South Kensington Hotel

I've stayed at the Millennium Baileys about a half a dozen times, but the last stay was about 3 years ago and I was a bit disappointed with the cleanliness of the room on that stay. It could have been a one-off as my prior stays had all been fine. It is directly across the street from the Gloucester Road tube station. I now prefer the Base2Stay at Earls Court which offers rooms with small kitchenettes. However, are you sure that you want to stay in South Kensington over Christmas? I often stay in this area, but I don't think I'd choose it over the Christmas holiday. I'd be inclined to choose something more centrally located. Normally this area is great, but keep in mind that there is no public transportation on Christmas Day and limited transportation on both Christmas Eve and Boxing Day. Many things are closed. You will want to book your Christmas lunch in advance and it will need to be a place that you can walk to.

We have stayed at Base2Stay near Earls Court twice and it is a great hotel and location. Since it is a holiday and restaurants may be closed you can shop at the supermarkets that are within walking distance.

We are planning to go to a Fulham boxing day match and thought that the South Kensington location would be better to get to Craven Cottage-will definitely make plans for our holiday meal prior to leaving on holiday

The Amsterdam Hotel, Earl's Court is great...http://www.amsterdam-hotel.com/rooms

Craven Cottage? Where's that? I have spent Christmas holidays in London and you really do need to understand that after Christmas Eve public transit comes to a standstill. Nothing moving on Christmas day and only bit of movement on Boxing Day. This lack of convenience surprises the tourists but truly defines the spirit of Christmas, a holiday to be with family. Holiday being the operative word. S. Kensington is a lovely neighborhood. This place is well run. Number Sixteen. Check to see if you can get a cheaper rate booking in advance on online. Check Tripadvisor for reviews. Lastly, understand you will be walking a lot for the first few days of your sojourn. Bring comfortable shoes. Oh and Harrod's will not be open!!!

Thanks all. Claudia-Craven Cottage is Fulham FC's stadium-it is further SW of South Kensington but I am hoping we can catch a cab or bus to the match on Boxing Day. Worse case we will walk-we are pretty fit and are used to cold weather after living in Colorado for several years. =)

its a bit of a walk from Earls Court or South Kensington to Craven Cottage football ground, but it is easy walking- not much to see - mostly residential.
Doable quite comfortably. (Chelsea's grounds are a little c;loser as i recall). But I walked them both from Earls Court without any problem

We have stayed at the Millenium Gloucester a few times and really like the hotel and where it is located. For London, they have reasonable rates. The hotel is within 20 yards of the Gloucester Road tube station. You are a 15 minute walk to Hyde Park, the Victoria and Albert and the Museum of Natural History. Several good places to eat within a short walk. Not much shopping but you are within walking distance of a Sainsburys grocery store and 4-5 subway stops to Harrod's. I just noticed you are going to a Fulham game. Where ever you stay, unless you are very close to Craven Cottage, you will need to do a little planning to determine the best way to get there. To the best of my recollection there are no tube stations really close to Craven Cottage. The Millenium Gloucester is probably a 45 minute walk to Craven Cottage, but if this is a Boxing Day game I am not sure about subway service. You had better check on that. Great place to watch a football match.

Premier Inn on Cromwell road in Earls Ct/S. Kensington is nice, and a double is only £99 per night. It is right next to the Easyhotel which is ok if you are alone but way too cramped for more than one person. There is a Tescos grocery 3 minutes walk to the right and Earls Ct Rd and station 7 minutes north. Great location. If you go at night you will see it has lavender lights on the outside, so you can spot it easy enough!