Searching for a London Hotel in Belgravia/Victoria Station area

Winchester is fine. The breakfast is typical and average. We are used it a couple of time. Have also stayed in the Lime Tree - a bit more expensive. Have no idea about Luna & Simone.

Thank you, Frank. How do you feel about the Belgravia location? Is it easy taking the tube?

Go to viamichelin.com, GoogleMap, or a hard copy map of London and it will show you the location of the Tube stops in the area: Sloane Square, Victoria Station.

Can definitely recommend the Luna & Simone; we stayed there late last year. The rooms are small but spanking clean and the breakfast is hearty. The twins who manage the place are a lot of fun. It's about a 10 minute walk from Victoria Station, but you don't have to walk because Bus #24 stops right outside the door! I actually have no idea why RS doesn't include Luna & Simone in his lists of recommended places; I don't see how you could do much better for the price. But book early!

I'm booking now for July; this is a very last minute trip for us! Here's the catch; The Winchester only has a room with 2 single beds and cost $792 USD for 4 nights - but it's in Rick's book and I trust Rick beyond all other travel books. Luna & Simone (not in Rick's book!) has a double available and is $720 USD for 4 nights.

Luna & Simone has a better rating on TripAdvisor, for whatever that's worth. I feel like we should go with the Winchester because I know from years of traveling using Rick Steves books that his recommendations never disappoint. Glad to hear you liked Luna & Simone, it's a tough decision to choose.

One thing that would give me cause for concern about the Winchester is that they don't seem to accept credit cards -- that would be a problem for me because of the daily limit on cash withdrawals from ATM's; it might be hard to accumulate that much cash.

I am an avid fan of Rick Steves; we share the same philosophy of travel so his hotel recommendations are usually perfect for us. TripAdvisor is good, I agree and I have written several posts on it. However, I don't know who's giving thw advice there, quantity doesn't equal quality. They might not be like me; whereas Rick Steves has yet to fail me with hotel recommendations (restaurants are a different story, sorry Rick :o)

It's a lot of research and time well spent weeding out the good and bad. Thank you all for the responses and I'll be sure to post a trip report in a few months. I've also booked Vic's Taxi for a private all day tour in Stonehenge, Bath, Old Sarum, Avebury Stone Circle and Silbury Hill. He costs the same as the big tour buses and we see more.

Josie,

I too am an avid RS fan (and have had the pleasure of meeting him several times here in the Bay area). That said, he can't be current in all cases...I've been using TA for about 4 or 5 years now, but just began posting in the last 2 years. You can easily calibrate many of the other posters...click on their posting history and see if they have posted a number of times or only once or twice. It makes a difference. You will also see some postings you may recognize (for example, it is interesting to see some of the reviews for the RS recommended hotels...in many cases they are aligned). Frequently, the TA postings and listing provides much more information that a simple RS recommendation, which is often limited to a simple "clean, good location, near public transportation, nice owners," etc.

Bill, that's great advice. You're absolutely right; I do check the TripAdvisor posters' previous posts - it's interesting what links you end up on, if any at all. There's a lot of information out there and it's important to check as many resources as possible before making an educated decision. I love having the freedom and independence of making those choices on my own, with guidance, of course.

Thanks again, your advice has been very helpful and given me renewed confidence in TripAdvisor forums.

Josie,

Don't be a slave to RS guides. They are "guides" not rules. Trip Advisor often times has better information than RS (given the fact that there are over 200,000 reviewers contributing to TA, while there are only a handful of RS employees rating their recommendations. Go with Luna & Simone, their rate looks great for the middle of the summer.

Stayed at Best Western Victoria Palace, 60 Warwick Way, London last year for 5 nights. Very nice and helpful clerks at desk. They have air conditioning and an elevator! Price was competitive. Couple blocks behind Victoria Station. I'll return some day.

Some one raised the question about the Winchester only taking cash. In our three visits they took our credit card BUT our last visit was two summers back.

I stayed at the Lime Tree in Belgravia, at that time (2005) VERY high on Rick's list. I absolutely loved it - wonderful breakfast, an excellent wine bar/restaraunt next door, and the chocolate shop close by. Quiet neighborhood, easy walk to Victoria.

Josie, have you tried the Blades Hotel on Belgravia Road, about 1/2 mile from Victoria Station?

We booked a room at the Morgan House on Ebury Street; because we're visiting in July and it's less than 3 months away, all we could get was a room with 2 single beds, not our first choice but what can we do... The smaller B&B's fill up quickly; book early! I'm happy with this decision as it's a Rick Steves recommendation (sigh of relief) and also rated highly on those other travel websites I'm not allowed to talk about :o) The location of Victoria Station/Belgravia seems to be a good one; within walking distance of major sights and access to public transportation. Thank you everyone for all your advice and help, I will post a trip report in July when we return.