Best area to stay in London with kids, arriving late

We are in the same boat, but our day flight arrives at 10:30pm, so we are going to stay at a Heathrow hotel that first night rather than doing the Heathrow Express. Remember that after you land, you have to go through passport control, which can take 30 minutes to 2 hours as per this thread. There are several hotels that are right by Heathrow or in the terminal; see this link.

The area around Paddington is a good place to stay overall to see London; Rick recommends several hotels in the Bayswater and Paddington areas. Really anywhere within a short walk of a Central line Tube stop is great.

I find staying near Paddington convenient. Hyde Park close by and by using the Paddington or Lancaster Gate tube stations the major “ must see sights” are easily gotten to via the tube.

My philosophy over many visits to London is I haven’t spent 10-11 hours in a plane to spend another hour to get into London from Heathrow.

Thus I always book the Heathrow Express ( far in advance for the cheaper fare) and most often return to a favorite hotel on Bayswater Road.

Get your Oyster Cards at Paddington and off you go.

To get into the City Center using the Paddington Underground Station it’s the Bakerloo Line to Baker Street, then a jubilee Line train to Westminster. About 20-25 minutes

The Central Line tube from the Lancaster Gate Station ( which is across Bayswater Road from Hyde Park) to Westminster takes about the same amount of time to Westminster. You change at Bond Street.

Given this is your first visit and you wish to cut down on Dealing with your luggage then I say yes to finding a place in the Paddington neighborhood.
I’ve not stayed in it but there’s a Hilton right outside Paddington. There are also smaller hotels in the area which get good reviews on Trip Advisor.

If you are looking for a wonderful pub to visit in the Paddington area I suggest The Victoria. It’s gorgeous.

Others will chime in about other areas to stay.

Paddington isn't a bad place to stay in London, but many find ones more central and better connected to be more convenient (the latter point will be improved by Crossrail which hopefully may open some time during this decade).

Children aged 15 and under travel free on the Heathrow Express, but do book in advance otherwise for the advance fares (tied only to a day and not a time).

Your choice, but a 9pm landing slot probably means it will be around midnight at your accommodation, so you can stay at the airport for the first night or head into central London. If your flight is late, you will be arriving in the wee small hours. I wouldn’t take a flight that arrived at that time if possible, but failing that, I would probably stay at Heathrow, particularly with young children.

With children, you may want to consider staying in a flat rather than a hotel, as it will give you more flexibility for meals, but this isn’t an option if you are arriving at midnight.

I don’t care for the Paddington area, but it is convenient for the rail station. If you stayed at Heathrow the first night, you could spend the rest of your stay in a nicer area. Ideally, you need to be within tube zone 1, but wherever you stay, you are going to need to use the tube or buses to get around, as the sights are spread out.

Kelly’d Rather Be Traveling that was my original plan since I know we may not be getting out of the airport until 11pm or so. But I read on another post on this forum about how instead of taking the time to get to a hotel near Heathrow and then having to change to another place the next day, that it’s just better to get to the place you’re staying. But I don’t want to navigate a city I’ve never been to with 2 kids at that late at night.

We are taking a day flight to London to hopefully avoid major jet lag. I think we will find a hotel close to Heathrow for the first night and then find another place (maybe Airbnb) closer to the zone 1 suggested by Jennifer or Bayswater Road suggested by Claudia.

Thanks everyone!

Rather than trying to navigate public transportation for the first time at that hour, why not consider a car transport? For 4 people, it can be a reasonable expense.

We are landing at Heathrow at 10:30 pm in April and a car will bring us directly to our Mayfair apartment rental for 65 pounds total for 5 of us.

Just a thought.

I’d rather suck it up and get to my long-term lodging versus staying just the one night and then moving. But not everyone feels the same; you know your family.

I had the same thoughts about taking a car service vs. Heathrow Express when there are 4 people.

The key thing to remember about location in London is to be near a tube station and somewhat central to London.
I have stayed near Hyde Park (Paddington) and also near Waterloo station. Of the two, the Waterloo station area was by far my favorite and had the easiest transport options.

I stayed at the Premier Inn Waterloo.

Another vote for Paddington. It's our family's favourite spot to stay in London, mainly because of the proximity to Hyde Park.

I'm addition to the Hilton (right next to Paddington Station) there are literally hundreds of small, cost-effective hotels within five minutes walk. And there are plenty of tourists hauling luggage around even late at night. Plenty of restaurants too.

Remember the Heathrow Express is not your only option - we normally use TfL Rail and find it fine. We used the tube from Heathrow on the most recent trip, but that's not a good idea on a busy evening.

DebVT a car service is a great idea! How and which car service are you using and how do you book? Can I also ask you what apartment you are renting and did you use Airbnb to book it? I’d much rather stay in an apt. than a hotel with kids. Thanks!

Based on recommendations from this forum, I rented our apartment through londonconnections.com. We have a 3-bedroom on Upper Berkeley Street, but there are a bunch of 2-BR options if you don’t need that much room. They arranged the car transport for us. All my interactions with them have been prompt and helpful.

Good luck, and have fun planning!!