London Marriott's?
 

Cashing in points to stay at a London Marriott for the weekend. Will do a whirlwind tour of the city....which one would be best location-wise? Suggestions for tours? Is Harrod's open Sundays?

We found the Marriott Marble Arch to be quite accommodating two years ago. Actually, we fled there from a dive a travel agent had booked for us - so perhaps my opinion is biased! <BR>They allowed a family of four into one room which was basic, but clean. The location was convenient to Selfridges and shopping, and the Paddington train station which goes out to Windsor. The restaurant was excellent for its type, and the room included a nice breakfast. Concierge service was wonderful. And the hotel had an added bonus of an excercise room and swimming pool in the basement, which we thoroughly enjoyed at the end of each July day! <BR>On the negative: it was a quite a long walk to the tube, and it has no local charm - except for the very accommodating employees. <BR>As four tours, we loved the the double-decker open-air bus. Touristy? Yes! But a great orientation to the city! Don't miss the Tower of London tours. By your tour tickets from the bus vendor to avoid long lines. Also, I highly suggest a day trip out to Windsor. It was lovely. And you can actually SEE the changing of the guard there! <BR>Good Luck!

If your points are good for the Marriott County Hall that is the best one for many reasons - it is very posh and has a good restaurant. But mainly it is the location - right on the Thames across from Big Ben, Parliament with magnificent views. Very close to Westminster tube station, right next to the London Eye and walking distance to Trafalgar Sq, all the South Bank arts venues, Whitehall, etc. <BR> <BR>It is a very special place.

I just returned from London using Reard points. If you can't get the Marriott at CountyHall consider the location at Grosvenor Suare. The location in Mayfair is quite nice, down the street from Selfridges, near New Bond Street and St. Christopher's Place. Harrod's is not open on Sunday's. I would recommend either the Big Red Bus or The Original London hop on hop off sightseeing tours. By the way Harrod's is really over rated and I am a shopaholic. Also while in London really try to check out a play or musical. For current info check Londontown.com Hope this helps

We just returned from a one week stay at the Marriott Grosvenor Square, and I would definitely recommend it over the Marriott County Hall, which we visited in order to compare. We had originally booked our stay at County Hall, but changed to Grosvenor Square on the advice of a friend who is from London. She was right. There is a lovely park right across the stree from the Grosvenor Square location, and it it very convenient to the tube and bus and nice restaurants and Oxford Street. The County Hall location was not as centrally located. In fact, its location reminded me of San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf - loud, noisy, lots of busses. It was also furnished in what I thought was and "old fashioned" manner. The Grosvenor Square location is beautifully appointed and has a very good restaurant. We had excellent service from all the staff. They even brought me a transformer box so that i could use my curling iron. I would definitely choose Grosvenor Square over County Hall.

The Marriott at Grosvenor Square was great -- I stayed there for a week in 1992 on points. Close to two tube lines. I also rode out to the Regent Park property, which looked nice, but not as a great a location as Grosvenor Square.

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