London hotels - why is it so hard to search for you?
February 28, 2011 5:06 PM Subscribe
LondonHotelFilter: Looking for the perfect place to stay in London - super cheap, grungy is okay, free wifi, access to a printer (one can dream), near Paddington/West London...
I'm looking for a super-cheap place (40 - 60 pounds/night) to stay in London, with the following characteristics:
- free wifi (preferably in room)
- access to a printer (not necessary, but would be great!)
- near Paddington Station, or if not, close to West/Central London
- bathroom down the hall is okay
- accepts last-minute bookings
Hostels are okay, I guess, but I'm looking for my own room for this post.
I don't care about other amenities (TV, coffee, breakfast). Grungy/ugly hotels are fine.
I'm looking for a super-cheap place (40 - 60 pounds/night) to stay in London, with the following characteristics:
- free wifi (preferably in room)
- access to a printer (not necessary, but would be great!)
- near Paddington Station, or if not, close to West/Central London
- bathroom down the hall is okay
- accepts last-minute bookings
Hostels are okay, I guess, but I'm looking for my own room for this post.
I don't care about other amenities (TV, coffee, breakfast). Grungy/ugly hotels are fine.
I have pals who've stayed at (and recommend) High Holborn Hall and Generator Hostel in Russell Square.
posted by hot soup girl at 5:31 PM on February 28, 2011
posted by hot soup girl at 5:31 PM on February 28, 2011
It's been about four years since I've stayed there (and probably about the same amount of time since they updated their website) but the Pavilion Hotel was pretty cool - about a 5-10 min walk to Paddington, also close to Edgware Rd. Tiny rooms, but clean, en suite bathrooms, reasonably quiet, and a pretty cool staff.
I don't know about their wifi situation, however.
posted by pdb at 5:33 PM on February 28, 2011
I don't know about their wifi situation, however.
posted by pdb at 5:33 PM on February 28, 2011
Back in '06 I stayed for a few weeks at the Shellbourne Hotel. It's not fancy by any means but it has in room bathroom/shower as well as breakfast daily.
posted by msbutah at 5:36 PM on February 28, 2011
posted by msbutah at 5:36 PM on February 28, 2011
I've booked a single room at this place -- The Euro Hotel -- for a few nights in May at 60 pounds a night. Free wifi, breakfast included, WC down the hall. Not super-close to Paddington, but close to Kings Cross & Euston stations, and the Russell Sq. tube stop. I haven't been there yet, but it had relatively favorable reviews regarding its cleanliness & staff.
Another place to search for hotel reviews & availability across the UK & Europe is EuroCheapo (disclaimer -- run by friends of mine).
posted by lisa g at 5:42 PM on February 28, 2011
Another place to search for hotel reviews & availability across the UK & Europe is EuroCheapo (disclaimer -- run by friends of mine).
posted by lisa g at 5:42 PM on February 28, 2011
On our first trip to London in 2009, we stayed at the Castleton, just a couple minutes' stroll up the street from Paddington Station and just 45 GBP/night. They had the most amazing pillows. I'm still looking for pillows like they had. Best pillows on which I have ever laid my head.
Oh, while we were there the only catch was there was no lift, and we were on the fourth floor. They did promise they would have a lift by the next time we went and sure enough the hotel website does mention lift access.
posted by brownpau at 6:09 PM on February 28, 2011
Oh, while we were there the only catch was there was no lift, and we were on the fourth floor. They did promise they would have a lift by the next time we went and sure enough the hotel website does mention lift access.
posted by brownpau at 6:09 PM on February 28, 2011
Response by poster: Hey, sorry to threadsit, but my big things are:
- wifi
- a printer
- near Paddington or West/Central-ish London
- my own room
Breakfast, awesome staff, in-room bathroom... are great, but not important for this purpose at all.
It's really hard to search for these things on travel search engines for some reason. :P
posted by metametababe at 6:16 PM on February 28, 2011
- wifi
- a printer
- near Paddington or West/Central-ish London
- my own room
Breakfast, awesome staff, in-room bathroom... are great, but not important for this purpose at all.
It's really hard to search for these things on travel search engines for some reason. :P
posted by metametababe at 6:16 PM on February 28, 2011
These two are on the higher end of your price range (right around 60 pounds/night), and prices may vary depending on number of nights you stay there and the nights in question (weekend vs. midweek). It will very likely be cheaper if you book through a place like Expedia (a quick check shows that direct bookings do come in at higher prices/out of your price range as compared to just within using a booking service).
Queensway Hotel has free wifi and is steps from Paddington Station. Also, I stayed at the Hyde Park Towers Hotel about two years ago and had a decent experience. Not luxurious, but clean and everything worked, plenty of hot water, and they offer free wifi and have a business center (so printer access). Not near Paddington, but not far, either. It is in West/Central London and you are in very easy walking distance to both the Queensway (Central Line) tube stop and Bayswater (Circle and District) tube stop.
posted by HonoriaGlossop at 6:35 PM on February 28, 2011
Queensway Hotel has free wifi and is steps from Paddington Station. Also, I stayed at the Hyde Park Towers Hotel about two years ago and had a decent experience. Not luxurious, but clean and everything worked, plenty of hot water, and they offer free wifi and have a business center (so printer access). Not near Paddington, but not far, either. It is in West/Central London and you are in very easy walking distance to both the Queensway (Central Line) tube stop and Bayswater (Circle and District) tube stop.
posted by HonoriaGlossop at 6:35 PM on February 28, 2011
Oops, yeah, Castleton didn't have wifi or a printer; I just remembered I was using 3G/EDGE roaming while there, or else leeching off neighboring access points. So that kinda disqualifies it.
posted by brownpau at 6:50 PM on February 28, 2011
posted by brownpau at 6:50 PM on February 28, 2011
I stayed here in 2007. No free wifi or printer, but your own en suite room for 50 quid and very close to Paddington. I recall stealing wifi from a nearby open network.
posted by elsietheeel at 8:05 PM on February 28, 2011
posted by elsietheeel at 8:05 PM on February 28, 2011
You might try calling the local tourist office. They have lists of accommodation which may include locals renting out rooms - likely to be much cheaper than a hotel, and very likely that one of them has wifi and a printer you could use if you call round a bit and ask nicely.
I tried this once (not the wifi and printer part) and stayed in a rabbi's daughter's room with a bowl of cornflakes in the morning for a really rock bottom price.
posted by emilyw at 12:54 AM on March 1, 2011
I tried this once (not the wifi and printer part) and stayed in a rabbi's daughter's room with a bowl of cornflakes in the morning for a really rock bottom price.
posted by emilyw at 12:54 AM on March 1, 2011
I would highly recommend checking out airbnb.com. People list their apartments/homes/rooms and you can rent them for the night/a few days/a week and so forth. Some have minimum stay requirements (like 3 nights, for example). I used this website for a recent stay in Paris and the apartment I rented was SUPER affordable and the host was very friendly. You can search by city, price, etc. Another option!
Good luck!
posted by sucre at 9:09 AM on March 1, 2011
Good luck!
posted by sucre at 9:09 AM on March 1, 2011
This thread is closed to new comments.
I have no idea if this is in the area you're looking for, and I know each location in a chain will be different, but I just stayed at their location in Berlin and it was AWESOME. Fantastic, fun, clean, they probably have private rooms (they did at our location, but we were staying in a mixed dorm, which was also fine) free wifi and two for one carlsberg at happy hour.
posted by Carlotta Bananas at 5:21 PM on February 28, 2011