My husband and I will be in London for 4 days in May. We will be flying into Heathrow, tour the city on foot, and then rent a car for the remainder of our 2 weeks along the south of England. In London, we have been advised to stay near Hyde Park and close to public transportation. We are active seniors and get around well. Has anyone had any experience staying at Vancouver Studios near Kensington Gardens Square and Princes Square? The studios and one bedroom apartments look very nice and seem a good choice. We are also looking at the Best Western Mornington Hyde Park. Our schedule is flexible but our priorities to visit in London are The British Museum, Westminister Cathedral, The London Museum, Roman sites, Parliment area, and any shopping, exploring and theatre that we can fit in. We also have purchased tickets to the Chelsea Flower Show. Any advice or guidance on these accommodations you can provide is appreciated. Thanks!
Posted by
Royaume-Uni nul points, pas plus
2501 posts
The properties you mention are in Bayswater. You can read more about areas in central London here:
https://www.londontoolkit.com/mnu/london_hotel_accom.htm#areas
Bayswater is OK but there are more central areas – ultimately it all depends on your budget.
Don’t confuse Westminster Cathedral https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westminster_Cathedral with the much more famous Westminster Abbey https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westminster_Abbey
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
32700 posts
If you are going to Westminster Cathedral instead of Westminster Abbey can we deduce that you are Catholic? Most people going for tourism don't visit Westminster Cathedral. Are you going for a service?
Posted by
OP
19 posts
Yes, sorry I should have said Westminster Abbey. Thanks for catching that.
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
32700 posts
Bayswater is really the wrong side of Hyde Park for Chelsea Flower Show.
Do your 4 days in London include your arrival day or the day you get the car and head northwest?
One whole day will be devoted to the flower show - it is big and crowded.
Westminster Abbey and British Museum are other big time user-uppers so I'm worried that you will have enough time for everything you want to do and see.
Posted by
Washington DC
27057 posts
The British Museum is huge and probably cannot be totally absorbed even if you spend your entire time there. Do you have four days, or is it really four nights (which is more like three non-jetlagged days? To optimize your time at that museum, I recommend that you study the museum's website to figure out which parts of the collection are most important to you and where they are. A good bit of time can be frittered away just moving from place to place. Note that the entire museum is very heavily visited, and the Egyptian collection is usually the most crowded area.
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
32700 posts
Just noted that this will be in May. There are two Bank Holidays in May - one at the beginning of the month and one at the end.
Do either of them overlap with the London or Cotswolds bit?
Posted by
OP
19 posts
Thanks everyone for some helpful advice although know one seems to have any information, so far, about the 2 hotels mentioned? I don't need advise on our itinerary. We have worked out a flexible schedule of what we would like to see, understanding that we will not be able to spend all day at each site. But as Rick Steves advises, getting to sites first thing or later in the day when crowds are subsiding. We do not plan on running ourselves ragged trying to see everything during this trip. We will see what we are able to, and plan on exploring London/England during another trips in the future. We are not going to the Coltswolds, not sure how someone got that idea.
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
32700 posts
Sorry about that, saw the car, and put 2 and 2 together and got 17!!
South of England - oops.
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
32700 posts
Sorry, can't help with hotels. As a local who regularly is in London (tomorrow is the next time) I know the town quite well but usually stay at home not in London hotels.
Posted by
Washington DC
27057 posts
You might check to see whether your proposed hotels are listed on booking.com. I like the booking.com reviews because you can only review a hotel if you have actually stayed there. You don't run into the slews of fake reviews you may encounter on some other websites.
Posted by
Land of La
8645 posts
Vancouver Studio Apartments was my go to accommodation for years before I discovered 63 Bayswater.
Both are fine places to stay. Get your Oyster card when you arrive and off you go.
Posted by
Seattle, WA
16177 posts
I am curious who advised you to stay "near Hyde Park" and is it possible they meant South of the park (Kensington, Knightsbridge, Belgravia) rather than north in Bayswater?