Places to stay in London?

Like a broken record, I always recommend booking.com. It is a great site to do research and then you can book through booking or go directly to the lodging site.

You. can choose features such as a kitchenette or even just a. refrigerator. You can choose neighborhood and close to tube. Definitely can choose budget.

Reviews are very helpful.

I know that members on this site love Premier Inns and have stayed at all of them from what I can tell. I expect that some of them might jump in and recommend one that meets your needs.

Just bear in mind that at Premier Inn only the Premier Plus rooms have a fridge. These rooms are more expensive and not all hotels have them.

Thanks very much! I will look into booking.com for sure.

I think finding a centrally located Premier Inn near a Tube station under £100 per night--even for a room that's not Premier Plus--will be a challenge, but rates seem lowest when booked well in advance, so it's definitely worth a look. You might get lucky, especially at one of the eastern locations. However, I think there are cheaper options than PI that aren't air-conditioned, if you can find one with a refrigerator. I very much appreciate having a mini-fridge, but I rarely end up with one in high-cost cities, because the sort of hotel that offers one seems to be a lot more expensive.

I have often thought that if I had a very long stay in a major city, it would be worth trying to get the hotel's permission to buy a mini-fridge locally and leave it behind when I check out.

How many nights are you staying?

Maybe an appartment would be better for you. We usually use an appartment if we are staying three nights or more.

I'm staying for five nights.

I believe Rick's standard recommendation is the Knightsbridge area, which is awfully close to a lot of stuff.

For some strange reason, I am being emailed that there are replies to this post. When I follow the link, however, those replies are not visible to me.

This could mean, I suppose, that the posters have remove their replies. If not, should I contact a moderator?

I think when someone makes an edit it updates the whole thread.

I added a reply then realised I was posting on the wrong thread so deleted it. That might be what you saw?

Golden Girl, your reply seemed appropriate since I was looking for a place to stay in London. You do have a good point about prices for rooms. Thanks very much!

Vincent House is a short walk from Notting Hill Gate, and rooms have mini-fridges. The price (as of the end of last year, when I stayed there) is slightly above your budget, but it also includes full breakfast.

Thank you, Maria. I will check it out.

I've stayed at the Vincent House twice (and liked it), but not since 2018. I don't remember having a mini-fridge in my room, but I guess I might have forgotten. I also don't remember air conditioning, which might be slightly risky in June. My stays were in early September, and it was fine, but I remember thinking I might have a few unlucky days.

The breakfast buffet was always quite good, with a bit of day-to-day variation. I learned that it was smart to wander around and look at the offerings first; one day I filled my plate and only then noticed the bagels with cream cheese and smoked salmon.

acraven, thank you. I'm looking into Vincent House. So far it looks like a great deal.

Knightsbridge is near some stuff but it’s quite a way from plenty more. For example it’s nowhere near St Paul’s, the Tower of London, the Globe, Tate Modern, the British Museum, the British Library etc. I would want to be quite a bit further east.

Johnnew52 so what if Knightsbridge isn’t close to the “Sites.” Its a very nice neighborhood and via the Tube and/or busses the sites are reachable.

Last two trips I’ve stayed in the Richmond neighborhood which is a 25 minute tube ride into the city center. Didn’t care that I wasn’t near the sites.

Still enjoyed a service in Westminster Abbey, theatre and dining venues near Covent Garden. Great bus tube rides back to Richmond and a 25 minute walk to my hotel. Didn’t care it was after midnight. And I’m no Spring Chicken having been born when Truman was President.

Each to their own regarding where they chose to stay.

I'd concur with Claudia. Knightsbridge is a good place for a tourist to find lodgings. There are plenty of places of interest within walking distance and getting to central London and it's sights is no problem. Same goes for High Street Kensington. As a local, it's a bit too posh for me to feel like I belong, but I'm a bit of a peasant.

As long as you're within walking distance of a tube station in zone 1 or 2 everywhere is in easy reach. Further out you're probably going to get somewhere where you have a neighbourhood with unique character. Remember, London is a series of ancient villages and towns all mashed together over time. Most places still retain some of their flavour that makes it so interesting.

