Need London Travel Advice

[shesquint]

All right, Final Gear people. I know a lot of you are in the U.K., and I need your help.

My husband and I are going to London for two weeks this winter. In typical American fashion, we're kind of clueless on something: which neighborhood should we aim to stay in? 24-hour hustle and bustle is bad. Endless white stone row houses isn't bad, but is visually boring and therefore undesirable. Somewhere a little funky but unpretentious would be ideal, especially if there are a lot of trees about (yes, even bare winter trees).

Help, please!

Oh, and we also plan to rent a car and attempt a pilgrimage to Dunsfold. I know we won't see anything, but ya just gotta, know what I mean? How long a drive is that from London?

 

[DanRoM]

How much do you want to spend for your hotel? Near the centre a decent hotel will cost you an arm and a leg, but if you can live with half an hour by train/tube to the city, prices become almost reasonable. I stayed at the IBIS hotel right next to Wembley Stadium in March, and it was... well, an IBIS hotel. Nothing special, but affordable. D-Fence stayed at the other end of London in an equally cheap hotel, you can find more info on that in this thread.

 

[teeb]

Oh, and we also plan to rent a car and attempt a pilgrimage to Dunsfold. I know we won't see anything, but ya just gotta, know what I mean? How long a drive is that from London?

Just to point out the obvious : driving in central London is hell. Parking in central London is hell. If you're hiring a car for away days, make sure you hire only for the days you'll need it. No point paying for 2 weeks' hire if you're going to spend half of that time on the London Eye, clutching an Oyster card smugly.

 

[Heathrow]

The neighborhood you sat in should reflect the focus of what you have on you list of ?must see & do?, then you can look at viable hotel price / performance.

London can be expensive, public transport is awful during rush hours, plus driving & parking a car in the central area is a nightmare.

Black Taxis and pre-bookable ?Mini Cabs? are reasonable cost, safe, licenced, clean, strictly maintained and plentiful, except when it rains.

Dunsfold is about 35-40 miles from the centre of London, you could probably get a pre-booked taxi to take you there and back for less than ?100. (You could go by public transport, but that would take you hours.)

 

[lws1984]

It's not really tree-lined, but the Holiday Inn Southwark is a decent hotel, inexpensive, and only a short walk to Southwark tube station. (Yes, you are south of the Thames, but it's cheaper than staying inside the Circle Line.)

As for hiring a car: I don't know how far it is to Dunsfold. Don't hire it for more than you'll need it, because otherwise it'll just sit in the hotel car-park.

As for London itself: If you find yourself getting hungry around lunchtime (or even an early dinner), try and find a Pret A Manger. Reasonably priced, freshly made, and delicious. Try the ginger beer, too.

Things to do: Harrod's is fun to get lost in (try and find the pet department!), and the London Eye is...well, to me, it wasn't worth the queue to go up in it.
I quite enjoyed the London Transport Museum, if you're into that sort of thing. If you're not, go to Covent Garden anyway, it's an enjoyable stroll. Any museum you pick in London will likely be worth the visit, and they are numerous.

Now let's get some actual Londoners in this thread, since I'm just a tourist.

 

[shesquint]

How much do you want to spend for your hotel?

Money's not a huge concern, but we'd like to keep it to $150-$250 (GBP 100-160-ish) a night. Certainly no more than $300/GBP 200-ish a night. I should have specified above that the husband is hell-bent on having a really nice vacation. (And rightfully so; he's earned it. Is earning it? Will have earned it?)

Just to point out the obvious : driving in central London is hell. Parking in central London is hell. If you're hiring a car for away days, make sure you hire only for the days you'll need it. No point paying for 2 weeks' hire if you're going to spend half of that time on the London Eye, clutching an Oyster card smugly.

Oh, lord, ain't no way we're going to be fooling with a car in London. No, the car rental would only be for a day here and a day there, so we can see some of the wonderful things outside the city.

Come to think of it, is it hard to find an automatic rental there like in mainland Europe? If I have to drive stick with the wrong hand while concentrating on staying on the right side of the road, I'm bound to have an embarrassing accident.

The neighborhood you sat in should reflect the focus of what you have on you list of ?must see & do?, then you can look at viable hotel price / performance.

Must see/do: the British Museum, Portobello Road if it's open (because I watched Bedknobs and Broomsticks waaaay too many times as a kid), lots and lots of aimless wandering. Other than that, no real must-dos short of avoiding the London bloody Eye. Up high + tourist trap = my personal hell.

Bear in mind, however, that when I see my husband in London it will be for the first time since July. There's a very good chance we'll be spending a lot, if not most, of our time in our room, so we must have a comfortable room at the very least.

CALLING ALL TERRY PRATCHETT FANS . . . .

My friend took a day trip from London to Stonehenge last year. She assures me that the route passed a horse carved into the chalk, the very horse on which the chalk horse in Wintersmith is loosely based. Can anyone back her up on that? 'Cuz WOW would I like to see that.

