Places to stay in London

For four people, I'd consider one of Rick Steves' London books to be a good investment. I prefer the "big one," since the pocket version weighs just as much in your pocket. Here are two hotels that he recommends in Bayswater, with quad rooms in your price range: www.bayswater-innhotel.com and www.gardencourthotel.co.uk. You can also get started with some free London tips and downloadable audio tours at http://www.ricksteves.com/europe/england/london.

I would suggest that you first determine what neighborhoods will best satisfy your needs (eg close to tourist sites, less expensive). Then I would use booking.com to determine which hotels or B&Bs meet your requirements (location, price, type of rooms, breakfast included?...). Often there is a photograph of the room or statement of its square footage so you can see if the room is really tiny. Using a list of possible hotels and B&Bs I would then use tripadvisor.com to read the reviews starting with the lowest ratings. I want to see if the low ratings really indicate bad situations that affect all clients (e.g., noisy rooms, cockroaches, poorly maintained rooms, bait and switch....) or whether they are the result of problems that affected only the reviewer or would not necessarily turn you off (eg misunderstood reservation, limited selection of breakfast foods, . ) I would select from the top 1/3rd ranked rooms. That's kinda how I do it.

I would not rely on just one book or web site to select a hotel. Here are some examples. Some of the B&Bs in Victoria are multi story buildings with no elevators and narrow steep staircases. This is not always conveyed - you need to read tripadvisor comments to find this out. One hotel in Victoria which has the name of an Australian city is described as having two super bargain single rooms. I was about to contact the hotel about these rooms when I read the reviews and found one which included two photographs of the bargain rooms. Each as about 50 square feet. No thanks.

On my last trip to London in 2012 and on my trip this summer I will be staying at a university dorm room. Some of the universities have apartments and other rooms which house more than one person for cheap prices. In 2012 I stayed at the International dorm of Univ of Westminster for 37 pounds a night. This was for a single relatively spacious room.

Wish you the best in hotel hunting.

As a local resident, I commend you on your choice! Bayswater a great value for money; it's very convenient for Hyde Park, the west end and Oxford st, and it's very well connected to transit options to get you easily to wherever you want to go. A couple of lodging options based on recommendations from friends who have stayed there: Darlington Hyde Park, or the Lancaster Hall. Each of these offers a different experience based on what's important to you, and shoulda fit the budget.

Stayed in Bayswater last summer at the Best Western Phoenix. At the time it was on Rick's list of hotels. It was fine. Reasonably priced in the budget range. Great location. Plain, clean room. Sweet breakfast room. By the third day, the girls brought a pot of tea without asking! Pleasant reception -- very secure as they buzzed everyone in or out and watched the door like hawks. Teeny, tiny little elevator that made me giggle every time we stepped in. Plenty of hot water for showers. Anyway, GREAT location.
Have a wonderful trip!