Finkface

What if Paddington was thrown into the mix? Trafalgar >Paddington?

sarahluv

yes

wizla

Yes, I like Paddington too, nice lounge overlooking the station concourse......the tower lounge is supposed to be nice but you need to book a tower room, still not as close to the main attractions as trafalgar/Waldorf.

Finkface

I booked it just to see what I got and they offered me a tower room upgrade for £29. I still have Trafalgar booked as well. Decisions, decisions.

wizla

I personally would go for the tower room upgrade option but then I’m itching for an excuse to see what these are like ( amazing apparently according to some friends/ colleges ) however the trafalgar is probably the better option for you if location is king, it’s also supposed to be very nice too.

pauleeepaul

My last stay at the Trafalgar was 4-5 years ago, but i was there last night for one night as I am in the Park Lane for the rest of the week but Friday night was fully booked. The Trafalgar location is great- but the hotel is a 3.5 star at best. There is no lobby, and the overall impression is one of the Brussels City property with slightly more generous proportions.

Over to the PL, early checkin at noon, high floor exec room with Mayfair view (suite upgrade was not available.) Little work out then brunch upstairs.

wizla

Sounds like a nice afternoon mate, dunno if you in the lounge tonight but my last stay in November was really impressive, the lounge canapés was the best I’ve ever seen!

golfingboy

We are planning a three night mini vacation trip to London and I am currently looking into hotels in the area. I have a free weekend night certificate that I intend to use.

We get into LHR at 745am the first day then depart at 945am on the last day from LHR. Flying AA.

For the first two nights, I am looking at Conrad St James, Waldorf, Trafalgar, Bankside, Tower Bridge, and some others. Location is the most important thing (both central and close to a tube station) followed by overall hotel amenities (room, breakfast, service, et cetera).

Then the third night given the relatively early departure I am thinking about booking one of the hotels near LHR. From what I gather both Hiltons are rather equal especially for a straightforward overnight stay. Which hotel you believe provides best accessibility to terminal 3?

Or do you suggest spending three nights in central London and heading to LHR early on the last day?

TIA!

jzafar

I have a trip to London coming up and chose Conrad as it is the top Hilton property in London. The complimentary executive lounge access for Diamonds is a big draw as Trafalgar does not have a lounge. I have stayed at the Waldorf many times and am excited to try the Conrad. I am using the free night certificate for one of my nights. When I called to book that, the agent told me Conrad was 2 levels above the Trafalgar. Not sure if that's true but will see how it is and report back here.

My flight leaves at 10 AM on AA on a Monday morning and I've been told I need to be in the car heading to Heathrow BY 6 AM. I'm not happy about that but will manage. I thought about moving to an airport hotel but decided to stay at the Conrad and enjoy a last full day in Central London.

shmom

We are going to London in two weeks. After hours of research we settled on Conrad St. James. We are using points for our 5 night stay. Honestly it seemed a bit nicer than the Trafalgar where I originally had reservations. We have a Friday a.m. flight and we are staying Thursday night at the Hilton Garden Inn. We also leave from Terminal 3. I am sure we will end up getting a cab from hotel to airport. I have to get two rooms so I couldn't justify a paid night at the Conrad which would have been crazy pricey for using cash for two rooms vs. the HGI. I think I am saving about $500.Our plan is to sightsee all that last day and then get a car to the airport hotel in the early/mid evening.

pauleeepaul

For any flight after 9 am- and candidly before as well- an uber or taxi to Paddington and the HEX will be fine in terms of in time arrival at LHR and allow you to enjoy your last full day in London in the center and not require you to check out and haul your luggage around/otherwise worry about it.

If you have more in luggage than one rolling bag and and one hand carried bag per adult you might need a car the whole journey, even then departing the center in the morning 2.5 hours before flight departure time is safe enough.

SeattleDavid

When I have early-ish flights (8.30 onwards – earlier and I stay at LHR) then I like the Hilton Paddington, since HEX gets you straight to Heathrow in 15-20 minutes, which is about as fast as you could do it from T4!

Flights from 10am onwards would lead me to stay at the Doubletree Kensington, since I can then just take the Piccadilly line straight to Heathrow.

And I would never take a car from central London to Heathrow - even when on expenses!

wizla

If it was me I would stay at the Waldorf for the main stay as it’s a great hotel and very central to indeed but I would move to Hilton Paddington for my final night as it’s 20 mins on a train to Heathrow the following morning.

IcHot

I would move to the HGI at Hatton Cross the night before the flight.

It should be much cheaper and there's little benefit to that last night at a nicer hotel in Central London, IMO. I'd check dates and rates to be sure, but you could have a good night's rest and a nice splurge on the difference.

diamond club freeloader

Yes! 3 nights is a short trip. If I was you, I'd not disrupt the third day with a hotel move since it is really likely to interfere with your enjoyment and freedom on that day. My approach would be to stay at a good but not extortionate hotel (which varies according to day of the week in London!). If you can buy into the cost of Conrad/Bankside/Tower bridge/Waldorf for all 3 nights that would be a recipe for a great trip!

Heathrow may be far from the city centre, but you're no more than 45 minutes away when staying at any city centre hotel. So leaving by 7am would be fine. Whether you take a car to Paddington followed by heathrow express vs car all the way to heathrow probably doesn't matter much time-wise, but the cost difference depends on the number of travellers. The main thing is that saving 25-30 mins of morning travel time is not worth the upheaval of moving on your last day (especially to a tedious airport hotel!)

Enjoy the trip!