 

[Heathrow]

Money's not a huge concern, but we'd like to keep it to $150-$250 (GBP 100-160-ish) a night. Certainly no more than $300/GBP 200-ish a night. I should have specified above that the husband is hell-bent on having a really nice vacation. (And rightfully so; he's earned it. Is earning it? Will have earned it?)



Oh, lord, ain't no way we're going to be fooling with a car in London. No, the car rental would only be for a day here and a day there, so we can see some of the wonderful things outside the city.

Come to think of it, is it hard to find an automatic rental there like in mainland Europe? If I have to drive stick with the wrong hand while concentrating on staying on the right side of the road, I'm bound to have an embarrassing accident.



Must see/do: the British Museum, Portobello Road if it's open (because I watched Bedknobs and Broomsticks waaaay too many times as a kid), lots and lots of aimless wandering. Other than that, no real must-dos short of avoiding the London bloody Eye. Up high + tourist trap = my personal hell.

Bear in mind, however, that when I see my husband in London it will be for the first time since July. There's a very good chance we'll be spending a lot, if not most, of our time in our room, so we must have a comfortable room at the very least.

CALLING ALL TERRY PRATCHETT FANS . . . .

My friend took a day trip from London to Stonehenge last year. She assures me that the route passed a horse carved into the chalk, the very horse on which the chalk horse in Wintersmith is loosely based. Can anyone back her up on that? 'Cuz WOW would I like to see that.

Book an automatic car in advance and get a petrol of about 2.0 litres.

The London Eye is excellent, btw, it is also fairly near Big Ben, Parliament, Shakespear's Globe & Museum, St. Paul's Cathedral, plus the Tate Modern Art gallery. All of which can be reached by the open air tour bus, which you can hop on and off all day for about ?20 or do the full 2 hour tour.

There are lots of Wiki ? Chalkland Hill Figures in southern England, but the route from London to Stonehenge is the A30 / A303 or the M3. It is located in Wiltshire, so if you compare the Wiki list you may find the one you want. (Don't know about the Pratchett connection though, sorry.)

 

[mgkdk]

Other than that, no real must-dos short of avoiding the London bloody Eye. Up high + tourist trap = my personal hell.

I'm terrified of heights and I had no problems with the London eye.

 

[DanRoM]

London Eye really is a bloody tourist trap, though. The queues are ridiculous unless you pay 10 pounds extra.

One recommendation from me: Camden Markets.

 

[hajj]

I might be a bit out of line with the others here, but I would suggest a hotel in central London, preferably Park lane or around there. During weekends high class hotels can be fairly cheap, but I suspect that they charge a lot more during the week.

 

[Thomas93]

Look into the Kings Cross/St Pancras area, I doubt the midland hotel will have opened by the time your going but that's the sort of thing I think you should find around that area. Old hotels for Victorian railway travellers, If there is still any around!

Look into the Paddington Hilton if you can afford it.

I found the London Eye was a let down in bad weather but really enjoyable in good weather. Took 2 hours ish to queue and very little time to rest your legs.

Camden markets aren't all that impressive if your not really that into fashion.

 

[Magnet]

I've stayed near St Pancras and also near Earl's Ct. Truth be told, I never found Central London that big, so once you are staying somewhere in the centre, it's not that far to travel across to somewhere else, with the tube or without.

Having a choice, I'd probably select Earl's Ct again as it isn't too hideously expensive (don't expect a Las Vegas style hotel though), and close to some good cafes, and Kensington Rd.

 

[shesquint]

You are all made of yay. You in particular, Heathrow. Thank you!

Yyyyyeah, not so much into the fashion thing (she writes whilst clad in PJ pants with skulls and hearts all over them, and also a two-sizes-too-big Bad Religion shirt with paint on it), so maybe not Camden Market. I'd be afraid of getting the sort of dirty looks reserved for frumpy Americans with stupid hair.

Another neighborhood question: am I stupid to consider Islington? ('Cuz, y'know, Douglas Adams wrote it into H2G2 and stuff.)

Aaaand a travel question: there's a particular statue in a Leeds cemetery I've promised myself I'd go see if I ever made it to the UK. How awful is it getting from London to Leeds on a train?

You'd think I'd know a lot more about a country I've wanted to visit for a long time. Yeesh.

 

[hajj]

It is around two and a half hours by train to Leeds. You could also fly from London city airport. Trains are rather expensive so the difference in cost will be small.

 

[shesquint]

Alas, my husband is a large man who doesn't fit comfortably into the seats on small, commuter-style planes. He once had to spend a flight from Paris to Amsterdam sort of hovering in the vicinity of his seat. He's not grossly obese or anything like that; he's just built to a slightly bigger scale than most. The train is, therefore, a better option. Plus, of course, we come from the U.S., so train travel is an enjoyable novelty for us.

Does anyone else suddenly see the need for a travel sub-forum? What with the international community here and everything, it seems dumb not to have one.

 

[Heathrow]

You are all made of yay. You in particular, Heathrow. Thank you!

You are welcome.

Another neighborhood question: am I stupid to consider Islington? ('Cuz, y'know, Douglas Adams wrote it into H2G2 and stuff.)

