I'm looking for an inexpensive and safe place to stay for 6 women in or around central London. Is it wise to look outside London and 'tube' in every day? Also does the Wimbledon effect hotel prices and crowds in London?

Stayed at the St Christopher's Inn, Greenwich. It wasn't all that far from the city center and could get in by train in about 20 min. Decent priced food around there (if you don't mind kebabs/F and C/and Indian). There is a supermarket nearby and a farmers market, but no kitchen. If you were so inclinded, it's fairly cheap and easy to go make some sanwiches.

I wasn't planning to go "budget" on that particular trip, but as it turned out, I got sick of the food after the first week and would rather make my own. Subsequently, I only ended up spending about 250GBP in 10 days for hostel, food, drink, transportation within London, laundry etc.

I recently used Priceline for a week's visit. If you don't have a specific hotel requirement, that is an option. I got the Holiday Inn Kensington Forum for $75 a night, an excellent price for London. The best rate I found for that hotel otherwise was £98 , so Priceline saved me 50%. The hotel was just a block or so from the Gloucester Road tube station and very convenient.

If you haven't used Priceline before read through the posts at biddingfortravel to find out about zones, star ratings, and the hotels you can expect.

London can be done on a budget, but you may have to dig a bit. Have fun.

I got the Holiday Inn Kensington Forum for $75 a night, an excellent price for London. The best rate I found for that hotel otherwise was £98 , so Priceline saved me 50%.

We've booked it on PL too, for 24th June - 2 nights. How did you find the hotel & ease of getting around... any tips???

If you are going to utilize a Priceline booking, keep in mind that they book you as 2 people per room. European hotels are notorious for restricting the number of persons per room as reserved. If you intend to have more than 2 persons per room, be upfront about it at the check-in desk.

I agree that Priceline is likely be your best bet for the best combination of value and comfort, although hostel dorms would be cheaper (you could get something for 10 pounds per person there). Also check out university residences, if they are available during your trip:
http://www.venuemasters.co.uk/holiday_travelstay.asp

Also check this site:
http://www.studios92.com

Welcome to FlyerTalk DangerMouse!

EmailKid

We've booked it on PL too, for 24th June - 2 nights. How did you find the hotel & ease of getting around... any tips???

The hotel was fine, a fairly typical HI high-rise. I would stay there again, but I did not eat in their restaurant. The menu prices were more than I was willing to spend, but their pub was nice. It is just a block or so from the Gloucester Road tube station and easy to get anywhere in London from there. There is a handy convenience market just outside the station and although there are a few restaurants in the area, High Street and South Kensington are close with more choices.

Enjoy your stay.

There are plenty of hostels and private small hotels around the Earl's Court area that are cheap to stay in. You should be able to get a room for ~15pound a night.

Also it's just 5mins down the road from the Holiday Inn that the others mention.

Earl's Court is on the boundary of zone 1 and 2 of the underground so it'll be cheaper to go in and out of London.

People should really say what budget means to them, $75/night is not what I consider budget...

Another area to consider is Paddington/Bayswater.

Also check out travelodge.co.uk. If you can bear it, the family rooms will sleep 3 - (granted using the sofa/pull out bed option)

Actually based on a friend's experience in Edinburgh, St. Christophers was a great place to stay (personally I don't DO hostels because I'm a raving snob who needs her own bathroom... will share with husband when strictly necessary...) It was clean, cheap and central

I'm looking for an inexpensive and safe place to stay for 6 women in or around central London. Is it wise to look outside London and 'tube' in every day? Also does the Wimbledon effect hotel prices and crowds in London?

Another thing to consider is that the tube shuts at 1200AM....After that your on buses or cabs. It will be summer so prices will be expensive anyway, I would consider a hostel over a hotel. Depending on what you would call budget but I would not consider $75/night to be budget either. I wouldn't look outside London, the hassle isnt worth the saving. In central London there are plenty of good hostels, but hotels wont come cheap that time of year

The best bet I can offer is to 'Priceline it' - expect to spend approx. $100 a night for a four star hotel [priceline's definition] and then realize the property you get will feel like a 3 star hotel. But that's how hotels are in London. If you want a U.S.-style four star; you're going to be in the $300+ area. A five star is $500+. Because public transport is pretty good, you're almost assured of being on/near a tube/bus line. I've never stayed anywhere that wasn't less than a quarter mile from a transit stop.

This is going to sound completely goofy, but listen anyhow: :)

I'm currently beavering away with the Choice hotel program. In addition to their usual properties, they also have an agreement with Preferred Hotels, which is a pretty upscale chain. One of the places I'm looking at in London is the Plaza on the River (don't have a link, but it's easy to find).

The advantage is, it's an all-suite property. They have different levels of suites, and they might be able to accomodate six people in one (I know they have at least 2-brm suites). Living room, full kitchen, etc. And it's located right across the river from the Houses of Parliament (at Vauxhall Bridge, if I'm not mistaken) -- a perfect location for all the touristy stuff, and pretty much a completely safe location.

I suspect you might be able to get a suite for $400/night or more, but summer may make a difference. Anyhow, divided by 6, it might not be too bad.

May still be out of your budget, but check it out for yourself. Also, not only for this property, but for any place you might consider, go to http://www.tripadvisor.com and find the reviews. Could save you a lot of grief.

Enjoy -- you're gonna love London.

Just FYI, the other caveat with Priceline is that London is one of those places where many rooms will only fit 2, ignoring any issues about upcharging and such. So to compare this to other options, you have to consider doing 3 rooms on Priceline to guarantee enough space for 6 people. And it's likely each of those rooms will only have one bed, if that's an issue.

It's true that a better idea of what price range is "budget" helps to narrow choices. Depending upon who you're talking to, $75 Priceline rooms could be a great bargain or unobtainable. Priceline is what we did in London, but we budget the trips accordingly and only ever need one room. We got our taste of other types of accommodations outside the city.

I've gotten twin rooms every time in London with Priceline. (At least six bids.)

Thanks for all the great advise, I see I have my work cut out for me. I've done Priceline before, I guess I'm a control freak, didn't like the idea of blindly having to accept what they offer you. Thank goodness for the internet I believe with all your suggestions I should be able to come up with something safe and comfortable. I just have the movie The Out-of Towners stuck in my head, us aimlessly walking the streets dragging our luggage tired and hungry!

Safe

Budget

Central London

And I'll add:

Clean

Comfortable Beds.

How about the newly opened Travelodge Mary-le-bone (near Baker Street).
www.travelodge.co.uk

Or any other Travelodges in London for that matter (also mentioned by WillTravel earlier)

But only if you can find them at the £26 a night rate.

The triple rooms, or family rooms (if two of you don't mind sharing a double - which is two twins 'fixed' together) all let 3 people share them.

These aren't hostels but decent rooms (the beds are far more comfortable than the Thistle Marble Arch - a priceline favourite) with ensuite facilities. And at potentially under £9 each person are the best budget option available in London.

Beware with Travelodge - once you check out you have to carry your luggage. They won't hold it for you under any circumstances (same if you arrive before your allotted check in time). Also, no toileteries, just soap. And no hairdryers either (but you can buy one in the UK for less than £10 and share it - voltage is different here, so bring an 'international' one with you).