GOING TO LONDON IN JUNE ----HOTEL?

There are thousands of hotels in London - you don't need to be near the West End. If you don't want to pay too much check the Earl's Court area in Kensington which is full of smaller hotels - 2 or 3 star places most of them. It's six subway stops from Piccadilly Circus.

But remember the exchange rate. One pound is worth two dollars so you need to mentally double the price on everything.

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I know the Strand Palace and it's a good choice - very convenient for Evita!

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It depends what room you get as to whether or not you have air condition. But yes, clearly it can be hot (and many hotels don't have air, not just the Strand). I don't remember any issues with security either in the lobby or in the hotel in general.

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I live in London and always put guests in the Strand Palace when they are looking for a bargain in a central location to theater (my guest room is now an office, so the Strand Palace is a convenient alternative).

If they can afford more, quite a bit more - the Savoy (directly across from the Stand Palace - riverview, please) or if they can afford a LOT, my favorite hotel in all of London, the small boutique Covent Garden (but you need big, big bucks and an "in" to get in).

The a/c is a bit of a problem at the Strand Palace, but the bigger rooms (and you should go for a bigger room - the small ones are quite cramped) have windows and a breeze.

Unfortunately, the wonderful special club floor with all kinds of perks along with your room there has basically been turned into a business conference area and that is a loss.

Also, be sure that if you are bothered by cigarette smoke that you make VERY clear that you MUST be in a non-smoking area. Also, the street side on the Strand can be very noisy with the traffic when your windows are open (or even closed), so if traffic noise bothers you, you might want an inner courtyard room instead.

I've never heard of any security problems in the lobby...it is a tourist hotel (lots of group tours from the Continent stay there and lots of sports fans)... and so there is LOTS of foot-traffic in the lobby at almost all times so it is not like you are in an isolated or deserted area.

The breakfasts (including with room packages) are WONDERFUL buffets and not your typical hideous "English breakfast".

Nobody I have ever put in the Strand Palace has ever complained about it. And that includes lots of actors.

I stayed in the La Meridian (right near Picadilly) when I was in London. It was very nice, but remember that hotel rooms are usually smaller than here in the US.

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The Park Lane on Picadilly is quite nice, centrally located and while it can be pricey, you can also get some deals there. It is right across from Green Park, near the Green Park stop on the Picadilly line. In one direction you are only a few stops from Harrod's, in the other direction you are only a few stops from the West End. And if the weather is nice you can skip the tube and walk. The rooms are small but comfortable, the bathrooms are luxurious and the staff is friendly.

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I useually use London Hotel Reservations.com or www.londontown.com when looking for hotels in London. Some of their rates are fairly reasonable.

If you want to stay near Liecester Square, there are two fairly reasonably priced (for London) hotels very close. Both are part of the Thistle chain. The Thistle Picadilly, which is situated right across from the Swiss Building at the entrance to the northern end of Liecester Square. if you have a room that overlooks the square, though, it can be pretty noisy. The Thistle Trafalgar Square is down the street, behind the National Gallery, and is much quieter.
London Hotel Reservations

I stayed at the Comfort Inn Kensington Hotel in Earls Court. Nothing fancy. A small tourist class hotel. It was a short walk to the underground station. You could easily get to shows.

When my mum was over visiting, I took her to stay at The Cumberland at Marble Arch (been there since 1929, now it's been given another name I believe Le Meridian, Marble Arch.) ANYWAY, they used to lock the doors to all entrances but the front one (to keep the streetwalkers out) after 8pm. So every night, when we came back, my mom would head for the side entrance and I would say, "Mom, it's locked, remember?" On the fourth night, she made for the side door and two hookers who were lolling about said "No, mum, the doors are locked, remember?"

Room: One hunderd pounds per night (back then). West End theatre tickets: 49 nounds 50 pence. Watching your mom get instructions from London streetwalkers? Priceless.

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Updated On: 3/1/07 at 08:17 PM

I also stayed at the Hotel Russell in Russell Square when I visited. Nice, clean, and I felt safe tourist class hotel (we were 3 college aged girls traveling, btw). The tube is max 2 blocks. There were a few pubs and we found a convenience/grocery store too there.
Maybe you can also try the London forum on TripAdvisor.com? They have some great advice there from the locals...

Other advice: Sadly, the theatre museum is closed, but even if you don't see a show there, do go into the lobby of the Theatre Royal Drury Lane. There are statues of Shakespeare and Noel Coward there. Make sure you go into the St. Paul Actor's Church in Covent Garden. The pillars which face the Opera House are the pillars where Eliza Doolittle meets Henry Higgins in Pygmalion and My Fair Lady. Do go into the church.
There are plaques to all the great British actors and the ashes of Ellen Terry, Edith Evans and Michael Redgrave are interred near the altar. Playwright Oliver Goldsmith is buried in the small churchyard, but I haven't seen his grave.

Also, make sure you have lunch at the Crypt in St. Martin in the Fields, near the National Portrait Gallery. It's kind of neat to have lunch with the dead. Don't miss the Victoria and Albert Museum. It's one great, world-class museum. You might also want to see the Princess Diana Fountain in Hyde Park, the Peter Pan Statue across the road in Kensington Gardens and pay close attention to those blue plaques where famous people lived. Don't miss the hike up to the top of or the Crypt at St. Paul's, and Westminister Abbey. If it's going on, the tour of the Globe Theatre is pretty interesting, too. You probably won't see a show there, but the tour, which includes a visit to the site of the Rose is cool.

If you're a Beatles fan, take the train up to St. John's Wood. You walk three blocks north and you're at Abbey Road. The Road itself is very busy, but it's cool to see where the boys walked across it, and the white building is the actual Abbey Road Studios.

Don't miss the Tower of London either, but get there early! As you can tell, I love London.

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Updated On: 3/1/07 at 10:27 PM

I was in London this past December and stayed at The Mayfair near the Green park underground station. I thought the location was decent, a short walk to Leicester Square and readily accessible by underground to many places. The hotel was a little pricey, but the rooms were incredibly nice and actually larger than most hotels rooms you get here in the states. I would definitely stay there again if I went back.

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