London Hotel Reviews

London Hotel Reviews
Staying at one of London's grande-dame hotels is the next best thing to being invited to the royal palace—some say it's even better, but see for yourself. Happily, you'll discover that this town also has plenty of atmospheric places to stay, without paying a king's ransom.


You'll find many things in London hotels: luxury, extraordinary service, incredible views, plus a whole array of cozy and comfortable mid-range to low-range accommodations. At the high end, royally resplendent decors abound and armies of extra-solicitous staff are stuck in the pampering mode—the Windsors should have it so good at such fabled landmarks as Claridge's, the Goring, and the Dorchester. In addition, you'd never know the recession struck, what with all the immaculately designed, frill-free contemporary hotels that have opened in the past year, such as the Corinthia Hotel, 45 Park Lane, and W London - Leicester Square.


Further down the price scale? The city's midrange hotel scene has at long last gotten its act together, and there is now a choice range of reasonably priced, high-quality hotels that regularly offer good deals and bargain rates. Leaders in this field are places like the Hoxton—which even makes a handful of rooms available for £1 per night, if you're lucky enough to snatch one. The swanky Dean Street Townhouse also offers one of its rooms at a permanently low £95-a-night rate. There's also a clutch of new budget boutique hotels that are a real step forward for the city—places like Stylotel and the Church Street Hotel, which have both been making heads turn for their small-is-beautiful approach, eye for stylish detail, and down-at-home comforts. The downside is that these places tend to be a little out of the way, but that's often a price worth paying.


A newly attractive alternative are hotels in the Premier and Millennium chains, which offer sleek, modern rooms, lots of modern conveniences, and sales that frequently bring room prices well below £100 a night.


At the budget level, small bed-and-breakfasts still dominate, offering tea makers and Queen Mum pastel wallpapers. An alternative to that is the easyHotel chain, with its tiny, bright orange "pod" rooms. There's also the more sophisticated (and more expensive) base2stay, which falls somewhere between budget and moderate.