london questions

Princess,

welcome.

Does that 800 USD include food, entertainment & transportation?

if it was me, i would spit my time between Paris and London 50/50.

happy trails.

A budget of $800 a week is pretty low. How many people are you traveling with? I'm actually going to be in London during the same time. We arrive on 9/20 and we plan to spend 6 nights. I've been searching for a budget place and it's difficult in London. Have you checked airbnb? Does it have to be an apartment?

Have you been to London or Paris before? If its a first visit for both, I have to agree with Ray to split your time evenly.

@ andrea,

If you open to something other then a hotel or apartment, there are a couple places that arent bad.

Try looking at EasyHotels. They are small, but are clean. I usually stay at the Victoria station unit, but there are several around London. just an for your info (fyi), the victoria station one is usually the most expensive. some of the rooms have 2 queen size bed too, but they all have the same bathroom pods.

There is also the London School of Economics dorms. they are sprinkled throughout londons central? area. again, they are dorms. Some have ensuite bathooms some are shared. On my recent stay in London, i was at one near Kings X. It was a handicapped room so it was large room on the ground floor. Nothing wrong other than the street noise, but i was able to get a good nights rest. They also had breakfast which i cant remember if it was included. food wasnt bad and was good enough for me. The LSE do have some apartments for rent too. they are not dorms, but strictly for rent apartments. havent tried them yet.

Some mentioned another dorm near Victoria station and i will be looking into that on my next trip.

i havent checked into Airbnb as you have. Im not sure i will go that route though.

Happy trails.

I've used easyHotels too; they are a separate initiative by the great entrepreneur who established easyJet. The rooms are just slightly bigger than an economy airline seat. Suitcase has to go under the bed if you want to turn around. Like budget planes, everything is priced separately: A fee for the television, a surcharge for a room with the window. But you get what you pay for, in a very expensive city. Use a nearby pub as your lounge, like Londoners have done for generations. Locations are usually handy to public transportation.

Thanks for the suggestions guys. I think EasyHotel is not quite what I'm looking for. This is a long trip for us (5 1/2 weeks) and I would like to economize, but we will be in London on our wedding anniversary and I think I'd like something a little better/nicer than a place where it's so small you have to put your luggage under the bed. Sounds okay for a solo traveler, but we need a bit more space and definitely an ensuite bathroom!

I've found a couple of possibilities that are a little over your budget princess pupule. Since we will be there at the same time I won't divulge them now, but after we have decided on something I will let you know about what we didn't choose.

Try London School of Economics. They have a number of locations throughout London which offer either ensuite rooms or apartments. That said, your budget of under $800USD for the week is only going to get you an ensuite room. They do have communal lounge areas, basic shared guest kitchen facilities in some buildings (free breakfast included in others without the kitchen access) and laundry. So in some buildings, you are still able to get the perks of an apartment stay without the larger price tag as some apartments require a refundable security deposit and/or a cleaning fee in addition to the weekly rental price.

I forgot to add.

Eventhough youre only gone for a short time, some or all of the LSE places have laundry machines. Just something to add so you dont have to pack alot of clothes for the short time youre there.

happy trails.

If you up your budget by $100, Studios2Let on North Gower Street has small studios for around $128 per night in September.

As far as location, pretty much anywhere in Zone 1 will be walking distance or a short tube ride to main attractions. I usually stay in the Trafalgar Square/Covent Garden area, but it can be a bit pricey. Bloomsbury, Marble Arch, and the area around Victoria Station are convenient and a bit more budget-friendly. Some people like Earl's Court, but I'm not a fan. It's on the edge of Zone 1 and is not walking distance to any major tourist attractions. However, it has convenient transportation links and you can be in the main tourist area in about 20 minutes.

Check out TimeOut London for things to do. http://www.timeout.com/london

$800 is low for a week in a London flat but try airbnb.com. There are some listings that fall within your budget but remember, you are looking in one of the most expensive cities anywhere! See if you can come up a bit with your budget and it will open up quite a few more options for you.

Princess, Check out the link below. I recommend looking through this list of YHA Youth Hostels. It's not an apartment, but they will meet your budget. If you rent a private room, you have space to spread out a bit.

http://www.yha.org.uk/places-to-stay/london

The Central location, St. Paul's location, Holland Park, and Oxford St. would be my preference. Private rooms from £43 to £50 per night. The locations can't be beat.

When seeking out apartments for short term stays, I usually head to tripadvisor and type in the city I'm going to. Last year we found 3 amazing apartments in spain that where no more than 75-80 euros per night. The apartments had modern amenities, usually more than 1 floor with balconies, also very convenient to sight seeing.

Now spain is not London. London is very expensive. I also traveled in dec and jan, so prices were reduced. To start with take a look at tripadvisor London vacation rentals. You will see pictures, maps for location, and read reviews. I was investigating a trip to London last year and found that apartment rentals were way cheaper than hotels, with better amenities (washing machine......yayyyyyyyy).
You could check out airbnb too.

Thanks for all the info. Plans have changed, we have one more traveler with us. We are upping the $$$ for lodging and hoping to find a 2 bedroom apt. I know london is expensive and we are the "budget girls" LOL It's great to ask questions here and get tips about our travels. If a miracle happens so be it. We are gonna have so much fun no matter what! After our week in London will take the eurostar train to Paris for 3 or 4 days, fly home from there which makes much more sense as a multi city flight. At this point you make plans to travel and then you don't want to spend money while in europe. Will put money in a "GO GO PIGGY BANK" and eat rice and beans till September. Again thanks everyone
GO NINERS

Yes, let's hope the Niners go all the way!!

Flying into London and home from Paris will save you a lot. For some reason flying into London the taxes are low, but to fly out they increase substantially. You will save paying the extra amount for taxes and the cost of the Eurostar to return to London.

I've been looking at airbnb and there are a number of apartments at good prices. The same for Paris. Check the minimum number of nights required for an apartment rental. You might want to take a little time from London and add it to Paris.

I thought there were rules against using foul language on this site--so what's with all the Niners talk? You KNOW Rick Steves lives in Seahawks territory! Enjoy your stay in London, Princess ;)

Seahawks = fowl language. ;-)

Football teams, aside (my poor Ravens), could someone comment on airbnb vs VRBO? I have seen flats for rent on VRBO that look good, but airbnb seems to be what people are most recommending. Thank you!

We have used both...the only difference I can tell is that the airbnb site is a bit slicker looking. The listings are just that...listings. No real difference in quality so far as I can tell.