Areas to stay while in London

I have stayed twice in the Bayswater area, specifically the London House Hotel. Easy tube access to the Circle/District lines, eateries, and a fabulous bakery between the hotel and the tube for breakfast.

Besides the tub ( tube ) and pubs what are your interests? Budget hotel? The Savoy? Museums?
Theatre? Shopping?

If you were to get the RS Guidebook you’d discover a lot of intel regarding London’s neighborhoods.

i think Chelsea is a great walkable neighborhood. it's not close to the tube but it's actually more fun to take the busses which run extremely frequently and on time. Much better for people and scenery watching! if i didn't stay there, i would stay in Kensington.

I stayed in Bloomsbury both times I was in London and loved it. It's close to the tube station, close to major attractions (particularly the British Museum, which is very close) but has a nice residential feel to it. Lots of greenery, trees, plants and lovely houses. In terms of pubs, they certainly have some decent pubs along with restaurants, interesting shops and bookstores. I would not hesitate to stay there again.

Personally, I'd think about what sights you want to see, what your budget is and plan around that. I've stayed in a lot of different places in London. Once, I was in Paddington. While close to the train station and Heathrow Express, it was not the nicest of place. If you stay there, make sure it is a pretty upscale hotel...especially if you are fond of hot showers. (Still traumatized after so many years...) I've stayed near Westminster at the Royal Horseguards with posh friends. It was a lovely hotel, very central but very expensive. Not much nightlife there but we felt very British.

A couple of times, with my kids, we stayed near Bloomsbury at a Thistle Hotel. I liked it because it was walkable to so many things. We enjoyed being close to the British Museum. We could pop in during the evening hours or for a short visit during the day. We were between two different Tube stations that serviced different lines and that opened up a lot of options. We walked to Oxford Street, into Covent Gardens and beyond. There was a cute, old pub squished in an intersection in Seven Dials that I really liked.

The last time I was in London with my sister, we stayed in Southwark at the Mad Hatter Hotel. i booked it because the hotel had this old London, oaky vibe despite being surrounded by new modern buildings. That's the taste of London I wanted my sister to have on her first trip. I was surprised by how much I liked the area. It's close to the Thames and almost opposite St Pauls across the Millenium Bridge. The weather was glorious when we were there. Waterloo and Blackfriar were handy stations. We walked to the Globe, Borough Market, the Tate, the cathedral and St Pauls. We seemed to have found enough pubs to visit.

I hope you find the place that feels right to you.

Hi everyone, I'm 57, and looking to stay in an area in London that is fun, interesting, has good pubs and good access to the tub. Any and all advice is greatly appreciated.

That's pretty much all of central London--sights are spread out, pubs everywhere, the tube/bus network is extensive and fun/interesting is subjective.

Get out a map of the Underground. It should be split into zones. Just about anywhere in Zone 1 is easy access to most sights.

Do you want to be in the center of everything or do you prefer to be in a more residential area?

It really depends on your budget and type of accommodation you want. The closer you are to the center of London the higher the price--usually.

We liked staying in the South Kensington area near the Gloucester Road Tube Station. It was easy to get to many places from there, and the Hereford Arms Pub is nearby.

Good question. The choice is huge. However, for ME, I like to stay somewhere on a direct tube line to Heathrow. It makes coming into town and going back to the airport, a lot easier than changing trains with all your stuff. Even if you travel with just a backpack, it isn't fun going up and down stairs with one. With a big suitcase, forget it. Earls Court is pretty good: sort of middle class, lots of shops, food etc. Not jammed with other tourists getting in your way. Just because I am a tourist, doesn't mean I want to hang around other tourists! Anyhow, it is on the Piccadilly Line, that goes all across town with no changes if you don't want.

So OP you have gotten a number of suggestions.

Have you decided on where you’ll be staying?