Affordable accommodation in central London 25-27th May?

May 18, 2017 1:19 AM

Bit of an odd question perhaps - but am I missing something obvious? I'm looking for affordable but SAFE accommodation with my six year old in London next weekend.

Dormitories are out of the question as I wouldn't feel comfortable with that arrangement given his age. Am I missing any obvious avenues of enquiry? I've tried the Priceline "set your own price" mystery hotel thing with no luck yet. We'd be quite happy with a clean and nice guest house but I'm not really clued up on how to find a nice one without wading through page after page of "FULL" guest houses. Budget is £60-£70 per night. Air B&B or other options definitely up for consideration. Last year we stayed (via Priceline mystery hotel) at the Hilton Kensington Olympia for about £60 a night and whilst the view from our room was of a heat pump, it was at least central, safe, cheap and fairly clean.

posted by dance to Travel & Transportation around London, England (9 answers total)

I know you said no dorms, but I am in the YHA Central London typing this and there are several children with their families eating breakfast in the common space and there was a woman with three children (the oldest might have been six, the younger were definitely toddlers) in the lift with me yesterday going to their room. So, in case that information is important to you, it does seem like there are quite a few families here.
posted by lucy.jakobs at 1:31 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]

Yes, some youth hostels do family rooms as well as dormitories - definitely look into that.
posted by Catseye at 1:35 AM on May 18, 2017 [4 favorites]

Have a look at Travelstay. The super cheap guesthouses they have tend to be fleapits but they have some decent looking stuff too. This looks pretty nice and is around your price range.
posted by corvine at 3:19 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]

Not sure if there are any empty halls of residence by then but they normally also have individual rooms with lockable doors and when I last stayed in one in Edinburgh a few years ago it was perfectly clean, safe and breakfast in the cafeteria was included - plenty of families availing themselves of the facilities.
posted by koahiatamadl at 4:49 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]

Some YHA hostels have private rooms you can book. They sometimes have a communal bathroom setup, but you and your son would have a private room for two (usually with a bunk bed and a sink). The YHA Earls Court, for example, has these types of rooms and isn't terribly far from the Hilton Kensington Olympia, if you liked that area. Quite no frills, though.

Also, would private university dorm rooms work for you? Since it will be summer term while you're there, you might find some availability in private dorm rooms for 2. Try searching the sites for London universities/colleges for "summer accommodations." Sometimes school summer dorms are also listed through Booking.com, though YMMV.

Have a great trip! :)
posted by misspettigrew at 4:51 AM on May 18, 2017

You could look at these.
posted by Segundus at 4:52 AM on May 18, 2017

I vote for AirBnB. I would imagine that if you check with the host before booking you would be able to find somewhere that could accommodate a parent and son.
posted by Erinaceus europaeus at 5:05 AM on May 18, 2017

The Whitechapel Ibis Budget starts at £69 a night and is part of the Ibis budget chain, a part of global hotel company Accor. It's not exceedingly central but it's a very quick trip into Zone 1.

Perhaps also look at other hotels in/near the City at weekends? London City Airport may also have some hotels with cheaper rooms given the airport's lack of departures/arrivals from midday Saturday to midday Sunday.
posted by mdonley at 5:41 AM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]

Tough on a bank holiday weekend. Would you consider Stratford? One stop from St Pancras on fast train. (Assuming you're getting a train from Yorkshire.)

2nding budget hotels around Whitechapel area.
posted by BAKERSFIELD! at 10:21 AM on May 18, 2017