NyLon Analogies needed!

August 2, 2006 6:46 PM

So i'm going to London for vacation in November and have narrowed down my hotel choices to 3 properties.

And before it is suggested, YES I have thoroughly researched each of them in Trip Advisor.

But as a lifelong New Yorker I have been able to help out others friends and aquaintances who visited here with Hotel suggestions and
helping figure out location wise what was best for them considering what type of holiday they would be spending here.

One is the Holiday Inn Camden Lock which is somewhat north of central London in a funky alternative area (a plus).

Second is the Copthorne Tara in Kensington which is west of central London

and
third is the Riverbank Plaza which is over the river south of central London.

I've been a veritable anglophile since I was a teenager with loving tons of british music, films, tv series and books.
Not to mention the sheer rich history and diverse cultures there that are second to none except maybe the big apple.

I will be doing some standard touristy things of course, but will also be immersing myself in the culture of it all from a very working class "normal" $$$ point of view.
Meaning In NYC I have never shopped @ Bergdorf's or eaten @ Nobu's or had a Central Park horse carriage ride. These are things that I just can't justify spending money on, so my expectations on London will be the same--- I'm not going to shop @ Harrod's or have any 150 dollar dinners either or live it up 5 star styles.

I look forward to partaking in the same types of lively eclectic unique bars, clubs, music shops, eats and drinking I love about NYC.
Again I don't need to go to HMV, Tower records, Banana Republic or Barnes and Noble over there since I have those right here in my backyard. But I do look forward to the smaller distinct counterparts I enjoy here like in Chinatown, Greenwich Village, Astoria, Williamsburg, Harlem etc.

So my first question is does anyone have any personal experiences with any of the the three hotels...but I am pretty sure thats a very specific question and very unlikely to yield many answers.

But more broadly and importantly which of these is the best location for walking around and traveling using the tube and buses exclusively. I would like the most accessible location to be able to come back to the hotel 1-3 times a day to freshen up or rest and not have it be such a hassle and time consuming to detract from the daily activities.
Again if I was to compare it to over here...I would never reccommend a hotel near JFK for someone who was going to spend most of their time in or near Manhattan mostly sice it's about an hour by train each way.

But I also know we could look into getting a room in heart of it all, their Times Square if you will, but living in NYC I would rarely if ever step foot into the maddening miasma that is 42nd street. I mean it is ok I guess to see it once or twice, but to have that atmosphere be our base for 2 weeks I would go postal.

SO, fellow mefites can you make an analogy to NYC, which location would be most beneficial?
In NYC I can hit any spot in Manhattan in 30 minutes or so from Astoria or the Lower east side.
Which Hotel area will give us the flexibility of being close enough but also not so near the madness of the center of it all.
So which of these is right in the middle, not the Mercury or Pluto but which is the Earth of these spots?

If anyone has any additional suggestions, questions, tips or advice I would love to hear from you at [e-mail]

posted by stavx to travel & transportation (12 comments total)

I've never stayed in it, but I'd just like to say that the Holiday Inn in Camden is very close indeed to Camden High St, the markets and all the main Camden action. I've walked past it before and thought how cool it'd be to stay there if I didn't live in London already. I think you'd like Camden, from what you say. The hotel's very near to the tube station, too.

I can't speak for any of the other hotels, though.
posted by reklaw at 6:57 PM on August 2, 2006

I would suggest looking at Craigslist for sublet/short-term/vacation housing. It will probably wind up being cheaper than a hotel. Also, if you stay somewhere on the outskirts of London, or in a more residential area, you'll probably be in a better position to take advantage of "neighborhood pubs" instead of touristy joints.

I spend a few months renting a room in Ealing. I was about a 5 min. walk from the tube station and 30 or so mins into London via tube. I am sure you can find similar accomodation even closer to Central London.

Provided you have kitchen privileges, renting a room/flat will also mean that you can prepare some meals at home, which will reduce the cost of your trip, as well.

