London hotel information

Premier Inn hotel chain. I like premier Inn Waterloo or Premier Inn County Hall.

I was very satisfied with the Premier Inn County Hall in 2019. More recently, in 2022, I knew I'd be making many trips to the British Museum, so I chose the Premier Inn London Holborn. It's usually a bit more expensive than the County Hall and Waterloo locations. It could be more convenient or less convenient, depending on which museums you plan to visit, and how often. As I'm sure you know, London has several museums that absolutely cannot be seen comprehensively in a single visit.

Since you aren't traveling during air conditioning season, I think you'll probably have some options that are less expensive than the Premier Inns, though perhaps not with beds as comfortable or plumbing as reliable. When I'm by myself, having to pay the full hotel bill and traveling far enough off-season that I'm willing to risk a room without air conditioning, I've stayed at Vincent House in Notting Hill Gate. It's a significant walk to most museums, though. Google tells me the Design Museum is 1.2 miles away; Leighton House, 1.4 miles away; and the V&A, 2.1 miles away.

The rooms are smaller than in standard PI's but there are PI hub hotels by Westminster Abbey and St James' Park for a total of £300 less (about £1300) than County Hall for your dates.
If you are willing to trade location for price Travelodge have rooms at places like Kings Cross or Liverpool Street/Aldgate for around £1000 for this period. Still very central.
For outside Z1 but still ready access to central London they have properties at Finsbury Park and Greenwich for around £800. Wimbledon Central (next door to the Railway Station for the District line and fast main line trains to Waterloo) is on for just over £700.

It's all about trade off; Is it worth saving up to £900 to have a slightly longer commute time? Your choice.

Travelodge are more basic than PI, but still nice rooms and dependable. You aren't in London to do anything but sleep in your room.

I was in London at the same time last year as the trip you are planning, and I stayed at Vincent House. This was my second time staying there, and I “found” it based on acraven’s recommendation on this forum maybe 5 years ago. (So thank you so much for that, acraven!). It is a short walk from the Notting Hill Gate tube station, and you get full breakfast, coffee/tea/water available 24 hours, and there are laundry facilities available. Last year, I paid 119 pounds/night for a standard single room.

All the Christmas markets were open when I was there. I’d purchased a 7-day travel card for the Tube and visited several museums, The District/Circle and the Central lines service the Notting Hill Gate station, so it was easy to get around.

There are two streets I look at on Google maps when checking prices for central, museum walkable locations in London. One street is Bedford Place and the other is Gower St, both near the British Museum. If I see prices I can afford, I look up the individual hotels to check reviews, website prices and book. We and colleagues of ours have stayed in these neighborhoods off and on over the past 30 years. We have also stayed in several Premier Inns in and around London. If possible I prefer a more non cookie cutter hotel with a good breakfast. But we have been staying more often in Premier Inns if we are in London in the summer and need AC, which won’t be your situation.

Check out Cherry Court Hotel. The rooms are small but the price is great and it is about a block from Victoria Station

We have stayed twice at the Luna Simone Hotel and have been pleased. Maybe 10, 15 minute walk to Victoria Station, closer yet to Pimlico tube stop. A bus to Trafalgar Square stops in front of the hotel as I recall They have always been accommodating, friendly and good natured. Nice breakfast, not lavish. Reasonable enough for frugal us. Safe travels

I recently booked a room at the Premier Inn County Hall for spring of next year, and couldn't be more pleased with the location. I've stayed at Premier Inns in the past and they are very consistent for the most part. The rooms are clean and comfortable, with breakfast available (not included but reasonably priced), regular hotel amenities available and the prices are great! I recommend them for anyone on a budget. https://www.premierinn.com/gb/en/home.html

It was a while ago, but we stayed here http://www.tudorcourtpaddington.co.uk/location/

It's just around the corner from Paddington Station (where multiple tube lines intersect, and there's an airport train stop), and it's close to Hyde Park.

It's nothing fancy, and not all rooms have ensuite bathrooms (so be aware when booking), but it's comfortable, convenient, has good breakfasts, and the owners are nice.

Thank you all for the suggestions, they are greatly appreciated! The amount of hotels to sift through is overwhelming, especially without knowing the areas. Now that I have some suggestions, I can restart my search. Thanks again.

We stayed at the Premier Inn Hub Hotel Westminster Abbey in June and really liked everything about it, including the price!

The St. James metro entrance is very close!

I stayed at the Euro Hotel near King's Cross in 2018.

https://www.eurohotel.co.uk/

It was in December, and it was warm and cozy.
It's in a nice crescent of older London townhouses.
I believe it's had some renos since then.
I liked it as it was safe, clean, the staff were helpful, it had full breakfast and was walking distance to quite a lot of places, and also near the Tube and rail stations too.
No elevator.
I would definitely stay there again but would book through their own website to save some money, not through a third party.

Might be worth giving universityrooms.com a try just in case there are colleges/universities not in session then. I used them in June and stayed just opposite Madame Tussauds for a LITTLE less than an arm and a leg! Hotel searches for the Fall across Europe (I'm pretty flexible in terms of destination) have left me appalled at the massive increase in prices even since last year never mind pre-pandemic. Good Luck!

I stayed in Vancouver Studios in September 2022 for 89GBP/night in the cozy single studio. I believe they give discounts if you stay over a week - not sure about this, but you can email them and ask - they are good about responding.

The location is convenient - in Bayswater - walking distance to the Bayswater tube station (District/Central lines - green/yellow) and Queensway (Central Line - red). Paddington station is one tube stop away and also walkable.

Lots of places to eat close by. And convenience stores.

Walkable to Hyde park.

Rooms have tiny kitchenettes, and the cozy studio was small. It didn't bother me but YMMV.

No AC but you will probably not need it in December.

No elevators. Stairs are steep. You can email them to ask for a lower floor if stairs are a problem, especially with bags (ask for a room overlooking the garden if street noises bother you at night).

Laundry available for ~GBP5/one wash & dry. Helpful front desk.

Have a wonderful visit to a wonderful city!

https://vancouverstudios.co.uk/