I didn’t stay near Excel, where I stayed was mostly picked by my company. I was in 2 different hotels bc I was originally going for 3 nights and then they had me stay 2 nights longer.
I was at the Goodenough Club Hotel, near King’s Cross and right next to an NYU study abroad building; and then in a kind of weird place called The Corner (my room had no windows) in the Aldgate/Spitalfield area. I was all over the city for Climate Week events, probably got on/off at 15+ Tube stops.
i didn’t explore the area near Excel but it seemed kind of boring (I could be wrong!), so I would personally prefer to stay in a neighborhood with more nearby restaurants/shops/pubs for exploring.