maberlin

I stayed there last June, not knowing it was so isolated. I was there for business at Canary Wharf, but even with the ferry it was inconvenient. I stayed late one night and had to take a taxi back to the hotel, which was 25 pounds! I think they are builiding a new hotel in Canary Wharf, but until then, just stay in another neighborhood. I stayed at the Trafalgar Hilton on my previous trip and it was fantastic.

Jassy-50

There are actually two Tube stations by the Metropole, both called Edgeware Road and both about 1/2 block from the hotel entrance. One of the stations is across Edgeware Rd. from the Metropole and up a bit to the left (as you face Edgeware from the hotel's entrance) and serves the Bakerloo line. The second station is across Edgeware and down Praed/Chapel St. (just past the Marks & Spencer) and serves the Circle, District and Hammersmith & City lines.

I enjoyed my stay at the Metropole, but it is a very big business/conference/tour groups type of hotel. We were treated very well there as Golds, receiving an upgraded room in the newer West Wing and a very early check-in upon arrival (about 9:30 am). Our room was not elegant but nice and comfortable, the executive lounge was not bad, and the employees were all friendly. The neighborhood was nothing much, but with so many subway lines just across the street it was easy to get around to various other parts of London. Unless you have lots of, or large/awkward bags, it is an easy 5-10 min. walk down Praed St. from Paddington Station.

simonsmith

I have had the unfortunate pleasure of staying at the Metropole several times and it is frankly awful. Big souless and uncaring. Avoid if at all possible. Docklands is variable some of the rooms are pretty ancient and it is in the sticks but then again it can be a good base from which to explore the East End. Equivalant rates can usually be had at the London South Kensington which is in a much better location near the museums etc. An average Hilton but good location and usually good rates. Waldorf and Trafalgar v central; as is the Euston but not stayed there.

Karter

Well I'll be checking in there tomorrow for the weekend. I used to live in that area so I know it's not ideal if you're a tourist or doing work in the City. However, the main reason that I'm staying there is because it has free parking. Maybe that's a bit petty but this is London. The national trains are such a mess so that I can't get home from London to Birmingham on a Sunday. It's so ridiculous that if I want to go to London for a weekend, I have to drive (and I'm not about to take a coach - yuck!).

Anyway, I'm hoping it's a nice enough hotel. Most of the negative feedback here has been about the location, but I'm fully aware of that and don't really mind at all. However, I'd be a bit disappointed if I were a foreigner in London on business or holiday and got put in a neighbourhood like that.

Travel The World

Stayed over night after visitng the nearby London Motor Show ... didn't fancy trekking back to the opposite side of London and then getting a train and then driving home !!

I read comments about this hotel on this forum before booking, and most were complimentary but warned of it's remote location - well that's true if your are intending to head off into London, but if you are wanting to visit Canary Wharf or Greenwich, both of which I thoroughly recommend, then it's ideal.

It's right on the Thames, directly opposite the sky scrappers of Canary Wharf and only 10 minutes by car to Greenwich (which you can also get to by bus, or Docklands light rail).

In fact our room was river facing and I spent a very pleasant Sunday morning reading the paper and watching the boats go by. Our room was large and very quiet. It oddly had a double bed and a single bed and a double sofa-bed and a chaise lounge (from which I watched the boats go by ) - so potentially slept 6 !!

Bathroom was small though.

Breakfast was excellent - the one thing you can say about UK Hiltons is that they know how to cook a fry-up, and this was the best I've experienced. A big choice of cooked food, and some fruit and stuff if you're watching what you eat.

The hotel runs a shuttle bus to the local underground station (Canada Water, 1 stop to Canary Wharf) and near that station is a cinema, bowling and American diners. There's also a boat direct from the Hilton that takes you across the Thames to Canary Wharf where there are 200 shops and restaurants. The boat though costs £5.40 for 2, ONE-WAY !! ouch

There are two distinct parts to the hotel, a converted old building (not sure what it was converted from) and 2 newer blocks. Initially we were in the old building (upgraded to a large delux plus room), but directly over the bar. We spoke to the Duty Manager and he moved us without any fuss to the newer building (one of the newer blocks was being refurbished and was closed), again a delux plus room and as I said with the fantastic view. The room in the old building had more character, but the view in our room ....

I guess you can say that I enjoyed the view

Karter

I also really enjoy this property as an alternative to the West End properties. I just want to add that the parking here is free, which is exceptional for London hotels. ^

Karter

It seems that Diamonds are treated rather well here. I stayed here last week and was upgraded to an apartment suite... separate bedroom with en suite bath, separate full kitchen (microwave, hob, oven, full-size fridge, sink, dishwasher and kettle), separate living room with sofa, large work desk and views of the River Thames. Fruit and wine was also left for me in the room, and on each day of my stay, a member of staff personally phoned to make sure everything was ok for me.

CVO 1K 2 Million

Are there any other (less expensive) alternatives to get to Canary Warf?

Land-of-Miles

Free shuttle bus to Canada Water Underground then a short tube ride. The bus service can be a little irregular though and does not match the convenience of the boat.

The Hilton Tower Bridge is possibly more convenient for Canary Wharf being only a short tube ride away and a short walking distance to Lon don Bridge Station. Prices at this property are comparable with Hilton Docklands and the Tower Bridge Property has a lounge and considerably nicer bathrooms and less idiosyncracies in room layout. On the other hand the Apartment Suites at Hilton Docklands would be great for a longer stay. I did dislike the small bed however and I thought the property was a little shabby in places e.g. one heater in my room had fallen off the wall.

