B and B services for London

Why pay a B & B service when you can do the same thing for free. Write to the British Tourist Board or the London tourist board and they will either send you a booklet listing B & B's in London or it might even be available on their website.

Then look at reviews on TripAdvisor.com. It it sounds good, check to see where it is on a map or come back here to ask about specific places.

Rick, my teen daughter and I have used 2 different B&B sources in London - London Home to Home, and At Home in London -and been very happy. Not sure if this is what you mean by "online B&B services". They have a wide range of private homes that generally have 1 or 2 rooms to rent out. I usually look through the listing and send an email saying "we are in London for 3 nights starting August 22 and would like to stay in one of the following:" and then list the numbers of the places that meet my criteria. There is a booking cost but even so we just paid 75 GBP per night for London in August; full breakfast and we shared the bath with our hostess. It was great. Feel free to send a PM if you'd like more specifics.
And have a great trip!

Rick, I know I'm not answering your question, not having personal experience to contribute. However, since you're looking for reasonably priced accommodations, I thought I might mention the following: in addition to B&B services, there are also several "Homestay" services in London, some extremely reasonable. Since you're going in the summer, you may want to check into staying in college/university dorms, most of them available from end of June to the beginning of September. There are quite a few colleges advertising this service. Some of them offer private bathrooms, most of them have a shared kitchen facility, albeit without utensils or dishes but with microwaves and refrigerators, judging by the pictures. They cost a lot less than a hotel room and are usually near public transportation and quite centrally located. You do not have to be young to stay there (they even give senior discounts.) Here's the web page for accommodations: http://www.kcl.ac.uk/about/structure/admin/facser/conbro/ If this doesn't work, google "Kings College, London" and then just maneuver around their website. They have several dorms, one of them just around the corner from Waterloo Station, near a grocery store and the London Eye. Kings College is not the only college offering their dorms but I can't think of any other names right now. Regards, Anna

a PS to my previous response - a couple of years ago I did the TripAdvisor route and tried to book a room at a well-reviewed B&B. They were full at the time of my trip, but the owner told me that they were part of the London Home to Home network and suggested I check their website to find another spot. In 2007 we paid 55 GBP per night, shared bath, out in Chiswick - again, it did include a booking fee but very good rates for London. Since we do a lot of evening theatre we decided to be closer in this time and got the 75 GBP room at a flat about 7 minutes from the Gloucester Road tube stop.

Thanks to all.

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