Hotels in central London, including Premier

I like Premier Inns, but in your case I might consider this listing for a 2 bedroom flat to accommodate the extra space for your daughter’s studies.

I have stayed in this property before and felt it gave a good location and good value. Bus one block over, Tube/ Westminster 10 minute walk, grocery 7 minute walk.
https://t.vrbo.io/xrSaPIDm7vb

I spent a week at the Holborn PI in September. I thought the location was good, on a street that seemed quiet but had a lot of restaurants. Two nearby ones were open for breakfast.

I've stayed in a lot of budget hotel rooms in Europe that were considerably smaller than the typical PI room (and also cheaper), but I've never shared a PI room with two other people, so I don't know what that would feel like.

Premier Inns are a good value...however......

The TV's are usually right above the desk so if you wanted to watch TV while she works it could be distracting.

I have never had very fast wifi at any Premier Inn even when paying for enhanced. That might be a factor for your daughters study.

For your needs,an apartment might be better choice. Just check on wifi speed.

Or a 1-bdr apartment with sofa bed in the living room, in an apartment hotel. Lots of options here all over London. Look at Native, Marlin Apartment,Staycity,, Locke Living,Stylotel, Citadines, and more. All are hotel-like with reception, services like a hotel, but the rooms are small apartments.

I will be going to London in October and did a lot of searching for a hotel room that was right for me.

A lot of Forum Members recommended Premier Inn's but after a lot of research, I felt that maybe not. for me. There is no customer service. There is no email address. You have to do everything online. If for any reason you have to contact PI, you have to call and PI charges you to call them even if you are calling from London. Some persons have complained about long waits on hold trying to call PI.
However many Forum Members have been very happy with PI.

Some member have complained about how slow internet is at PI even if you book a Plus Room and the Plus Rooms seem to be small for three persons. Two would be fine.

You might try booking.com for research and maybe even booking.

One member suggested an apartment hotel and I would look into that. I have never booked an AIRBNB or a VRBO but that might be the best bet for you.

I found hotels in London to be shockingly expensive. You said that your budget is $200 - $220 per night for the three of you. If it is possible, you might want to raise that amount to $250.00 per night.

I have stayed in numerous PI but none in central London. I always use my own phone hotspot as the PI WiFi is slow. They are the best budget option, generally.

All the locations you suggest are sensible and have good transport links and plenty of local cafes.

The Victoria neighborhood in the City of Westminster (central London) is where the economy lodging is.

I stayed at a Premier Inn (PI) with my sister once and had to share a big single bed. Fortunately, we’re both petite and like to curl up while sleeping so she slept at the foot of the bed across the width and I did the same at the opposite end. The bed was too narrow to sleep next to each other where we would have had more room to stretch our legs. Also, forget about unpacking because there is no room to put your stuff and as Phil pointed out, there is no customer service either.

I can’t remember the last time I have needed to contact a hotel prior to arrival once my reservation was made online. All of this angst about “customer service” surprises me. The story of the two sharing a bed simply means they reserved the wrong type of room, really not the fault of the hotel.

If being able to email a hotel in advance is important to you, then Premier Inns may not be a match. If, like me, you don’t usually need to contact in advance, it works great. If an unusual circumstance came up, calling the hotel would not be a big deal for me.

Unfortunately, you cannot count on speaking to someone if you call a London Premier Inn. And I say that as a big fan of the chain. My travel mate ran into an issue and needed to make a phone call. She didn't have service on her phone and I wasn't around, so she asked the desk staffer for help. The staffer very kindly offered to let her use the hotel phone. The phone was a cell phone. Its battery was dead, which might be one reason why it's nearly impossible to get someone on the phone if you call a Premier Inn. I've made quite a few attempts to reach various London PIs by phone and never got through. I've also emailed several, and fewer than 50% of them responded.

I suspect it may be considerably easier to contact PIs outside London.

The Citadines in Trafalger Sq might be an option. Though more expensive. The one bedroom would allow your daughter and you to have separate spaces.

We have stayed at Premier Inns and been satisfied with every stay, but the problems communicating with them are true, as stated by several posters above.

I would also try looking at the chain hotels around London, and there are many. Hampton Inn Waterloo will be just as cheap as a Premier Inn, with a good location, and, in my experience, no problems communicating with them.

Thanks, everyone for all the great suggestions and comments. I've looked at the various places you all have mentioned and done some searching. A 1-bedroom does seem to make much more sense. I've found a place in Chelsea - a short walk to Sloane tube - about $1600 plus tax. Ample space, two BRs (one is tiny), ground floor. Looks very good. Two questions for you. Is that area of Chelsea good for doing the usual tourist spots? And he mentions that since it's a ground floor, like most London props, there are steep steps to the door, and one must be "agile." Pardon my ignorance, but what does that mean exactly? I've seen it in other listings, so it must be common.

Fairly upmarket is Sloane Square.

I don't exactly know what they mean by agile (prob steep and or narrow).

Chelsea is an affluent area and if you’re into shopping there are plenty of boutiques and high-end restaurants. My sister stayed there but she’s a shopper so, of course, she loved it. She did manage to see a lot and never complained about the location.
Can you email the place you want to stay and ask about the steps? If there are handrails that will help. You can also ask how close you’re to places of interest.

Okay, thanks to you all for the many suggestions and generous advice. We booked a lovely-looking flat in South Bank, right near the river. Very happy with the pick, and it was only $1200!

I’m glad you found a place that was a good fit for you! Thanks for reporting the outcome.