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Another apartment question...... you are going to be so sick of me.

We have now dwindled down our choices for apartments to 3. I had no idea pleasing just 3 people would be this hard. We will be there for 10 night this November

Please weigh in on what area you would personally pick if this was for you....taking into consideration that we mainly want to travel by bus and be in a good neighborhood. We will leave London by flying out from Gatwick if that plays at all into your choice.

  1. An apartment very close to Buckingham Palace described as facing the Royal Mews ($4227 Canadian)

  2. An apartment right on the Seven Dials close to Covent Garden ($4400 )

  3. A garden apartment in Soho near Soho Square Gardens ( this one is cheaper at $3700 Canadian)

The insides are all nice. The one near Buckingham Palace has nicer bathrooms and is a bit bigger than the other 2 . The garden apartment has less natural light but it is mainly just a place to sleep and have breakfast. The one on Seven Dials is pretty and looks right onto the circle. ( noisy ?) The bedrooms are small.

Personally From descriptions only, I like the Buckingham Palace one for the apartment, the Soho apartment for price but it's still nice and the Seven Dials one cause it seems to be right in the action (but is that a good thing) LOL but since it's not just me I want your opinions to sway me....LOL

Please just tell me what you would pick if this was you with your spouse and 72 year old Mom.

Posted by
9460 posts

Soho apartment. Spend the money saved on other elements of your trip -- a taxi when you're tired, an extra glass of wine.

Mostly I would advise against Seven Dials unless other reviews say that it's quiet. It really does seem it would be very loud there!!!

Posted by
14806 posts

All of these areas are busy.

The Buck House Apartment is one block from Victoria Station which is where you will get the Gatwick Express train to the airport. However, the entire area around the station has road construction going on.

The Seven Dials will be very busy as this is mainly a shopping/office area and not a residential area. It could be noisy at night. This would be my last choice.

The Soho Square Gardens will also be busy with lots of activity going on. Is the garden apartment facing the front or the rear? This would make a big difference. In front, you'll get lots of noise. In the back, it will be quieter. And since you know there won't be much light, it could be because it might be a lower level/basement apartment.

All three have bus service nearby.

I can't' suggest which one to take because I personally wouldn't want to stay in either place. I prefer to stay just on the outskirts of zone 1 but I don't have to worry about not taking the tube.

Posted by
6113 posts

I'm with Frank on this one, but as I hate noise at night, my preference would be Soho, as the least noisy option.

I don't care for the Victoria area, but that's just personal preference - it has good transport links, but I find it to be rather soulless and full of large office buildings.

Posted by
11247 posts

We loved staying at Seven Dials, our favorite location of three stays in London last year. Read teh reviews. Does anyone mention noise? Our apartment there was very well sound proofed.

Posted by
776 posts

Laurel could you send me the link to your apartment rental. ?

Darn it....I thought I had the right areas.

When I rented in Paris I was decided early on and was confident about my choice. For London I am at a loss.

If these areas are not good then where do you suggest?

We had an apartment in Nine Elms on the list but was told there was nothing around there and not desirable.

Posted by
776 posts

We just got declined by another apartment because they say they can only rent from airbnb for 75 days a year and they are too close to that limit.

That is the 3rd one that has declined us and we also had 3 that said this was too early in the year to commit to us for just 10 nights in November. Man this is harder than I thought.

Posted by
2700 posts

Whenever I have choices that are close, I always go with the cheapest. This seems like a no brainer to me -- save the $500 Canadian.

Posted by
16026 posts

Don't get discouraged! Of the negative comments above, the only one that would put me off a place I really like is theone about road works around Victoria Station. This can cause major disruption of the bus routes and significant delays in travel.

The TFL website has a section where you can investigate roadworks, but it only works up to 90 days out. Here is what it shows for the Victoria Station area from now to 20 June:

http://public.londonworks.gov.uk/roadworks/?x=oefrM-LIhXDKWYbIU8FQKg

( guess I could have entered July)

It looks like a major disruption, especially by the Royal Mews.

