[Ohiogirl]

We are probably going to England this January - our 2nd trip in 2 years. We'll be meeting a brass band from Ohio at Skegness (Butlin's resort on the east coast) for a weekend, but we'll be flying from Orlando and back whereas they will all be flying from Columbus, OH for a quick trip (they are not retired as we will be

I know January is not the ideal travel time, but we don't get to choose. Figured we would fly from Orlando to Heathrow and spend about 3 days in London both before and after the band competition and will take a train from London to Skegness and back again.

My question: does anyone have any recommendations for a budget priced London hotel or B & B? I understand that central locations are expensive and will be happy to stay a few underground stations away, but it should be in a safe area (I think it gets dark around 4:30 pm in January) and convenient to the tube. I'm looking on tripadvisor.com and londonby.com - and both are good websites, but nothing like a personal experience. Anyone?

[swrinfla]

Sorry, Ohiogirl, no personal experience, as I have always stayed in hotels in London. Always except on our first trip in 1969 when we found a delightful B&B on Clarges Street for all of 5 pounds per night! The place and the price are, of course, long a distant memory!

As a general thought, the vicinity of Victoria Station is full of B&B properties, usually at fairly reasonable prices.

I've given up all my British magazines, or I'd probably have some specific info for you, but I know that a little perserverance will pay off.

Good Luck! Much as I generally don't like huge cities, I absolutely love London!

SWR

[BritParrothead]

This is an hotel I have stayed in : http://www.premierinn.com/en/hotel/L...on-county-hall
A nice walk over bridge to Big Ben etc...
BUT before you book, check the train times and cost. Skegness is quite a way from London, so you could be on the train longer than visiting your friends, and the cost could be more than a local hotel in Skegness!! Have you been there in the past? It is, as the town says 'Bracing'
I stayed at the Butlins in Skeggie 50 years ago with my parents and sibs, we had a great time

[784caroline]

Check out his site and then compare it to the Tripadviser.com ratings

http://www.londontoolkit.com/

http://www.tripadvisor.com/

[Avista]

Either buy or browse at a bookstore Rick Steve's book on London. That book is our Bible when we travel to London. Good description of places to stay by your budget. His people have checked them all out.

[l2ridehd]

Another vote for Rick Steve's. I use his books where ever I travel to select hotels, place to eat, things to see, and so far he is always on target. Used him for Tuscany, Spain, France, and a few others and have found his information to be better then those other web sites. His book would be my first choice for London. For web information I like virtualtourist.com as well as tripadvisor.

[cybermuda]

We have stayed at St. Giles Hotel a couple of times - just off Tottenham Court Road near Oxford Street

Got a good deal through British Airways

Used by a lot of language schools for their students, so breakfast area is noisy

Used to be the Central London YMCA - rooms are small but if all you need is cheap, clean accommodation...

[Ohiogirl]

The London Toolkit has a really good link to a discussion of which hotel district to choose - that will be the first decision. Also found good "build your own trip" on Expedia. Our 3 nights in Skegness will be paid by the hostband - Ohioboy is part of the band and will be playing while there, so we are not just visiting friends - it's really the reason for the trip, just decided to add on a few days in London to make it a vacation instead of a band weekend.

For those of you who may be planning trips to almost any location by air, do check out the packages - almost as cheap as airfare alone. Plus there are really good posts on the forums that give info I might not have thought to ask about, or realized was there.

I do use Rick Steves, but think that sometimes his "great finds" become pricier and not such great finds after he publishes the info about them. He has quite a following. I sometimes catch his radio show on NPR and sometimes PBS - actually I find the radio show more interesting.

[retiredguy]

Originally Posted by BritParrothead

This is an hotel I have stayed in : http://www.premierinn.com/en/hotel/L...on-county-hall
A nice walk over bridge to Big Ben etc...
BUT before you book, check the train times and cost. Skegness is quite a way from London, so you could be on the train longer than visiting your friends, and the cost could be more than a local hotel in Skegness!! Have you been there in the past? It is, as the town says 'Bracing'
I stayed at the Butlins in Skeggie 50 years ago with my parents and sibs, we had a great time

Ohiogirl: Britparrothead is right. The Marriott County Hall on Belvedere is the best. When we stayed there, we had an awesome huge room on looking right out at the London Eye and Big Ben. The tube is right on the corner over the bridge just a short short walk. I highly recommend this hotel.

[harp321]

We have traveled to England several times and every hotel we stayed in was not good.
We have always had good luck with staying at a B&B. They are usually cheaper and we meet people from all over the world. Often we would go to the tourist bureau in the center of a town upon arrival and they would have a list of the B&B's and be able to tell us personally of the best ones. You can also purchase a book just on B&B's in England.

[djplong]

We're staying at the Bay Tree House in New Southgate (north side of London), a 5 minute walk from the Underground starting Sunday (going on our honeymoon). So far, everything we've heard is good - hoping it lives up to expectations.

[djplong]

Now I can say - the Bay Tree House was FANTASTIC. It exceeded any expectations I might have had. Location, price, the hosts.. I just can't say enough about this place.

[Ohiogirl]

Thanks, DJ, and everyone else. Did you book The Bay Tree Hotel as part of a package - and thru website or travel agent? Seems like you can really save a lot on a package to London/Paris in winter.

[djplong]

The Bay Tree is definitely NOT a hotel, it's a B&B (we had "The Blue Room"). We booked it independantly - but I think we 'got there' coming through TripAdvisor.com, looking for reviews of B&Bs in London and Paris. There I believe we found a link to book the stay once we selected that place.

[Army Guy]

We usually stay in Slough, which is a "burb" then ride train in, about 10 min and switch to the "tubes". Slough is also less then 5 min from Winsor Castle. There is a Marriott CourtYard and prices very reasonable and the place is nice like US.

Army Guy