Recommended London hotels and hostels that offer good value

15 Sep, 2011  |   Comments (0)  |   Add a comment

Introducing: Recommended London hotels and hostels

All told, there are well over 1,000 hotels and hostels in the London area, and most of them are very expensive. If you’ve ever gone to a hotel or hostel booking site to put in London and your travel dates you’ll know that you’ll soon be staring at an endless list of options. Trying to figure out if they have a good location or offer good value or get good guest reviews is such a chore that many people become overwhelmed.

Now there is a better option.

Having visited London dozens of times in addition to living there for a while, I’ve undertaken the task of choosing the absolute best London hostels and hotels for those who want a great location, great service, and excellent value.

Below you’ll see only 2 hostels and 5 hotel recommendations. If you choose one of these listed below you’ll be able to book knowing that you’re going to be staying in one of the absolute best places in your budget range. Feel free to check TripAdvisor or Hostelbookers reviews and you’ll see that the places listed below all fall in the top percentage group, even though they offer prices similar to those in the bottom group of reviews.

At the bottom of the page you’ll also find an interactive map of these 7 hostels and hotels. Many of these properties do book up well in advance, but some offer great online specials during the less busy seasons. If you are also headed to France you should check out our recommended Paris hotels and hostels as well.

Basically, these hotels and hostels all…

• Are well located
• Are very good value in their category
• Receive among the best reviews in their category

We’ve spent many hours going through all the factors to choose the places we’d try to book on our own next trip.

2 Highly recommended London hostels

St. Christopher’s Inn – Camden

–Very cheap beds in a party atmosphere–

Having stayed at many St. Christopher’s Inns around Europe, I can say that if you are a fan of one you are a fan of them all. The Camden location is one of the cheapest in spite of its position in the popular neighborhood just north of so many central London attractions. The rooms here are small, but clean and well maintained, so they are very good value for the backpacking set.

As with other St. Christopher’s Inns, the lobby is dominated by Belushi’s Bar, which draws in locals in addition to guests. It’s a loose and fun atmosphere, helped along by frequent drink specials and an energetic bar staff. There’s free Wi-Fi throughout as well. If you are looking for peace and quiet you’re probably better off elsewhere.

Beds starting at £10.50
Book St. Christopher’s Inn – Camden with Hostelbookers.com – Best prices, no booking fees

Clink78 Hostel

–Cheap beds in a historic former courthouse–

Clink78 is a large and popular hostel that partly trades on the novelty of being in a 200-year-old courthouse building where The Clash once stood trial. Compared to other London hostels anywhere near this price range, the Clink78 has a good, central location. Those not afraid to walk 15 to 30 minutes will find that Covent Garden, the West End theatres, and Oxford Street are within grasp. Better still, the trendy Clerkenwell nightlife district is much closer.

The Clink78 has a reputation as a fun hostel and its Clashbar is a popular hangout each evening, even featuring live DJs. The one negative (and unusual) thing about this hostel is that they charge extra for access to the Wi-Fi network. Hopefully they’ll soon join the overwhelming majority who offer it up for free.

Beds starting at £12
Book Clink78, London with Hostelbookers.com – Best prices, no booking fees

5 Highly recommended London hotels

Note: Hotel “starting at” prices listed below were the cheapest I could find for each hotel, usually for a single room. It’s likely your dates will show higher prices, especially for a double room, but this doesn’t mean it’s not a great deal. Please compare prices you are quoted to prices of similar hotels and you’ll usually find that these are bargains.

Royal Court Apartments and Paddington Hotel – 3*

–Very good pick for such a low price in a central location–

The Paddington Hotel is an older budget place that is connected to the Royal Court Apartments next door. Both are very good value for this location so close to Hyde Park and Paddington Station, but it’s the Paddington Hotel itself that offers the very cheap rooms here. The Royal Court Apartments cost a bit more and they offer a small kitchen in each room in addition to other home-style amenities.

