London hotel recommendations.

September 18, 2004 12:31 PM

London hotel recommendation?

We're looking for somewhere nice but not exhorbitant. The array of options seems dizzying - I just discovered all sorts of lovely little townhouse hotels after spending hours looking at the big hotel-y places. So I thought I'd ask here for recommendations. (I would have thought someone asked this already but a search found nothing.) This is for mid-November, ideally around a hundred pounds a night. Thanks!

posted by CunningLinguist to Travel & Transportation around London, England (12 answers total)

the Morgan Hotel right next to the British Museum is pretty nice and not very expensive for (appalling) London standards
posted by matteo at 1:03 PM on September 18, 2004

have you seen the front page? - greatsmallhotels.com

as if by magic, the shopkeeper appeared!
posted by triv at 1:05 PM on September 18, 2004

Can I thread-hijack and ask for London hostel recommendations, as well?
posted by Marquis at 2:09 PM on September 18, 2004

Response by poster: There was a previous London hostel thread!

And that greatsmallhotels link has only four in London and they are pricey.
posted by CunningLinguist at 4:26 PM on September 18, 2004

I just stayed at a good cheap place--40 pds a night and up...full breakfast too. Hotel George, in Bloomsbury--nice australian lady manages it.

Cunning, you know that 100 pds=180 bucks?
posted by amberglow at 6:03 PM on September 18, 2004

Response by poster: Ugh, really? Boy, the exchange rate has gone to hell since I last checked!
posted by CunningLinguist at 8:26 PM on September 18, 2004

No Cunning, the exchange rate has not gone to hell. The dollar has gone down the toilet. War, debt, you know, the usual crap.
posted by Goofyy at 11:42 PM on September 18, 2004

I live in London, so don't know that much about hotels here.. but I would say, the big chains (hilton, radisson, etc) have hotels outside the city centre which do good deals sometimes. For example, there's a Hilton near where I live (Angel), which has cheap deals sometimes in the autumn, and which is 15 mins away from Oxford Circus - so ultimately, don't be afraid to go outside the centre. Don't go any further than zone 2 on the tube map, though.


Also, Travelodge have a big advertising campaign running here at the moment, saying they're really cheap (I haven't cheecked this). You're talking Holdiay Inn standards.
posted by ascullion at 2:28 AM on September 19, 2004

As a Londoner myself, if I was on a budget I would probably aim towards a Travelodge, Jury's Inn or Holiday Inn type place. There's a lovely Travelodge in SE1 down by Clink Street.

The problem with the small "townhouse" type hotels is that unless you pay a lot of money, the cleanliness and amenities can be disappointing.
posted by skylar at 2:32 AM on September 19, 2004

The Regent Palace in Picadilly was about 80 pounds a night when i stayed there last. Don't let the name fool you - the rooms are super duper small and not in any way fancy - but clean and very functional. We paid an extra few pounds for an en suite bathroom that was quite possibly the smallest thing I have ever encountered - but in my opinion worth it. My research turned up another similar place that looked like it had a bit better furnishings near Hyde Park called the ceasar - but online reviews were pretty mixed.
posted by Wolfie at 1:25 PM on September 19, 2004

There was a Travel Inn i kept walking by, right near Euston station that had an 79pds a night sign...you could try them. (it was a highrise, looked like a Comfort/Quality/etc standard.)
posted by amberglow at 1:58 PM on September 19, 2004

A good area for hotels is near Gloucester Road tube, on the Piccadilly line, which is good for Heathrow airport. The Holiday Inn on Cromwell Road (the smaller one, in SW7 ) does good deals and although it is a Holiday Inn with all that entails it does have a lovely garden. By the way, what on earth is a "pd"? Is it an £ (£) when it's at home?
posted by cbrody at 5:05 PM on September 19, 2004