Islington is somewhere that's rarely mentioned on the tourist trail, but Upper Street, Angel and the surrounds is an example of somewhere that's really pleasant but still is within easy reach of the sights in central London.

We liked the South Kensington area near the Gloucester Road tube station. There were a lot restaurants and grocery stores nearby, and it was very convenient to take the tube anywhere in London. We could walk to Kensington Gardens and also to the Victoria and Albert Museum as well from this area.

We also like staying in Kensington.

Claudia - my post about Kensington not being central was a response to the poster earlier who stated that it’s close to many sites. If I didn’t know London, I would assume that meant that it was quite central.

I don’t have any problem with people who want to stay in Kensington if they want to but it’s definitely not central. As you say Richmond is even further out but it’s working for you as a base so great.

I spend most of my time in Forest Gate just to the east of Stratford so also a long way out but that’s where my son, daughter-in-law and now granddaughter live. I rarely even go into central London even though we spend maybe 1/4 of our time there now but the opening of the Elizabeth line means we can get in in minutes if we want to. Not to Kensington though!

When you have a pretty limited budget in London, there are going to be compromises. Maybe you stay farther out. Maybe you settle for a place with
a rating of 6.8 on booking.com. Maybe you're at a 4-story B&B with no lift or air conditioning, etc.

My first compromise is on the decor. I'm OK with something furnished like a dorm room as long as it's clean and has reliable hot water and Wi-Fi. I try to stay out of costly cities like London during what I consider a/c season.

i usually do stay at a place with no air conditioning or lift. It's at least four stories, though I am on the second floor (first floor in the UK).

By further out, do you mean outside Zones 1 and 2?

I wasn't thinking that specifically--I've just noticed in looking at the Premier Inn website that rates are substantially lower in parts of the city farther from the center. I don't know London well enough to identify areas that are farther out but offer advantages in addition to lower cost. I have enjoyed staying close enough to sights that I can walk back to my hotel in an hour or two at the end of the day, wandering through interesting neighborhoods. The farthest from central London I've ever stayed is the Vincent House in Nottinghill Gate.

Further out could mean places like Richmond and Chiswick in the west / south west, Shoreditch or Hackney in the east, Hampstead or Highgate in the north. I'll let you take your chances in the south east (Peckham or Lewisham).

Look at either the Richmond or Chiswick Premier Inns. I’ve stayed at both because I’ve done the
“Sites” more than once over decades of visits.

That and I enjoy seeing other neighborhoods like Ealing or Richmond or Chiswick.

I do go to theatre in London so used to taking the tube to and from the city center.

Latest walk back to a PI was after seeing Hamilton. Was staying at the Richmond PI which is a 25 minute stroll from the station. It was after midnight when I got back to the PI.

Next trip I hope to stay in Shoreditch or Clapham or Hammersmith. Then again might return to the Chiswick PI. Liked being able to walk along the Thames River Path and throughly enjoyed the small George and Devonshire pub run by the Fuller Brewery across the road. I also enjoyed great coffee at Marie’s Deli which I discovered as I walked towards Hammersmith bridge.

Over decades staying in different neighborhoods has been a great way to explore and experience London.

Ealing is a pretty good shout. It has a good feel of being a separate little town with all the amenities you need, and you can have fun seeing local shops, cafes and pubs. Premier Inn there it seems is near Ealing Common for some green space, and within an easy walk of Ealing Broadway station for Central and District Line tube trains and the Elizabeth Line. Maybe a little more working class and demographically diverse than Richmond or Chiswick. Low room prices but of course cost and time of travel to central London is a factor possibly.

Premier Inn at Angel Islington is slightly more expensive. I'd rate Upper Street one of the best places for choice of affordable eating anywhere in London. There's a Northern Line tube station (longest escalator on the tube network) and a great bus service from Angel. I can walk to Piccadilly Circus from Angel in 25 minutes when I'm measuring a brisk walk on my Strava app.

I went to a movie near the Angel and Islington Tube station last May. It was at Screen on the Green--which I had not realized as the site of a famous Sex Pistols/Clash gig. Seemed like a nice area. We ate at a Mexican restaurant called Wahaca. Very good food.

Both Screen On The Green and Wahaca are top tips for Angel.