UK Friends....LONDON HOTEL HELP

[chimo2u]

HI! Hubby and I are planning on hitting up London on the tail end of our 2 weeks in England this summer and I am trying to decide between 2 hotels. One is a new hotel called the Hilton Canopy London City. It gets rave reviews on trip advisor, has a hot breakfast daily and the rooms are nice, bright and new which is always lovely. It is close to a tube station as well as one of the major parts of my sight seeing stops - The Tower of London. I have a walks tour booked and am excited to see this landmark. The only con is there is no executive lounge (I ℒℴ𝓋ℯ having a lounge when i travel). The second hotel is the Hilton London Bankside. Again, it gets rave review. It is a little further from the tube station, but still not too far. It has a executive lounge and a pool//hot tub (2 plusses) It is a little darker themed (but still looks lovely), my tastes lean towards the brighter look of the Canopy Hilton, but the amenities of the bankside are a big pull too. Which would you choose? This decision is driving me nuts. The price difference is not huge .... $1200 pounds for the Canopy and $1400 pounds for a twin executive room at the Bankside. I am going in July, so it is pricey!

 

[SirDuff]

I've stayed at the Bankside and like it (and the area). I know what you mean about the theming, but I didn't actually find it dark (as I recall, lots of big windows - it's just the colour scheme that is on the dark side). The Canopy does look nice, but I've never stayed there (and the location isn't my favourite - though since it is right at a tube station, easy to get around)..

However, my favourite Hilton family in London the Conrad St. James. Right across the street from the tube and very nice lounge (though, likely much more expensive than your other two options). I love the location basically between Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey.

 

[RUDisney]

My favorite hotel is the Royal Horseguards in Westminster, however, I LOVE British history and want to recommend that you check on getting a membership to the Historic Royal Palaces. You get admission to many of the royal palaces without having to book a time or stand in line. The Tower is one of those locations. You may even get to witness the ceremony that locks the tower, if you're lucky. You need a reservation for that and it's only available to Historic Royal Palace members. Also, when you get to the Tower, go to see the Crown Jewels first. That line gets VERY long. The Yeoman Warder talks are given throughout the day, so if you walk by one, you will be able to hear another.

Kensington Palace, Hampton Court, The Royal Banqueting Hall and a few other palaces are included. It can save you money if you plan to see multiple palaces. I believe it also got us discounts in the palace gift shops and on admission to the Royal Mews at Buckingham Palace, but I may be wrong about the admission discount.

Make sure to buy your tickets and schedule your time to enter Westminster Abbey in advance so you can skip the line of same day buyers. You can also attend services there or at St. Paul's if you are inclined. I like going to services in foreign places, so I went with my DD to Sunday service at Westminster.

Enjoy your trip!!!

 

[lovesmurfs]

Not the answer to your question, but we stayed at the Sanctuary House Hotel in 2019 -- pretty central location in Westminster -- great breakfast included. Really enjoyed it.

Have a wonderful time!

 

[Dan Murphy]

Maybe some more help here.

https://www.disboards.com/forums/uk-community-board.46/

 

[fla4fun]

The only Hilton property I have stayed in while visiting London is the Hilton London Tower Bridge. It is right across the Thames from the Tower of London (an easy walk). It has an executive lounge, but I don’t believe they had a pool. It is very close to London Bridge Station for train and Tube connections, as well as close to several restaurants and shops. We enjoyed our stay there.

I agree with the PP who suggested getting the membership pass to Historic Royal Palaces if you intend to visit any of the locations it covers. It wasn’t too expensive and we made great use of it being so close to the Tower. We also used it at other locations, and felt like we truly got our money’s worth from it. It does give you a 10% discount in the shops and restaurants at each location as well.

 

[chimo2u]

My favorite hotel is the Royal Horseguards in Westminster, however, I LOVE British history and want to recommend that you check on getting a membership to the Historic Royal Palaces. You get admission to many of the royal palaces without having to book a time or stand in line. The Tower is one of those locations. You may even get to witness the ceremony that locks the tower, if you're lucky. You need a reservation for that and it's only available to Historic Royal Palace members. Also, when you get to the Tower, go to see the Crown Jewels first. That line gets VERY long. The Yeoman Warder talks are given throughout the day, so if you walk by one, you will be able to hear another.