Flying Lawyer

Well, a one station tube ride is for sure not cheaper. And if you hold a travel card, you get a certain discount on the ferry. Considering timing: The ferry take 10 minutes at the utmost. Shuttle and tube about 25 minutes.

kawoh

As I live around the area, I can help here!

1) Catch the Hilton shuttle (seems very very regular, it's always zooming up and down salter road to Canada Water tube station) - if you get an oyster card (costs about £2, refundable, and gets you the cheapest possible fares on the tube - typically £1 for all zone 2 - canada water to canary wharf - or about £4-5 for an all day depending on whether it's before or after 930am)

2) Hilton docklands ferry takes you across to the other side of the water, (ie canary wharf), it is about a 5-7 min walk to one canada square, credit suisse, bank of america, hsbc, etc from there and is a very nice walk. There is what i consider the best yum cha in london directly across - royal china. Fares are correct about £2.60-2.75 each way, per person. However, if you say you have a "travelpass" typically a weekly oyster prepaid on your oyster card, you will get the fare depending on how many you buy, as low as £1.25 each way (for 20 one way trips), if u want less it's about £1.50 each way). The ferries are reliable and ALWAYS on time (get a time calendar - typically it's every 15-20 mins). If you walk a little further south to Greenland dock, you can also catch the ferry to the north side of Waterloo instead of catching the tube (dearer fare though).

A few other things about this property - it's in a suburban area, lots of families, kids, boring stuff. A few restaurants near Canada Water station (heading towards Deptford) and a 24 hour tesco there (it is a solid 15 min walk or free on the hilton shuttle. There is a very cheap Witherspoons across the road from the Surrey Quays shopping centre (£1.99 breakfasts, 2 meals for £5.50, etc). If you venture within the suburban parts of this area, there are also a few qaint pubs, some with 2 meals for £5.95 during the day overlooking the docks/water - ie Moby Dick opposite Greenland Dock - you can walk through the park from the Hilton Docklands to get there. On the way, you can stop at Stave Hill and get great views across London (local secret).

The area is very un-london in alot of ways, it is reclaimed land. They used to build ships throughout this whole area. About 15 years ago the derilect area was cleaned out, many of the docks where they built ships filled with sand (about 5-10% of the original docks remain) but you can see signs of this throughout. They built some nice parks and heaps of nice townhouses throughout this area with some splatterings of low rise apartments as well. It's a safe area (some say an oasis) surrounded by deptford and bermondsey which aren't so nice but quite a distance away - thse areas were bombed alot during ww2, the government post this, built plenty of unsightly local authority housing.

There is a bus which runs to Waterloo tube station which is £1 or £1.50 just near the hotel. I believe it's the 310. Might be a slightly cheaper option if you want to avoid the tube, but more cumbersome. But it does give you a chance to enjoy the views of London on the way to Waterloo.

Hope this helps,
kawoh.

obs

Spent a night at the Hilton Docklands last Saturday. The hotel is a bit away from things but has a free shuttle bus to Canada Water underground. They run every 1o minutes until 2300 hours.
The hotel overlooks the Thames, and is in 3 sections which are linked by walkways. Checked in and had the wife + 2 kids with me. They treat golds quite well here. They do not have a lounge, but have an Hhonors area with expedited check in, free tea, coffee, bottled water and fruit. I was given a large room overlooking the Thames and free breakfast. The room and hotel was clean and tidy and staff were helpful. The leisure club was at the front of the hotel, and not connected to by any covered walkway. Used the pool which was really hot. No I mean really HOT.
One other plus was the car park was free, this is a real bonus for London. It is an underground car park and a bit tough to park, but it was secure.
Overall quite a good stay. Would stay there again for £100

Akulashark

Checked in, presented diamond card, the new girl behind the desk grabbed the manager because she had never checked in a diamond. Upgraded to a huge room overlooking the Thames. Every day at breakfast the guy seating pulled me out of line and got me to my seat for free breakfast.

They have a shuttle that runs from the hotel to Canada Water, or you can take the ferry (not free) over to canary warf but it is a pretty good walk to the tube.

My last day they pulled a towel out of my suitcase and sent it to be laundered, it was my towel and I am pretty angry about it. They never replaced my wash clothes or towels in my bathroom, but for whatever reason they took my towel.

BAGoldBoy

I should have listened to Raffles

Got to Canada Water and couldn't see the signs for the bus stop so decided to walk as there was a sign outside pointing to the Hilton. 15 minutes! Took me a little longer carrying a heavy laptop bag and dodging the torrential rain. By the time I got to hotel I was hot, wet and thoroughly fed up. Of course my wife had gone to Canada Water and immediately found the bus stop and journeyed in the dry

Check in required photo id due to the heightened security - but they accepted two credit cards

Room was OK - on 6th floor but the elevator door jammed open so long trek through winding corridors to get to room. No AC and very warm and muggy. Room not cleaned very well - dirty crockery and a previous occupants shower gel hanging in the bathroom.

The property really is not well situated and there are only two pubs nearby - one serves reasonably good Thai food.

The ferry to Canary Wharf cost £2.50 and leaves every 10 minutes

Overall not a great property and no longer cheap - I'll try elsewhere next time

Flying Lawyer

I had lengthy discussions with them about room quality (booked deluxe plus and ended up in some kind of dorm (for myself) and in the end they even overcharged the rate by adding VAT to a VAT inclusive rate. I liked this hotel in the past, but compared to the new Canary Wharf Hilton, this is a dump.