for a triple.

For more central-located (for sightseeing, theatre, public transport), Thistle Charing Cross, Thistle Trafagar Square, Thistle Royal Horseguard,Or Victoria are better than Thistle Marble Arch. I have stayed at the first 5 several times, all are clean and comfortable.

Usually I book through www.Londontown.com, they normally offer good rates. There are some /Thistle/Hilton/Radisson rooms offered for mid-May under 100 pounds. I just bookd Thistle Trafalgar Square for around 70 pounds.

There's a good chance you could bid on Priceline and get two rooms for less than 130 pounds total. See www.betterbidding.com .

Otherwise, as far as I've heard, the Thistle Marble Arch is an excellent hotel.

We were able to get the Thistle Charing Cross for 7 nights in May through Priceline for $100/night + taxes. Yes, that is dollars NOT pounds. We're happy. . .

For about that same price, you could try Scala House (www.scala-house.co.uk). They have small apartments with two bedrooms and 2 baths for 120 GBP per night (up to three people).

I haven't stayed there, but have read great reviews here and in other travel forums.

Gayle

The Thistle is just like the Holiday Inn hotels(not the motels).
Some of them are in a very good condition, and some of them are totally run down!

mnss, could you please tell us which Thistle Hotels in London are "totally run down"? None of the three that I stayed in were anywhere to close to that condition.

mnss: Following on from what ron asked. Besides specifically which Thistles did you find were run down - how can you say "The Thistle is just like the Holiday Inn hotels"?

STLDon: there are several good Thistle hotels all over London. Nothing wrong w/ Marble Arch - but it is a bit less conveniently located for tourists than some of the others mentioned above. It IS convenient if youwant to do a lot of shopping on Oxford street, and for walks in Hyde Park. But it is on only one tube line so you will have multiple line changes to get a lot of places.

By Contrast, Charing Cross/Embankment is on 5 different tube lines so you can get many places w/o changing lines. Plus it is walking distance from Trafalgar Square, St James, Covent Garden, the river, the southbank, Westminster Abbey, etc.

Some of the other Thistles are also in very convenient locations.

I have only tried Royal Horseguards, and I really liked it - nothing special, but the room was spacious, so was the bathroom, the location could not be beat (I stayed for a weekend in December 2004). I would go for that one again, although I usually prefer more modern, "design" hotels.

>>>how can you say "The Thistle is just like the Holiday Inn hotels"?<<<

Both of them are three star hotel chains.
or is the Thistle supposed to better 'cause it's British?

mnss, that's not the answer. The Holiday Inn chain, now called InterContinental Hotel Group, has been British-owned since 1989-90, when it was acquired by Bass Breweries.

And Thistle is owned by a Singapore company.

I assumed that STLDon was American, and so she would have an idea of what most Holiday Inns are like.

It doesn't matter who owns the hotel dAAling!

>>It doesn't matter who owns the hotel dAAling!<<

It's good we agree on something. Are you working on the list of "totally run down" Thistles so that we can all avoid them?

No actually I am not.

'cause I didn't stay in a Thistle in London. I've only stayed at the Thistle Little Wymondley, and I have no intention of going back to that town, or hotel!

jeri, when you said you got Thistle Charing Cross through priceline---were you able to specify this particular property?

STLDon, no, but I studied biddingfortravel.com and when the Thistle Charing Cross started showing up for $100 I bid and got it, but then I would have been happy with any of the hotels in that zone for $100 (with that number of stars).