My husband is coming to London for business in March. We will be visiting a number of places but I would prefer to stay in one central place and venture out from there. We fly in to Heathrow on a Thursday morning and are staying for 9 days. During that time we will be visiting St. Christopher's Hospice, Bristol, the Royal National Institute of the Blind near King's Cross station, and Cambridge. We would also spend a few days seeing the sights around London. He would like to stay near RNIB but I'm thinking we would prefer to stay in another neighborhood. Can you recommend a neighborhood that would be good for first time tourists, central to sights, and close to travel to the other areas? Are we crazy to think we can stay in one place and use that as a base? Thank you!
Posted by
392 posts
Certainly not crazy to use London as your base although of course it will affect ŷour budget. Kings cross has been undergoing extensive regeneration over the last 5-10 years so is a much more appealing place than it used to be. Seeing as you will want to catch the train to Cambridge from Kings Cross it makes sense not to venture too far from here and you'll be Central to sites a short tube or bus ride away. Are you sure St Christopher's Hospice is in Bristol? Both Bristol and Cambridge are easy train rides from London.
Posted by
Ontario, Canada
4858 posts
Not crazy at all, as long as you're aware of the travel times on trains. Bristol trains go out of Paddington. Cambridge ones out of Kings Cross. Both of these are on the Underground Circle line, so a hotel near either one would work. Since the RNIB is near Kings Cross too, it might make more sense to stay in that area. We stayed at the Premier Inn St Pancras, and enjoyed our stay. Very handy to both Euston and Kings Cross underground, and bus stops within a block. British Library across the street.
ETA Did you mean St Christophers school? It's in Bristol. St Christophers Hospice seems to be in South London.
Posted by
OP
2 posts
St. Christopher’s Hospice is in South London. Bristol is a separate destination. So Kings Cross or Islington would be good areas?
Posted by
Washington DC
27113 posts
While Bristol is less than 2 hours from London in terms of pure train time, so it's possible to day-trip there, there are a lot of other attractive destinations up in that area, some of which you could see if you spent, say, 3 nights in Bristol: Bath, Wells, Cardiff (Wales), even the Cotswolds. Of course, you won't have any trouble filling all your time in London.
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
32756 posts
To get to the Hospice you will need a train going South of the River. The St Christopher webpage gives directions to both of their locations, Sydenham and Bromley. The Tube can connect your hotel and any London mainline train station.