MegaSack DRAW - This year's winner is user - rgwb
We will be in touch
Gonna pop down and be a tourist for a few days in April and I'll be bringing Mrs and Ms Druidh along. Any recommendations for something clean and comfortable fairly near the centre so we're not travelling in an out much?
We'll be pretty pooped in the evenings, so not looking for gyms/pools or owt - really just a place to sleep and (mibbe) have breakfast.
TIA
I usually stay in Travelodges when I'm down that way, but last time, I stayed at the Radisson Edwardian Grafton Hotel booked through lastminute.com, which was very nice (Tottenham court road, so central ish).
The most central Travelodge (Covent Garden), wasn't great, last time I stayed there, but I believe that it's being refurbished.
Kings Cross and Waterloo are my favourites and both pretty accessible.
Secret hotels on LastMinute. Generally good hotels for no money, and a bit of googling will generally tell you where you're going.
The youth hostels can be quite good and cheap
laterooms can be very good. Especially in the City of London on the weekend.
We got a £300 room, bumped up to a superior £500 room, and paid £120.
I stayed at the [url= http://www.nh-hotels.com/nh/en/hotels/united-kingdom/london.html ]NH hotel[/url] on Euston Road recently, was lovely and only a short walk from Kings cross. Also recommend the [url= http://www.minthotel.com/ ]City Inn[/url] in Westminster, nice quiet and relaxing hotel.
Finally, if you have a friend or family member in the brand then the Hilton metrpole is good too (with discount of course).
Enjoy.
I've stayed in the City Inn in Wesminster - nice place, great food and Caley 80 as their guest ale. I'd recommend the Hilton Metropole if you're coming from Heathrow as it's only a short walk from Paddington. Also, Thistle at the Barbican was alright but a fair walk from anywhere.
My recommendation would be Club Quarters if you're there over a weekend. They're hotels for business travellers so you don't waste cash on leisure centres and breakfast - hotels.com was decent enough to find one at very short notice.
DO NOT stay in the harrow lodge travelodge next to liverpool street station. (Just behind the gerkhin). It's absolutely god-awful.
There is an ibis by Euston Station that I would not decline to use again
We stayed at the travel lodge nr Fulham Broadway last year and it was lovely and just a minute or two from the tube.
I like the Covent Garden Hotel, No idea on prices sorry.
Lastminute - search for just 'top secret' then enter the blurb into google.
We've stayed at the Hilton/Marble Arch for £70 a night and a great one (B&O TV in rooms) right behind M&S in Oxford Road for similar.
Abit of detective work can turn these up however I'm not sure you can do it that far ahead.
I would never ever stay at a Travel Lodge ever. Holiday Inn Express? Definitely. Its worth paying a tiny bit more IMO when you stay with family in a hotel.
The Travelodges in London are dreadful - recently stayed at the Covent Garden one. Not good.
I usually find that Premier Travel Inns are better (although not stayed at any in London).
The Travelodges in London are dreadful - recently stayed at the Covent Garden one. Not good.
Some are better than others.
Some are better than others.
Well granted they are. The Covent Garden one is split into two and the part on Edgeware Road is better than the other side.
But a very good friend is high up in Travelodge (and used to run the area). He admits that they are all pretty well much below par.
I always thought Travel Lodges were used by people for illicit lunch time sex sessions and hen doo's?
Surely no one actually choses to stay in them?
We booked into one once, asked for a different room twice then gave up and left as I couldn't face sleeping on a pillow crushed flat through over-use and carpet with stains etc.
3rd the lastminute.com Top Secret hotels, I've had a couple of stays in the Hilton at Olympia and one at the Millenium on the Gloucester Road for well under £100 per night.
I always thought Travel Lodges were used by people for illicit lunch time sex sessions
Some of the stories I have heard 🙂
My mate says there are many regulars who ask to be put in particular rooms. Of course this always raises the suspicions of staff so they check the obvious hiding holes (toiler cisterns etc).
They usually turn up cross-dressing gear or dodgy hardcore.
And if you ask at reception they will sell a room by the hour apparently.
:-O
But a very good friend is high up in Travelodge (and used to run the area). He admits that they are all pretty well much below par.
Below par compared to what?
Its about expectation. You know what you are going to get usually. Whilst you can get lucky with lastminute.com, you often get the poorest rooms in the hotel - and there are a lot of poor hotel rooms in apparently s****y hotels.
Premier Inns are OK, but they tend to be more expensive than Travelodges.
Like I say, Waterloo is decent, as is the one at Euston.
They usually turn up cross-dressing gear or dodgy hardcore.
Busted! 8)
City Inn Westminster is supposed to be rather good. It's also just down the road from Flash Towers, as it happens...! 🙂
Of course, you could try the Goring. Best hotel in town, IMHO.
Below par compared to what?
Below par compared to their 'better' hotels. Another good example is the Manchester City Centre one - he admits they don't spend money on it because it is full most of the time anyway so they won't spend money on making it better.
he admits they don't spend money on it because it is full most of the time
Sounds like good business sense to me then. The VFM / Location / Ease of use appears to be good enough for their target market.
City Inn room rates are in a different league £159 a night for a random date in February.
Pay your money - take your chance.
Sounds like good business sense to me then. The VFM / Location / Ease of use appears to be good enough for their target market.
Well perhaps yes. I was merely making the point that the London centre Travelodges are below par even by Travelodge's standards.
🙄
The issue is having to pay up front as well.
If you pay upfront and really don't like the room your pretty much stuffed aren't you?
Holiday Inn Express's tend to be of a certain standard so at least you know your young ones wont grow up with a memory of a ghastly hotel stay once in London!
Half price if you book today at [url= http://www.hilton.co.uk/HiWayWeb/appmanager/portals/brand?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=brand_page_homepage&WT.mc_id=zESWAPN0WW1HH2PSH3DCPS4AWA7BR840574&WT.srch=1 ]Hilton[/url]
I've stayed at Docklands which is a bit far out but you can use the river bus thing which is good fun.
