[Anonymous]

[austline]

I am going to Bristol on business in March and planning to spend the 3rd 4th and 5th in London will be myself and would like a hotel recommendation. I normally stay at the Hilton Kensington but it’s a bit bland. I do have a budget so as much as I would love to stay at the Savoy or new Mandarin it is out of the picture. Also any suggestions for quite drink and meal.

[LindsayW]

Austline, damn I’ll be in Bristol in late May…

I’ll leave the recomendations to locals. My hotels are more family friendly (like Indigo Paddington), so doubt they would suit your needs 😮

I’d think one suggestion is that a group of the local BT’ers meet you for a pint 😀

[Potakas]

Mandarin should be great , during Xmas was out of picture.

If you don’t want to stay on such a crowded place (Knightbridge) I would recommend you Grosvenor House or JW Grosvenor Square both by Marriott, I have stayed on both of them and were great with Grosvenor House to be far superior. I really enjoyed the fact i could walk from my hotel to Bond street or have a walk to the Square without messing with the crowds, also there are close to Oxford street and Hyde park also. Grosvenor House is more ”British” with Grosvenor square to be a boutique Hotel.

Also if you are Elite member with Marriott I highly recommend you the JW Grosvenor House, I am Gold Marriott Rewards Member and i got an upgrade to an Executive Suite.

PS Are these dates convenient for the others to arrange our next meeting?

[Sparepocket]

Austline, may I suggest the Hilton Cumberland, off the Edgware Road?I’ve stayed at the Kensington Hilton (South Ken) and you’re right, it IS bland.
Alternatively, the Park Plaza on Baker Street is a nice little boutique hotel and very near the busy buzz of Marylebone High Street.
Alternatively, Richmond is a nice area, if a little out of the way.But, it’s not far from Heathrow.

[PatJordan]

Austline,

the Hilton London Paddington is very good: close to Paddington rail station (heathrow express) and beside major bus & underground routes.

The executive floor is great: the lounge does a great breakfast, afternoon tea and evening snacks & drinks.

They have an oriental restaurant (20th floor or thereabouts) with stunning views of the city. Or you can sit there with a drink or pot of tea and relax.

If you plan to travel around the city, the travelcard gets you on all public transport for £8 a day (after 09.30am). You can have these delivered to your home through http://www.thetube.com

Do take a trip around Canary Wharf, the Docklands light railway is an amazingly efficient system…and fully automated. Try and get a front seat for best views.

Enjoy!

[VintageKrug]

I would disregard Airpocket/Sparepocket’s advice.

1. There is no Hilton in South Kensington; the Hilton Kensington (which you normally stay at) is at the far end of High Street Kensington in Kensington proper, bordering Holland Park:

http://www.hilton.co.uk/kensington?WT.srch=1

I agree it’s bland and should be avoided.

2. Advising a first time visitor to stay in Richmond is like suggesting someone to stay in Flushing to experience the delights of Manhattan. Barmy, and especially so if they don’t have their own transport and want to sample Central London.

—-
austline, it would help to better understand what your actual budget is and you plan on doing during your stay; you seem to be a Hilton person, but in my experience these are not the best option in London.

JW Marriott and Grosvenor House are good suggestions, but are not inexpensive EXCEPT if you can get them via

http://www.priceline.com

using

http://biddingfortravel.yuku.com/forums/105/England-London

to inform your bid – I would suggest you check out that bidding site, as well as sites like http://www.lastminute.com for “unnamed” hotels on which you can often get a bargain. Not unusual to get a 5* Park Lane property for around £100/$150 per night.

It will probably be less expensive to stay in Bristol and extra night, so if possible do that and leave early on the train the next morning. Ensure you book your train ticket well in advance to avoid astronomical fares!

Other options are the Priority Club 2for1 deals:

http://www.ichotelsgroup.com/h/d/6c/925/en/c/1/content/dec/teaser/6c/1/en/lp/emea/twofor.html?rateCode=IDEX1

or their non points earning Friends & Family offer.

Travelzoo deals (but avoid the Copthorne Tara):

http://www.travelzoo.com/uk/hotels/london/

If you need to be near Paddington, I can heartily recommend the relatively new http://www.HotelIndigo.com small but perfectly formed.

If you’re just looking for a budget property, try travelodge, City Inn or Premier Inns which are excellent, for the price.

Being expensive, London is one of the best places to use up hotel points for free nights if you have enough available.

Watch out as some rates now exclude VAT (20%) so be sure that is included in the price or you’ll get a nasty shock on check out!

[Potakas]

austline,
I would also suggest you to go for a Look no further rate from Marriott, it was always easy for me to find for the JW Grosvenor House.

More details about this here:

http://www.marriott.co.uk/Channels/globalSites/look/default.mi?country=UK

PS Anyone for the meeting during those days?

[excessbaggage]

I would agree with Vintage Krug here that you need to provide a bit more detail in order for posters to give you the best advice. The choice of London hotels is vast, and if you can help narrow the field a bit in terms of both price and preferred location (if you have one) i think you’ll get some really useful suggestions.

As for Hilton, i think their Tower Bridge property is modern and better than some of the older properties. The location may or may not suit.

http://www.hilton.co.uk/towerbridge?WT.srch=1

The Hoxton Lodge is relatively cheap and in an edgier part of town:

http://www.hoxtonhotels.com/

And on the subject of Hotel Indigo (part of the IHG group), they’ve also just opened a new property in Tower Hill, although i can’t yet vouch for it:

http://www.ichotelsgroup.com/h/d/in/1/en/hotel/lonlt

[excessbaggage]

Oh, and City Inn (referenced above) is now called Mint Hotel, and they have also opened a new London property:

http://www.minthotel.com/toweroflondon/london-hotels.htm

This link seems to suggest the hotel is not open yet, but i’m pretty sure it is. In my opinion this brand is a step above Premier Inn and Travelodge.

[robsmith100]

I recommend The Zetter. Over in the Clerkenwell district. Its funky little boutique style hotel. It also houses the Bruno Loubet Bistro which has had a good reception from resturant critics. If you are lucky you can get a room for less that £150.

http://www.thezetter.com

[batraveller2]

I would avoid Hilton Paddington – the exec lounge is awful.

However Hilton Metropole is nice – good location. However the lounge is outstanding – one of the best. It would be one of y first choices.

[BAdboys]

Best value in London…Travelodge Battersea…buses out front to most places.

[KnockOffKrug]

I happen to live in South West London/Richmond and it is fairly easy to get to from Central London on the District Line or from Waterloo on the overland trains. You could spend a day down here and decide for yourself whether you would like to spend more time. There are a couple of rather good hotels down here. All in all, come down and decide for yourself.

[aynnicole]

Boutique hotels are certainly one of the best choices.

Stayed at Rathbone Hotel (http://www.rathbonehotel.co.uk/) for 10 nights in the month of September.

I am overall pleased with service of each department. It’s worth spending the money because of the hotel’s awesome location, from where you can easily visit amazing London attractions nearby. I and my husband had requested for a room in the corner of the corridor where there is no noise at all, away from the road. So we were given the same room meeting our expectations.
The rooms were beautifully cleaned, and the décor was updated with brilliant art. Bathrooms were highly equipped. We never took breakfast inside, always used to go to places bars nearby e.g. Le Pain Quotidian and Gail’s Kitchen. For dinner we used to go to street restaurants with absolutely delish food. There was WIFI availability as well, so the stay is memorable. I would further recommend the hotel to everyone.

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