Islington is probably fine and is near the central area, but it may be better to rely on a recommendation from one of the FG members who have actually stayed at a central London hotel.
I live here way out in west ?burbs, so don?t have any first hand knowledge of hotels.

Aaaand a travel question: there's a particular statue in a Leeds cemetery I've promised myself I'd go see if I ever made it to the UK. How awful is it getting from London to Leeds on a train?

You'd think I'd know a lot more about a country I've wanted to visit for a long time. Yeesh.

Leeds is not really known as a tourist destination, however if you going all the way up there to Yorkshire, you may want to consider visiting the Viking city of York, which most definitely is a visitor magnet.

It is around two and a half hours by train to Leeds. You could also fly from London city airport. Trains are rather expensive so the difference in cost will be small.

Wot hajj said.

* snipped for brevity *

Does anyone else suddenly see the need for a travel sub-forum? What with the international community here and everything, it seems dumb not to have one.

You might want to check here about new sub-forums.

 

[gti138]

The wifey, kid and me are heading to Paris & London in 2 weeks. Spending 4 nights in Paris and then eurostar to London - staying there for 4 nights. Then we pick up a hire car from Heathrow and spend 3 and a bit weeks around the south east of England visiting relatives etc.

Think we've got the basics of things to do in London & Paris nailed down - we are staying near Hyde Park which should give us good access to all of the touristy things we want to do (I've never been to the UK before but this will be the wife's 10th trip!)

To say I'm looking forward to it would be a bit of an understatement!

 

[Interrobang]

Last time I?ve been to London I?ve stayed in a Hotel near the financial district aiming at buiness people. It wasn?t overall cheap, but they usally offer weekend discount (not much buisness done on weekends) and the standart is quite good even if it?s only 3 stars. Even if it?s a bit away from all the main sights, the Tube will get you back to those in no time.
While the Tube system was a big mess 3 years ago and not a "nice place" ... it just works. Avoid rush-hours at all cost and don?t behave/look like a tourist too much (or you can explain at home what this "mugging" is) ... but then you?ll be on your way happy and cheap.
As with all big european towns I can only advise to look a bit bejond the usual ... Go by nose and eyes. If it looks or smells nice, check it out. If it looks bad and stinks ... go the other way. Generally go by foot a lot. Use the tube to get to sort of "starting points" and then try to walk if you can. You?ll run into a lot of stuff you?d have missed otherwise if you take a 30 minute walk from one place to another, rather that go 3 tube-stations and only seeing an 20 ugly beggars
A lot of London Museums are free of charge ... and worth a visit. But you might want to plan flexible so that you can do that on a bad weather day ...
For reasonable, good food I can also recommend the financial district. Never eat at a tourist hot spot ... or look for chains like "eat." (at least they were good 3 years ago). Londoners are health food crazy ... except everything to come with "less" ... less salt, fat and sugar.
The London eye ... the prices are as ridiculous as the queues are long ... rather climb St. Pauls cathedral. Still something like 8 Pounds (?) and you have to climb yourself ... but you also get to see the cathedral from the inside for that and that?s worth it ...

One recommendation from me: Camden Markets.

I second that. That whole area is nice. And let me add the St. Cathrine Docks ...

 

[Steve Levin]

Might I suggest a slight alternative if you are going to stay for a couple of weeks? Check out http://bridgestreet.com/

They do both short and long term furnished flat rentals. When I spent a lot of time in London, I castly preferred them because they had parking (which is nice if you have a car, although, as others have said, having a car around London isn't worth it) but it also allows you to cook some of your own meals. Not that you want to eat in EVERY meal, but still, it's a great way to save money.

My favorite location was the King's wardrobe, which is right by St. Paul's cathedral. There's a market nearby as well as various shops, and you are near a tube station as well as having a ready supply of cabs. And it can be fun to take the water tour taxi boats on the Thames as well, at least once or twice (and much of what you want to see as a tourist is actually located near the Thames.

My guess is that Dunsfold will be a very unrewarding trip as you won't be able to see much if anything. But if you want to get out of London a few times by car, I'd suggest heading to Stonehenge (because yeah, you just have to see it, it's a tourist thing) and after spending 30 minutes there go to Salisbury and see Salisbury Cathedral (especially if you've just watched Pillars of the Earth on TV or ever read the book). Who knows, you might just see Tiff there... he does live in Salisbury.

Going the other way (east) you can always drive to Dover. Again the cliffs are worth seeing.

There are also a few good aviation museums within a day's drive of London (longish days, but not bad).

Steve

 

[hajj]

Flats are also an option, but certain boroughs have rather long minimum lease periods, especially in the west, so Mayfair, Chelsea,and maybe Fulham and Kensington are out of bounds for flats. Towards the east and south of the Thames these restrictions do not apply, but it kind of limits the choice, which isn't the case with hotels. It comes down to preference in the end, for a work stint in Canary wharf I would prefer a flat rather than a hotel, for a holiday a hotel is my first choice.