Kensington Palace, Hampton Court, The Royal Banqueting Hall and a few other palaces are included. It can save you money if you plan to see multiple palaces. I believe it also got us discounts in the palace gift shops and on admission to the Royal Mews at Buckingham Palace, but I may be wrong about the admission discount.

Make sure to buy your tickets and schedule your time to enter Westminster Abbey in advance so you can skip the line of same day buyers. You can also attend services there or at St. Paul's if you are inclined. I like going to services in foreign places, so I went with my DD to Sunday service at Westminster.

Enjoy your trip!!!

Thank you for your reply! Unfortunatey the palace is not open to tours when we will be there (July 2-5) I have booked a tour with Walks - complete tower of london opening tour with early access to the crown jewels and river cruise? (booked it to have a look at the crown jewels and get in before the lines develop!)
I also booked a London Pass for 2 days which included entry to many places, but I booked the tour above for the Tower to avoid the crowds/lines as much as possible. I did want to reserve to see the closing keys ceremony, but reservations aren't available yet for my time frame. It is one thing I wanted to see. I'd ℒℴ𝓋ℯ to stay at the Conrad St James but it is pricing at $1,800 pounds for a twin deluxe room and $2100 plus for a Twin executive lounge room. The rooms at Canopy London City with breakfast are $1200 pounds for our 3 nights in a twin room, and the London Bankside would be $200 pounds more for a executive lounge twin room.... I am still on the search for that perfect hotel, but have the Canopy one booked for now so I have something secured at least!

 

[BayouQueen]

If you''re looking at Hiltons, we stayed at Hilton London Green Park in Mayfair. It was "funky," but an amazing location. That was my favorite stay in London. We've also stayed at Conrad St. James, that another poster mentioned. Green Park was a lot less expensive and we actually liked it better, because it's on the better side of the park. If you are out doing stuff after dark, no way should you cross the park to get back to the Conrad. So it's tube or taxi at night for the Conrad. You can walk to Buckingham Palace easily from either one during the day.
Whatever you pick, you'll have a great time!

 

[Shellsbutt]

If you''re looking at Hiltons, we stayed at Hilton London Green Park in Mayfair. It was "funky," but an amazing location. That was my favorite stay in London. We've also stayed at Conrad St. James, that another poster mentioned. Green Park was a lot less expensive and we actually liked it better, because it's on the better side of the park. If you are out doing stuff after dark, no way should you cross the park to get back to the Conrad. So it's tube or taxi at night for the Conrad. You can walk to Buckingham Palace easily from either one during the day.
Whatever you pick, you'll have a great time!

I was following along with this thread since my husband and I have our first trip planned to London this summer. We have a current reservation at The Montague on the Gardens in Bloomsbury, but I'm always on the look out for other options, lol. I tried to search for Hilton London Green Park and looks like it's permanently closed.

 

[BayouQueen]

I was following along with this thread since my husband and I have our first trip planned to London this summer. We have a current reservation at The Montague on the Gardens in Bloomsbury, but I'm always on the look out for other options, lol. I tried to search for Hilton London Green Park and looks like it's permanently closed.

Oh, no. What a shame. Although it did need a remodel. The location is great. When we stayed there, we took a morning walk around the area and saw a lot of people dressed up, hats and all. Come to find out it was a Buckingham Palace garden party day and many guests stayed around there in order to walk over to the party. So cute!

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

I was following along with this thread since my husband and I have our first trip planned to London this summer. We have a current reservation at The Montague on the Gardens in Bloomsbury, but I'm always on the look out for other options, lol. I tried to search for Hilton London Green Park and looks like it's permanently closed.

We stopped off in London for a few days when I took my family to South Africa on safari. Since we’d spent the bulk of our budget on the safari portion of the trip and London was a later add on, we had a pretty tight budget. We stayed at The London House Hotel in Bayswater in a family room and were very happy with the location and price. It was near a tube stop and only a 10-15 minute ride from all the tourist sites.

Just wanted to mention it in case anyone with a tighter budget is reading this thread.