Rooms at the Paddington are basic and fairly small, plus there’s no elevator, but considering all of that the reviews here tend to be exceptional. In this price range you are more likely to have reviewers vowing to burn a hotel down to the ground, but here you get many who promise to stay here again next time in London. If you can afford more then you’ll probably be happier at a hotel mentioned below, but for those who can’t this is a great choice.

Rooms starting at £47 with online specials
Click to find best rates for Royal Court Apartments and Paddington Hotel

Lancaster Hall Hotel – 3*

–Solid choice among cheap hotels near Hyde Park–

The neighborhood just north of Hyde Park and just southwest of Paddington Rail Station is filled with moderately priced hotels, but the Lancaster Hall is a standout for having very clean rooms, great service, and among the lowest prices in the area. This is also a popular hotel among those arriving late or leaving early, since it’s a short walk to Paddington, which is the terminus of the Heathrow Express rail service.

Rooms here are admittedly small and basic, which is the norm in this area, even for hotels charging twice as much. But the location is ideal for many other visitors as well, being a short walk to Nottinghill and Oxford Street, in addition to the many late night dining options along nearby Edgware Road. The Lancaster Hall Hotel is very hard to beat for its price, so the 80 rooms are often booked in advance.

Rooms starting at £67, including continental breakfast
Click to find best rates for the Lancaster Hall Hotel

Bedford Hotel London – 3*

–Excellent value 3-star near theatres and nightlife–

The Bedford Hotel is a gem located just around the corner from the British Museum. This is a solid, clean, and well-run 3-star hotel that is extremely popular with previous guests, but the best thing about it is its location just south of Russell Square. This puts you a short walk from not only the British Museum, but also all the West End theaters, Covent Garden, SoHo, and the Oxford Street shopping district.

At this price in this neighborhood you’d expect tiny rooms that haven’t been updated in decades, but the Bedford is modern with fine attention to detail so once inside the lobby you’ll see that it has more like 4-star service and amenities at a very affordable 3-star price. Compare it to others in this area and you’ll end up booking at the Bedford.

Rooms starting at £82, including English breakfast
Click to find best rates for the Bedford Hotel London

Base2Stay Hotel Kensington – 3*

–Unique 3-star hotel that is excellent value with a central location–

This quirky and new hotel gets excellent reviews for its fantastically central location and relatively large, spotless rooms. The Kensington neighborhood is somewhat upscale and filled with shopping and restaurants so guests won’t have to venture far for many things. The Earls Court tube station is two blocks away, so it’s also quick to get anywhere else in central London.

Each room at the Base2Stay Hotel Kensington includes a mini-kitchen with a small fridge and a microwave oven, which is very unusual for London and also extremely handy in a city where restaurant meals can be so expensive. You’ll also get a flat-screen HDTV and free Wi-Fi as well. Some rooms have better views than others, and not all have full bathtubs, so it’s worth asking about these at check-in.

Rooms starting at £95
Click to find best rates for the Base2Stay Hotel Kensington

Hotel Indigo London Tower Hill – 4*

–Well-located 4-star boutique hotel with special sale rates–

Part of the InterContinental Group, the Hotel Indigo London Tower Hill is a very well regarded 4-star boutique/business hotel close to The City and the Tower of London. There are 46 guestrooms and 2 suites, each featuring a 4-poster bed, an iPod docking station, and a unique layout and furnishings. Rooms are all quite large for central London, and they include free Wi-Fi, plus some free snacks and drinks in the mini-bar.

The Hotel Indigo London Tower gets excellent reviews from nearly all past guests, but it’s worth noting that their prices can fluctuate dramatically. If you book during a slow period you’ll be offered fantastic rates that are amazing value at this level, but when they are nearly full the rate quoted will be quite high.

Rooms starting at £98 (but usually much higher)
Click to find best rates for the Hotel Indigo London Tower Hill

Interactive map of the above hotels and hostels

View Recommended London hotels and hostels in a larger map

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