Gordon_R

Palenque, you really need to read the small print when it comes to these Travelodge promotions you often mention. The current deal is only valid until the beginning of January. For the week the OP is interested in, the room rates vary from £39 to £101 per night (Covent Garden not surprisingly being one of the most expensive).

And Virgin Altantic "... always near the top in on-board service..." - you are pulling my leg, right? Yes, Upper Class is wonderful, but economy is a truly appaling cattle-class experience aimed squarely at the working class British package tourist market. As a seasoned long-haul traveller, it's one of only two airlines I would NEVER fly economy again (the other is Ethiopian Airways, so go figure). I don't want to rain on the OP's parade - he did get a good price so will hopefully be able to grin and bear it, but should't be deluded into expecting anything special.

floydvic

If renting an apartment doesn't work out and you decide to go the hotel route give the bid your own price option at Priceline consideration. A hundred dollars (not pounds) and sometimes even less will often net a nice hotel room. Consult one of the Priceline oriented message boards such as www.biddingfortravel.com for information on current successful bids.

janisj

GordonR: "<i>Palenque, you really need to read the small print when it comes to these Travelodge promotions you often mention</i>" He's been told that before - must not have sunk in yet. . . . .

clemson91

Another follow-up:

We're leaning towards the following apartment:

http://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p309782

It's in a great location and while it's $1350 per week, that is still less expensive than most hotels in the same area.

I have contact the owner who stated that the apartment was about 530 sq. ft. (bigger than most standard hotel rooms) and was closest to the Leicester Square Tube station.

Waiting now to see if my wife approves.

laurie_ann

I would find out more about the third one (the one with all the photos of Buckingham Palace). Photos and exact address. The living and kitchen look nice. I used a clue in the listing of "Albany Court" and it appears to be near St James Park (and the related tube stop which is on Circle and District line -- quite convenient) which would be nice.

Ackislander

Strongly agree with Gordon_R about Virgin cattle class. Cheeful crew, cute amenities for the under-30's, and dreadful seats. Usually lots of naff types drinking all night in the rear of the plane. Upper Class a different story.

This might be slightly out of date, because after my last flight with them, I vowed that I would never fly them again.

Cholmondley_Warner

Back to the O2. Tickets are now on sale (I get the Ticketmaster email) and it is in the main Arena.

Which is very good indeed.

smacknmo

AIRLINE TICKET- IMHO it seems a bit high for March. I have been to England at least 10 times and have never spent that much. I must say that I have never been there during May-Sept. only during the winter and early spring. The two times I went in early March I spent around $500 total for my ticket. Even if a ticket quote is $299, the taxes will bring it up to around $500. I travel out of either Philadelphia or Newark. I am traveling Virgin Atlantic to Heathrow in early May this year. We used American Express points for the ticket. When we booked VA sent a request for people to send letters to MP's in London protesting a proposed marked increase in taxes for people coming into England which would increase ticket even more. Perhaps the increase went through, I will have to check.

WEATHER- The weather in March is very unpredictable. You must layer your clothing. Generally, England's weather is a little milder, usually by 5-10 degrees F, than here in Pa during the winter because of the jet stream. That being said, they also can have some wicked cold and rainy weather. During the winter I usually take a raincoat that has a zipped warm lining and layer my clothes. Never has been a problem. One time in early to mid April it was so hot in London that I almost left a play because the theatre was not air conditioned. Thank goodness I was able to take off my layers, though it really still wasn't enough. They were having unseasonably warm spell then.

APARTMENT: I bookmarked the apt. because I really liked it. Like the area it is in too. We have rented in Paris and Italy but never London. I thought the price seemed good since hotels are so expensive in London. I am going to check reviews on that particular apt.

helen_belsize

The Covent Garden apartment looks fine, I suspect it is on a noisy street by the very evident double glazing but weather unlikely to be hot enough to cause a problem. It really depends on what you want to be close to. There are supermarkets and minimarkets close enough to make it easy for self-catering.

PatrickLondon

Following up on laurie ann's point about Albany Court: slightly inept marketing on the owner's part, perhaps, to seem to be shy about hiding details of the exact location.

This would be part of the development that included the London Transport headquarters building in the 1930s. It must be one of the most secure parts of London, since it also has the Home Office practically on the other side of the street and the Metropolitan Police HQ offices just down the road. It's only a short walk from the Park. On the other hand, it is predominantly an office/business district rather than residential/leisure. Shopping would be OK on Victoria Street, but it would be fairly quiet, especially at night and over the weekend, and it may feel a bit enclosed with so many large buildings along narrow streets.

clemson91

Thanks for all of the responses. We decided to go with the following apartment for $1350/week:

http://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p309782

Apartment is located on Upper St. Martin Lane (very close to the Leicester Square Tube station)

Contacted the owner via e-mail late Friday evening. He responded on Saturday morning thanking us for our booking and indicated that he would send some confirmation information in a day or so (including payment information for PayPal). Deposit is $500 and the balance is due 30 days prior to arrival.

Just waiting on the e-mail from the owner to finalize the plans.

Thanks again for all suggestions.

I'll be looking for Cholmondley_Warner at the concert.

janisj

Upper St Martin's Lane is a really terrific location. It is a very short street between St Martin's Lane and Monmouth St/Seven Dials. You will be walking distance to everything (well, not <u>everything</u> but a LOT) and just up the street from Neal's Yard Dairy for yummy cheeses . . . . .

clemson91

Had a change in plans. Another couple is now going, so this 1 bedroom apartment won't work for us.

Instead, we now have a reservation at The Sumner Hotel (near Marble Arch).

http://www.sumnerdale.co.uk/index.html

Got a good rate (includes breafast) and the hotel receives excellent reviews on Tripadvisor.com (I read about it in a London book that I purchased).

Would have liked to stay in the apartment noted but it would not work for 4 persons. I'm glad that I had not already paid the deposit (I just received the PayPal request).

I informed the apartment owner of our change but he has not responded (anyhing else I need to do?)

Thanks again for all input.

Kate

One remark about the main arena at the O2: the upper tier is REALLY steep and vertigo inducing, and a long way from the action. I saw The Stereophonics there last Xmas and two girls beside me had to leave because they couldn't cope with the vertigo. I vowed not to go again if I could only get tickets in the top tier. That apart, the arena is great though, and tickets elsewhere are fine.

clemson91

Thanks for the comment about the upper tier of The O2. Thankfully our tickets are in the lower tier.