The Lemon Fool

Hi all,
Clariman and I are trying to formulate a plan for a jolly day off from work to come to London and meet some of you (all of you would be nice)

We would hitch up in a local hotel and enjoy
a) a lie in saturday
b) a chance to take the wives on saturday (if they come) for a day out in the sites of London; Shopping, being mugged by mopeds and travelling around underground.

The question is - when?
I assume friday is a better day for all involved?

If not many turn up - a few beverages are on me !

Have you got an approximate date in mind?
As per above threads, we're pondering the Autumn Social (as they seem to have become quarterly-ish affairs)
We are looking at late Sept/early October, which may be too far down the road. I'm sure you'd get a few along on a Friday if you planned an earlier date. We could have a Late Summer Social...

If not many turn up - a few beverages are on me !
I like that bit, but have you checked out London prices these days? Shocking ! Tsssk!
Cheers
A C

I'm not sure of the exact moped mugging season but you're bound to at least catch the tail end....

London hotels are expensive - I recently found this which is v basic, but clean, functional and not too expensive: https://www.premierinn.com/gb/en/hotels ... 7AQAvD_BwE

Really well-placed for Houses Of Parliament, Buck House etc.

I'd come in Sept if I were you, miss the school holidays but before the winter sets in.

Mel

Covent Garden Travelodge is a terrific budget choice. Big rooms. Excellent breakfast, short walk to Central area with some great restaurants. Cheap bar with ambience. Great views on upper floors.

tea42 wrote:Covent Garden Travelodge is a terrific budget choice. Big rooms. Excellent breakfast, short walk to Central area with some great restaurants. Cheap bar with ambience. Great views on upper floors.

I am sort of snobby when it comes to hotels but I have to say that London hotel prices are insane these days. I have had a couple of friends/relatives visiting us this summer and could not find much of anything decent in London since Wimbledon started for much under 200 quid a night.

The only other options were Travelodge and Premier Inns. To be honest, Travelodges can be quite nasty although their new "Travelodge Plus" range is trying to address that. The company had some severe financial problems which I think stopped them investing in their properties.

Premier Inns are a part of Whitbread and, although cheap and cheerful, they have nice comfortable beds and are clean. Found one for our in-laws for about 60 quid - can't beat that with a stick.

tea42 wrote:Covent Garden Travelodge is a terrific budget choice. Big rooms. Excellent breakfast, short walk to Central area with some great restaurants. Cheap bar with ambience. Great views on upper floors.

Ha ha, we obviously have different budgets - you can't get a room there for less than £150pn!

I work in London and commute, people always say "why don't you just get a cheap hotel" - yeah, you find me a cheap hotel (train fare is £25 on a weekly season tkt) and I'll stay in it. Proviso - own bathroom, near a Tube, no sharing and no fleas!

Mel

Be careful when looking for "Hotels in London". The Premier Inn Sidcup, which I have stayed in quite a few times is found under "London Sidcup". OK it is in the "Greater London Area" and a short hop by Train to the City but for the unweary it may disappoint if you expect to walk out of hotel to visit the "tourist" hot spots.

I know I am a "hotel" snob but my daughter lived there and there is no "Upmarket" brand in that area. To be honest though the rooms were extremely good, great beds and superb "full English" as well. Where she lives now there is no "decent" hotels and I am now sleeping on a blow up bed, which by morning has always deflated a bit. Oh well, at least she has moved up the property market in "London" (well Welling , Kent as I still know it as).

Interesting concept of "putting faces" to names.

Raptor.

Costs me £70 to get back to Shropshire. At least my mum doesn't charge me for the room. Well, not yet.

DAK why this thread has its own warning triangle?

I haven't seen that before.

Watis

You can select topic and post icons - hopefully this one will have a heart

AleisterCrowley wrote:You can select topic and post icons - hopefully this one will have a heart

Yes, it does.

So stooz must have chosen to put the warning icon on his OP.

Thank you,

Watis

Travelodge Covent Garden? Our attitude to Central London hotels is that its just a place to lay your head, eat a quick breakfast and have a late night G&T in tbe bar. Ambience doesnt come into it, plenty of other places round and about to get that. Two restaurants nearby that we really rate - Cantina Laredo and Dishoom. We stay in that Travelodge from where its easy to walk all over London, the City, Imperial War Museum, the Zoo and all the theatres are on your doorstep. We book well ahead to get good deals. Tbe Premier Inn on Leicester Squ isnt a patch on it.

C'mon you London members.

None of you have accommodation and hospitality to offer to our hard-working founders?

tea42 wrote:Travelodge Covent Garden? Our attitude to Central London hotels is that its just a place to lay your head, eat a quick breakfast and have a late night G&T in tbe bar. Ambience doesnt come into it, plenty of other places round and about to get that. Two restaurants nearby that we really rate - Cantina Laredo and Dishoom. We stay in that Travelodge from where its easy to walk all over London, the City, Imperial War Museum, the Zoo and all the theatres are on your doorstep. We book well ahead to get good deals. Tbe Premier Inn on Leicester Squ isnt a patch on it.

I've never been in a Travelodge that had a bar!

Cantina Lorado is fab, but it changed a lot quite recently and is not as good as it used to be. Dishoom is great but the CG one not a patch on the Kings Cross one.

I've looked at some random dates on that Traveldoge and you can get prices down to about £80. I don't mind Travelodge but with them and Prem Inn it really only comes down to what building they are in. The Travelodge on the A1 north of P'boro is a total dump. The one near Kings Cross is OK.

Mel

The CG Travelodge is their 'flagship' which probably accounts for the bar. Its in two parts, you want the one entered from Drury Lane, not the tower on the North side of High Holbon.

melonfool wrote:I've never been in a Travelodge that had a bar!

Mel

Out of town in new developments, it seems commonplace for Premier Inns and Travelodge to build a pub next door. Other chains as well. Even Wetherspoons are getting in on the act by adding hotel accommodation to some of their city centre pubs.

The Premier inns I've stayed at have had a Beefeater next door - (also Whitbread I think)

Well, I've def been in ones next to pubs or chain restaurants, but none with a bar *in* them.


Mel

melonfool wrote:Dishoom is great but the CG one not a patch on the Kings Cross one.

Finger in the air, what duration wait might a couple of diners expect at Dishoom Kings Cross, shipping up at 6.30pm on a Wednesday evening? For example

Cheers!

The one near me (Slough, Windsor Rd) has a bar /restaurant
It's cunningly described as being 'between buzzing London and historic Windsor'
Even the Copthorne calls itself the 'Slough-Windsor Copthorne', despite being nowhere near Windsor - it's in CHALVEY