If the image does not come through, go to the public.londonworks.gov.UK/roadworks site and enter the street as Vauxhall Bridge Road in Westminster. But unfortunately It not tell you if the project will last into November.

Posted by
16026 posts

I see my session expired, but you can use the link to query a location anew.

Posted by
37 posts

Hi photobearsam,
You've probably checked this, but do they all involve the same amount, more or less, of stair climbing? I wouldn't want a surprise on that front.
It was a good point about what direction the apt faces. Facing into a courtyard can be quite a lot quieter than facing the street.
I would not pick Victoria because I rarely spend my days near there.
Soho could be a winner – especially if "garden" = faces into a courtyard. I like the saving $500 too.
Cheers,
Jill

Posted by
11247 posts

FBS,
This is the apartment we rented from London Connection, although the second bedroom also had a queen bed at the time. Lovely bathroom, small lift, great location.

Posted by
3719 posts

Here's your thread where you indicated your Mom will have the final decision:
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/england/anyone-take-buses-only-in-london-and-not-the-tube

"We are down to looking at 3 apartments. Waiting to see which one my mom (72) will pick. One is near Buckingham Palace, one is near Covent Garden and one is in the nine elms area."

"I'm hoping mom picks the place near Covent Gardens which is at Seven Dials ( might be noisy) or the flat near buckingham palace."

Which one is your Mom leaning toward?

Posted by
272 posts

We rented the same apartment that Laurel did - lovely apartment but found it noisy even though we had the windows closed. Too many ambulance noises as it was on a circus and high up. After coming back from a day playing tourist - I will like a nice, comfortable space with good light and open feeling.

Posted by
11247 posts

Gail I do not remember noise! But we lived in Rome at the time and were probably so relieved to not have motorini going by that we didn't hear a thing!

Posted by
776 posts

Well, mom was leaning towards the one near Buckingham Palace but that one is now not even listed on Airbnb anymore and his other 2 properties are gone too and the one I liked at Seven Dials is not willing to rent to us for just 10 nights this far from the date. So I found another at Seven Dials but the owner has not responded and it's been 4 days.

This is crazy. So frustrating

The Garden apartment has reviews that say that 2 rooms are facing the street and can be a bit noisy and 2 rooms facing the back. Sent the owner a message and waiting to hear back.

The one my mom wanted the most at the beginning, we sent a rental request and all we got back was one word, well not really a word it was Sry so I guess that was sorry and then it it just said declined.

Posted by
6429 posts

You might want to explore the Citadines website for a less frustrating process. These are serviced apartments in various locations, seemingly making up in convenience what they may lack in character. They appear to be within your budget. You'll be doing business with a hotel-like chain instead of a bunch of apartment owners, and you can count on conveniences like elevators. I haven't stayed in one but others on this forum seem to like them.

Posted by
776 posts

Dick we looked at those but the ones we were interested in did not have availability but I will recheck them regularly.

Posted by
9460 posts

If they (Citadines) didn't have availability for November, it must be because they haven't opened up their calendars yet (???).

For the Garden apartment, if the two rooms for SLEEPING are towards the back, that's the only thing that matters. Who cares if it's a bit noisier in the living room-- you're not going to be trying to sleep there.

Posted by
776 posts

I think it was not open for dates yet but now there seems to be some availability but it is even pricier than the price if the apartments. Still might be what we do.

As for the apartment one bedroom is on the front and one in the back.

Looking at other websites too.

Just think I'm getting close and then figure out it's not going to work.

Posted by
14806 posts

If you are willing to stop with AirBNB and move on there are other options:

Do a Google Search for "Serviced Apartments in London". Serviced apartments are managed apartments run like hotels but you get a full apartment. One company is Fraser Apartments.

Next. go to Booking.com. They also have apartment listings.

Widen your search area. Yes, it will take you longer to get into central London by bus but you could get a great deal.