konaflyer

I am going to London in a week for a one week stay . I have enough Hilton points (or can transfer some in) to stay at any of the Hiltons in London. I am probably going to go to many of the usual tourist sites like the Parliament, Westminster Abby, the house that Diana lived in, and maybe take in a play. I am also flying our of London via the London City Airport. I would like a really nice hotel with a good club floor (have Diamond status) that would have easy access to the sites and the airport. A spa would be a lovely addition as would a historic hotel. I may also have enough points to stay at a SPG hotel if you think that they are much better.

I also heard about a transport card called an oyster card I believe. Is that a good thing to buy? Any other tourist tips would be really appreciated. Looking forward to your input!!

flatlander

Oyster is the public transport stored value payment card. You can also use most contactless payment cards, or Apple Pay on an apple device. One of these is essential for getting around - do not buy single tickets, they are very much more expensive and less convenient.

jerry a. laska

If your requirements are an executive floor and lounge then you are for the most part limited to the full service Hilton properties. You should review some of the relevant threads in the Hilton forum:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/hilto...om-gbr-68.html
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/hilto...es-gbr-38.html
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/hilto...ge-gbr-27.html
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/hilto...on-gbr-64.html
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/hilto...ne-gbr-41.html

rollingdeep

If you want to save points the Wembley one is basic but is pretty easy to get to and from London. It used to be quite a lot cheaper than the ones in central London.

Gulliver_UK

The new Hilton Bankside ( http://www3.hilton.com/en/hotels/uni...nkside-LONSBHI ) could work well for you; especially if you are comfortable walking around to get to places. Being about a year old it is clearly not a historic property, but hopefully all the facilities are now up and running and still in excellent condition.

This hotel is very close to the Tate Modern, Borough Market, St Paul's Cathedral, the cultural attractions of the Southbank, and walkable (or a short taxi ride) to Westminster, The Tower of London, Hyde Park/Kensington Gardens, Tower Bridge etc.

The connection to London City Airport is relatively easy (short walk/taxi to the Jubilee Line at Southwark, and transfer at Canning Town to the DLR for London City Airport).

I cannot comment on Exec benefits here I am afraid - I am sure a search of Flyertalk for this specific hotel will provide more info however.

Disclaimer: I live five minutes walk away from this hotel.

Kettering Northants QC

I always used to like the Doubletree Westminster when I used to stay there for business (when it was called The Mint). Apple Macs for free use in each room and a modern decor. Very close to Houses of Parliament, Westminster, Tate Britain, MI5

konaflyer

Thank you for the replies to date. I appreciate your taking time to reply. I will check on the hotel websites that you have mentioned. Before hearing from anyone, i made a reservation just to have something booked at tbe
Waldorf but was thinking of trying to change to the Park Lane. Any comments?

krispy84

I haven't stayed in either but here are some general thoughts:

Location

Both well located and each within walking distance to some of the main tourist attractions. Park Lane is a little closer to a Tube station than The Waldorf but not by much. Re. restaurants and bars etc. in the immediate vicinity of the hotels, Park Lane is in Mayfair so think expensive to very expensive but with good food and good drinks, vibe = Hedge Fund. The Waldorf is in Aldwych/Covent Garden which has a wider range of cuisines and prices but with the risk of falling into a rubbish tourist trap place. Vibe = definitely a little touristy but still 'real' London.

Building

The Waldorf is in a period building and the road it's on has lots of period stone façades. Park Lane is a 1960s tower, which they are only ever going to be able to do a limited amount with from a decor perspective. The views clearly are a big attraction. I would try for a SE facing room for the best view over central London and the Thames, N or W won't give you as good a view (although W will be over Hyde Park if you like that). There is also a v good restaurant and bar on the 27/28th floors, although you obviously don't need to be staying in the hotel to go there.

London_traveller

From a location perspective I would put the Waldorf ahead of Park Lane.

Although it's easy to get around central London, the immedicate vicinity around the Park Lane Hilton isn't so great - lots of traffic and not much at all in the way of bars and restaurants.

The Waldorf is better located in terms of access to some of the attractions you'll want to see. Also, it's on the borders of (the tourist mecca of) Covent Garden. Where, if you research, some really great restaurants exist. Some markedly average ones aimed at unwitting tourists too, but I think it's a better location. To get around look at bus routes - in that part of town you can get pretty much anywhere you'll want to go (and walk to many places too).

The building is older as well.

Get an Oyster card for your travel around - it's the best way to do it. Contactless credit/debit cards should work too. These have a clear advantage over purchasing travel cards in that you pay single fare journeys until you hit the daily cap, equivalent to the cost of a daily travel card. So it is always the better value option.

Getting to City Airport from the Waldorf is fairly straightforward. The easiest is to get an Uber! But failing that, a short (10-12 min) bus journey to Bank, where you can catch a DLR train direct to city airport (20-ish minutes).

Enjoy this beautiful city!

MoreMilesPlease

Not full service but the Hampton Inn at Waterloo is in a good location. Ten minute walk from Walterlook Station. Near the London Eye and Southbank. Good Breakfast in the morning.

VivoPerLei

Agree with this. Have stayed there and used the second floor bar area for meeting clients on occasion. Doesn't sound like a fit for the OP's requirements, though.

Swiss Tony

As HH gold, most times I have received an upgrade to include club access, and also an upgrade to an "executive" room, which includes a free non-alcoholic minibar.

I would be wary about putting too much focus on it being an old building - far prefer Bankside or Tower Bridge Hiltons to the Waldorf.

rcspeirs

Getting to City airport. Details matter - what time? The road network in the evening rush hour can be dreadful (especially near Tower Bridge and Blackwall tunnel - areas you have to pass en route to LCY). Tube/DLR quicker in rush hour.....

konaflyer

Can you explain why?

konaflyer

[QUOTE=London_traveller;27013949]
Get an Oyster card for your travel around - it's the best way to do it. Contactless credit/debit cards should work too. These have a clear advantage over purchasing travel cards in that you pay single fare journeys until you hit the daily cap, equivalent to the cost of a daily travel card. So it is always the better value option.

Thank you for your input on the Waldorf. I'm still not clear about the Oyster card. Where do I buy it? And what does "hitting a daily cap" mean? Can you give me an actual example of the cost of a single fare vs multiple uses of the oyster card in a day. Also what is a "contactless credit/debit card"? Sorry, we don't use that expression in the US.

Also, I am now going to be staying a few extra days in England so I was thinking of staying at the Hilton DoubleTree by London Excel which I think has a shuttle to the London City Airport. Am I correct?