Heathrow Layover - overnight

It is up to you of course, but I were doing that I'd stay at or near the airport, drop your bags, freshen up and run into town for the evening. Maybe dinner. Maybe tea and a snack. When you've had enough head back and hit the sack.

Up early, quick breakfast and head over to the airport. The various hotel choices are listed (official page) at http://www.heathrow-airport-guide.co.uk/hotels.html

Or 15 minutes away by Heathrow Express is Paddington, with a vast array of small and not so small hotels right nearby. Check train times for Sunday the 16th before you go for this option.

If your plane arrives on time, and you stay close to either Paddington or the Piccadilly line, you could be at your hotel no later than 3 PM and that is an average check in time. You would then have the rest of the day and evening free.

On the contrary, you could stay either at the Yotel in T4 or the Sofitel at T5, and then take the train or tube into London, spend the rest of the day and evening in town and return at night. It would allow you to sleep a little later on Sunday since you are already at the airport.

In my experience getting to or from LHR hotels is time consuming. Might as well hop on a Connect or Express train for a trip into Paddington and the many hotels near there. Or, for quicker trips to LHR hotels, just take a taxi. Most of the hotels are a few minutes from the terminal.

With that kind of time, I would definitely stay in London. There are plenty of reasonably priced hotels around Paddington Station and from there you're an easy walk to just about anywhere.

We really like the Paddington/Heathrow Express option for our one night in London before flying home. You have time to book your tickets 14+ days in advance and take advantage of the Advance Weekend fare of £12.10 pp each way:

https://www.heathrowexpress.com/tickets-deals/prices-fares

The Service advisory for Oct. 16 states that the first train departs London at 6:15 am, with service every 20 minutes thereafter until 7:55, when they become more frequent. The 6:55 train would give you more than two hours in Heathrow.

https://www.heathrowexpress.com/timetable-schedule/service-plans

We like the Paddington Indigo just 1/2 Block from the station but it is pricy if you do not have IHG points. Lots of other hotels in the immediate area. We enjoyed a nice dinner at the Mitre Inn Lancaster Gate last June.

You didn't say at which terminal you arrive or depart. I am spoiling myself overnight at the Sofitel at terminal 5 heading west to east as I fly BA, so I barely have to leave the terminal. You need to consider your terminal(s) involved. With your 6 additional hours you can stay at the airport and hop the Tube or the Express and spend a few hours in town. I'm kind of done with London presently, so I just relax overnight between flights. If I were you and wanted to go into town, I would stay at the airport because there is less carrying luggage and less hassle in the morning. Otherwise, you might consider Windsor Castle and the town via taxi as it is much closer to the airport and a sufficient amount to see, etc.

I would figure out what you want to do in London that evening and then make your decision as to where to stay and what transit option to choose.

If it were me, I'd go see a show and either choose a hotel near Paddington or near Earls Court.

Since you are flying out of T2, staying at Heathrow won't necessarily save a lot of time as the Yotel is in T4 and the Sofitel is in T5. You would need to transfer between terminals in the morning.

Edit: Just noticed that you fly out on Sunday, so forget the Earls Court recommendation as the tube won't be running early enough.

In June of this year we flew from Lisbon to Heathrow and stayed overnight at an Ibis Hotel, which was a short distance from the airport, as we had a next morning flight back to Seattle. We go to Europe every year, 14 of the last 15, and often stay at Ibis Hotels at airports when leaving the next day. If you ever decide to stay at one of their hotels, sign up for their "Frequent Visitor Program" (no requirements) which gets you to the front of the check in line and a better choice of rooms. They have a GREAT breakfast buffet that is reasonably priced.

I have stayed a few times at
Skyline Sheraton Hotel at the airport - about block from the airport and they have a shuttle.
They have all the amenities, you can read reviews on tripadvisor.
Can't beat the convenience and getting a good night sleep before flying home.
(I've even left my large suitcase in the bellman's baggage room for a week when I flew down
to France and didn't need the large bag)

I think we are going to head into London for dinner and a show. It sounds like our best option for this is to stay near Paddington Station. Are there recommended hotels in this area for approximately 100GBP?

Update:
Our flight arrived on time and we pre purchased reduced price Heathrow Express tickets. We checked into a Hotel near Paddington Station around 14:00 and picked up our Jersey Boys tickets from the box office near 15:00 then went shopping, stopped for dinner, enjoyed the show, and back to our hotel. We left our hotel at 07:45 Sunday morning, walked to Paddington for an easy ride back to Heathrow, security lines moved relatively quickly, and we had an hour to spare. I would recommend staying in the city for anyone with similar layover times.

Thanks for the update - sounds like it worked very well. Which hotel did you stay at?

We stayed at St. David's Hotel on Norfolk Square. Very basic hotel, close to Paddington, £90 breakfast included. It worked very well for the amount of time we were in the room. We also stayed here in 2014.

Glad you posted this. We will be in a similar situation next summer. This gave me some new options to consider.