united 1k flyer

Trying to decide between the Hilton Bankside and the Conrad as a diamond. Price is not relevant because am I using some free night certificates. Also if there are better Hilton’s than these please let me know. I have never been to London before and am very excited.

teemuflyer

Very much depends on what you are interested in beyond the hotel itself. My regular recommendation for first time visitors to London is the Waldorf due to it's relatively central location and it's "old world" charm. The Conrad in some respects is a higher end property, but doesn't have the same proximity to numerous restaurants and theaters and such.Once you get to know London better, one can choose other locations based on length of stay and more targeted interests. One thing London is not lacking is Hilton hotels..

umustbjokim

Will probably be a little bit of both. Definitely will be spending plenty of time out and about, but with a week would also expect to have some downtime at the hotel. Leaning slightly towards the Park Lane, as the exec lounge would likely be a nice place to relax on occasion, versus the armchair in the room.

wizla

Yes, very much agree a big plus is the Waldorf too has a great spa to relax in after a hard day sightseeing , a sauna and swim definitely reenergises for the evening in the executive lounge or catching a show at the nearby theatres........ would definitely be my choice......... no spa at the Conrad and no sauna at Bankside.

Stuttgart21

Would you care to help me pick a Hilton property from the following list:

DT Westminster; DT West End; DT Victoria; Hilton Euston; DT London Angel Kings Cross; Hilton Metropole; Hilton Paddington; DT Chelsea; Hilton Olympia; Hilton Kensington.

(If you wonder how I came up with the list: Those are the budget options during my travel dates.)

My preferences are: (i) Reasonably modern/clean; (ii) central location; (iii) somewhat reasonable travel time to LHR (will use Picadilly line, not one of the more expensive options). I'm a CC Gold.

Bartolo

Full disclosure: I’ve never stayed at any of these properties but I know London very well.

If you want central, disregard the Angel. It’s a jaunt, except for Sadlers Wells. I’d say the same for Euston and Kings Cross unless your activities will be at the University or the British Museum. Welcome Trust is nearby, too. Of the two and again depending on your activities, Euston would be considered more central. I’ve walked by several times and it looks modern but I’ve never been inside. Walkable to the zoo. Kensington doesn’t exactly fit your central requirement and Olympia certainly doesn’t. Caveat for all is depending on how you will spend your time.

Victoria could be central, depending what you want to do. Paddington is somewhat central. Keep in mind, both are " typically very very busy areas. I’ve been in the Victoria one a couple of times. Even tho not a guest, concierge was helpful. Property seemed a bit “tired” but I didn’t see a room.

I have a vague recollection there were favourable comments about DT West End location up thread. If you could indicate the types of activities you will be spending time on and how far you are prepared to walk, more specific feedback is possible.

fyi, if you are using the tube to/from LHR (Picadilly) try to avoid a change to District/Circle/Metropolitan lines. Difficult with luggage.

MP001

I would go for one of the following, based on what part of London you prefer to be. They are not great but they are decent and well connected, Hilton Paddington has also trains going to heathrow that sometimes - if bought in advance - are not much more expensive than the tube.
DT Victoria
Hilton Metropole
Hilton Paddington

xooz

I believe the TFL Rail link to Paddington, while more expensive than the straight Tube fee can even make financial sense if you intend to travel around on your day of arrival. Since there is a cap on daily tube expense, if you are going to hit the cap then the train option (particularly if you stay at Hilton Paddington) makes sense.

Stuttgart21

I'm meeting up with friends and am unsure where it's gonna take us. Could be Hackney, Peckham, Camden Town, Brixton, or ???. I'm clueless except that it seems unlikely we'll spend time fine-dining in Mayfair or Marylebone. And btw, IDK London very well despite the name-dropping. I guess I want a location central for public transport, as I know London commutes can be long.

---

And thanks for the suggestions!

corporate-wage-slave

All hotels are currently squeaky clean for obvious reasons.
i - modern - DT Westminster, Angel and Chelsea. Oldest are Euston (but recently refurbished), West End, Paddington (regularly refurbished, it's a traditional railway hotel)
ii - central - West End, Victoria, Metropole. I mark down Paddington slightly, but it's very near Metropole.
iii - Heathrow proximity - ah well, Olympia isn't on the tube but tube to Hammersmith plus bus makes it quite fast! Kensington also. But Paddington and Metropole are going to win this battle.

Taking your three criteria in the round, and not looking at room rates I would suggest: Paddington or Metropole using TfL Rail (or indeed the tube), DT Victoria as a maybe. Not mentioned but fulfills your criteria: Curio 100 Queens Gate, short hop from South Kensington tube.

xooz

Since I am from the US I hadn't checked London hotels recently, but point redemptions are certainly appealing. 26K for Paddington standard room caught my eye, though I would purchase the room at 79 GBP I think. Looks like great deals for those allowed to take advantage.

teemuflyer

I'm definitely in the Paddington camp. More charm than Metropole IMHO. And I always take the HEX into town from LHR, so that convenience can't be beat. Now if I wanted to be central, definitely the Waldorf..

sarahluv

Everywhere will take you 30-45 mins to get to, but with that list, I'd recommend DT Victoria just due to the location:
1. victoria line/mainline train to brixton
2. mainline to peckham
3. victoria line and then overground to dalston
4. victoria/northern to camden.

Also from heathrow, it's piccadilly line to hammersmith and cross platform change for victoria.

wizla

My choice from your chosen list would be the metropole.
I actually prefer the ambience of Hilton Paddington but the metropole has a great gym and spa to relax in .

Stuttgart21

Thanks all for the valuable advice!

I simply wasn't aware that the TfL rail counts towards the daily contactless cap of GBP 13.20 (in case I use zones 1-6). That's a fair price in my eyes for sure. Thus, I def retract my previous comment that I will take the Piccadilly line in and out of Heathrow.

Just a quick follow-up question: Does the TfL rail serve T5? I did some googling which suggests I would have to take Heathrow Express or something to the Heathrow Terminals 2 & 3 station. But Google maps navigation claims the TfL rail runs from T5.

Anyways, I think you guys helped me to narrow it down a lot. It's between the Hilton London Paddington and DT London Victoria now for me.

Only reason I haven't pulled the trigger on either one just yet is that there are recent reviews on both properties (off FT) which mention ongoing renovations. (E.g, March 2020 reviews on Tripadvisor on both properties claim that. Due to corona, there aren't many more recent reviews. The FT threads on the two properties haven't seen any new posts within the last few months.)