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London: Canary Wharf or Lovat Lane

Posted by (Tucson) on

I'll be in London at the end of my UK trip in May-June, 2016. I'll arrive by train or bus on Sunday, 5 June and depart for LHR on Sunday afternoon, 12 June. I continue to dither about B&B or hotel or apartment. I am finding options for any of those within my price range, so that's a good thing. The bad thing is that most are very small.

I'm being drawn toward the Fraser "serviced" apartments at Canary Wharf or the ones called Residence City on Lovat Lane. With the long stay promotion, all three studios at the former are within my budget. So are the two studios at the latter.

My question is about isolation (or not) in the Canary Wharf (108 apartments) area vs. congestion (or not) in the Lovat Lane (22 apartments) area.

I've read that Canary Wharf is busy, but the person I've emailed with from Fraser says the apartments are very quiet and that there's not much going on after work hours. There are lots of transportation options. They do take a bit of time to get to some of the places I'd like to go, but it might be worth it to return home to those views each day.

Lovat Lane, being close to the Monument to the Great Fire of London is more in the middle of things, and the apartments are bigger, but I think anything with a view is well out of my price range.

I've Google Earthed both locations and really learned nothing about them except that the pictures mostly seem to be older or taken at a time when not many people were around. I'm pretty comfortable just about anywhere, but I will be a 70-year-old traveling solo for this trip.

So can anyone tell me any more about these two locations? Also, if you know anything about the Fraser company, I'd like to hear about that, too. And...if you know what "serviced" means I'd like to know that. I've seen the term used for lots of lodgings.

Posted by
661 posts

For me, Monument is a far superior location to Canary Wharf for a tourist.

"serviced" as I understand it, means you have people that clean, like a hotel, maybe a concierge to assist with other things, but it is in essence a private flat or apartment with a kitchen, and therefore generally bigger than a hotel room.

Posted by
32924 posts

I agree with both Mike J and Emma above.

Serviced apartments will be in a block of the same, rather than a single apartment in a building of privately owned ones.,

It will have some of the services of a hotel but in apartment form, sometimes with a Murphy type bed - be sure that you are getting a real bed if that is what you want.

The cleaner will likely only come occasionally; you will have cooking facilities and refrigeration, maybe not a freezer, and the cleaner will come from time to time as outlined in the information from whichever place.

You said, Lo, that you would be there some time. How long?

You might like to know that in Stratford, East London (Jubilee Line, DLR, high speed Javelin trains to St Pancras in 6 minutes) there is the very large Westfield shopping mall with a Staybridge (by Holiday Inn) which opened for the Olympics which were next door. They specialise in long term guests, and rooms have a dishwasher, fridge freezer, microwave and oven, with all the sort of social events that places like Residence Inn used to when I lived across the pond 20 years ago - social evenings, open fire in the bar, terrace overlooking the East End and the wacky metal "sculpture" built for the Olympics. I don't know how they would compete financially.

If I were choosing - I'd be in the City - the Square Mile. I love the City - St Pauls and all the other City churches, especially on Sundays when they ring the changes - nothing like it, easy access to Blackfriars, the Tower, Bank and the Old Lady of Threadneedle Street, the inside out architecture of Lloyds, Leadenhall Market - I just love it.

More and more people are living in the City now, but it certainly clears out by 7 on a weekday. I actually prefer it on weekends because I can stroll at will and the bells, but I love the buzz during the week too. London Walks do several City walks.

Posted by
4162 posts

I'll be in England and Scotland a total of 6 weeks, but London only 7 nights at the end of the trip. Based on what y'all are saying, I'm going to try for the Fraser Residence City option. Thanks so much for your responses.

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