Ethnic food is very good and very cheap in the London area. I had many 3 BGP (too lazy to look for the pound sign equivalent ) chinese meals (huge plate of beansprouts and rice) and well priced indian meals. Plenty of other ethnic choices, too. I still long for the savory pancakes from a Dutch pancake place, I think it was called My Favorite Dutch or My Best Dutch, in Ealing. I was a poor student so I mainly survived on Bean Burgers from BK. Mmmmm!
posted by necessitas at 7:02 PM on August 2, 2006

Well for the areas where your hotels are let me draw a few quick, biased, and I am sure soon to be challenged analogies.

Kensington = UES - but more like Lex to the River, as opposed to Chelsea which is more like the UES from Park to 5th. I could extend this on to Fulham and Putney being UWS-esque - but that's not quite right.

Camden High Street = The strip of 4th street & Bleecker where every 14 year old from the suburbs goes to his first bar and sees his/her first sex shop. Maybe not quite that bad

Waterloo (Where your 3rd choice hotel appears to be)- Hmm - the area west of Penn Station if there had been some redevelopment 20 years ago that was sort of successful. That's a little harsh - its nicer then that - but not a garden spot.

I really didn't mean for that to sound so negative. All three hotels are in places where I wouldn't tell someone not to stay. If you are really doing the touristy thing I think Kensington and Waterloo are most Central. On the plus side if stay in Camden you'll ride the Northern Line which will lead you to come back to NY and appreciate the NYC Subway system as never before.
posted by JPD at 7:12 PM on August 2, 2006 [1 favorite has favorites]

Why not split the hotels? One week in Camden - which I find pretty grotty and full of tourists & goth kids, to be honest - and one week in Kensington/Waterloo for the central location.
posted by blag at 7:38 PM on August 2, 2006

I moved to London from New York in mid 1997, and lived in Camden Town for the first four years.

JPD's comparison to the West Village is probably "spot on" as the locals say. Weekends Camden is heavily populated by tourists so if you're interested in meeting & greeting folks from from all over Europe during your stay, this would be a plus. Also, there are lots of stores selling all sorts of crap (and some selling not crap I guess) and perhaps best of all, plenty of music. Camden is far less annoying during the week when it's pretty much locals only.

The Northern Line was upgraded maybe two years ago, so it s much, much better than when I lived there. Camden also has a large number of surface busses that you can use as a viable alternative to The Tube.

I live in The East End (Whitechapel) now, but still advise my guests to take the bus rather than The Tube as there is no better way to get a feel for the city's layout than surface transportation. Email if I can be of more help. Have a great time!
posted by Mutant at 11:16 PM on August 2, 2006

As a former Camden resident I'd say...
It's your best spot. From your question it sound like it's more your kind of place. Ignore JPD - Noo Yoiker tourist alert. If you have the brain to avoid being a typical tourist you'll avoid most of the crap & enjoy yourself.

OK, advice time...
The best time for shopping is a Friday. Most of the main parts of the market are open but there's less crowding. On Sat/Sun head up into the top of the Stables markets where the crowds thin out. Some great second hand/collectibles stuff but you've got to hunt for the bargains.

Food & booze.
A lot has changed since my day so no idea on the pubs these days although the Oxford Arms on the junction of Camden High Street & Jamestown Road is good for the Sunday afternoon pub-football (soccer) experience although it ain't the greatest boozer in the world. Try beerintheevening.com for recommendations.

The Raj Bhelpoori House at the very bottom of Camden High Street (#19 - near the fabled Mornington Crescent tube station) did a great value south Indian buffet. Camden area curry houses link. Lots more on Drummond Street which is the north London equivalent of Brick Lane in the East End.

Out of Camden a little bit and Bintang on Kentish Town Road is good Malay/Indonesian & you get to play with their snake sometimes...

Further up KTR on Kelly Street is the best caff in the world. Others may have differing opinions but they are just wrong. (No, shut up, you're wrong. Just deal with it.) Mario's Cafe will get you a great combination of greasy spoon & anglo-Italian hospitality. Mario is a top bloke and more than happy to give advise to errant visitors. Just make sure you don't catch him when the place is heaving ;-) Lots of local characters...I miss Saturday mornings there...

Wanderings
Get a colour A-to-Z ("Ay to Zed" available from newsagents, bookshops &c.) and get walking. Tubes & buses will rescue you if you get tired or lazy.

Use the canal that runs through Camden. Great for making shortcuts locally but also a fantastic walk. Head east towards Islington or west round Regent's Park (including the zoo) and out west. Lots of stop-offs on the way.

Crossing Regent's Park is a great way of getting into central London.

Another good park walk is via Warterlow Park (between Archway & Highgate - get the tube to Archway & walk up Highgate Hill. The west exit brings you out by Highgate Cemetery (charge for entry) and you can wander down Swain's Lane & onto Hampstead Heath via Parliament Hill (great view of London). Lots of wandering on the Heath and then into Hampstead Village. WALK AROUND THE SIDE (residential) STREETS! Loads of great houses strange bits & pieces. (I did this last weekend by accident and had a great time.)

Other more touristy things that are still worth doing.
Museums - Science, Natural History & V&A, British Museum & Reading Room, Museum of London.

Galleries - loads but Tate Modern & Tate Britain are personal favourites.

Take a river boat from Westminster Pier to Greenwich. Great way to see Loondon and the Royal Observatory & Maritime Museum are good. Greenwich Market (weekends I think) is a good alternative to Camden.

The London Eye.

Have a wander around the City of Westminster - Houses of Parliament, Trafalgar Square, Admiralty Arch (with ICA gallery on your right as you go thru) & up the Mall to Buck Palace.

Other good suggestions in this thread

One final thing...
Not to mention the sheer rich history and diverse cultures there that are second to none except maybe the big apple.
NYC has teeny, tiny history compared to London. I know that NYC has to be #1 at everything but c'mon ;-)
posted by i_cola at 5:05 AM on August 3, 2006

Go for Camden.
posted by Mocata at 5:28 AM on August 3, 2006

i_cola - why is Mornington Crescent "fabled"? I used to take the Tube to school there every morning 25 years ago, so I'm curious.

More expert advice than I can give you is above, but I just want to warn you re this:

to be able to come back to the hotel 1-3 times a day to freshen up or rest and not have it be such a hassle

London doesn't just have more history and arguably more diverse cultures than NYC, but it's freaking huge. If you are at any of these hotels, especially the one in Camden Town, you won't be able to be going home several times a day unless you never leave the neighborhood.
posted by CunningLinguist at 5:40 AM on August 3, 2006

I've heard people make a fuss over it as well, and the only explanation that I ever could come up with (speaking solely as an American living in London mind you) is that it's about 100 years old? I'm curious as well....but for the purposes of this question all you really have to know is that weekends Camden Town tube station is exit only during peak periods, and Mornington Crescent & Kentish Town are the two local stations used for entry to the system during that time.
posted by Mutant at 5:55 AM on August 3, 2006

Here's why Mornington Crescent is "fabled" (and why I made an effort to use the station on the day it reopened in '98).

Out of the three areas I'd also say Camden, although I've always thought it was a bit of a rundown tourist trap, especially the High Street. I tended to avoid it at the weekends when I lived there.

I agree with CunningLinguist, unless you barely travel you're going to have trouble returning to your hotel room very often during the day, if at all.
posted by drill_here_fore_seismics at 6:01 AM on August 3, 2006

Mornington Crescent - the game. Clips and further info here.

And CL is right about the 'once a day'. Day pack is your friend ;-) (Altho' you could come back to get ready for an evening.)
posted by i_cola at 6:02 AM on August 3, 2006

I've stayed at the Copthorne Tara - it's a bit impersonal, but it's plush, reasonably well-accomodated and is less than a minute's walk from a tube station on the Circle Line so it's fairly central for most things.
posted by badlydubbedboy at 12:52 PM on August 8, 2006