London Hotel Choices

Trying to make a decision between these 3 London Hotels. Anyone have an opinion. Want something close to Victoria Station so we can catch train to Southhampton and watch a show at the Appollo Victoria Theatre.

1. The Lime Tree Hotel

2. Luna Simone

3. Premier Inn Victoria Station

Anyone know which is closer to the station? All are priced about the same. Any comments or opinions appreciated. Any other hotels I should consider?

Thanks

TD

Trying to make a decision between these 3 London Hotels. Anyone have an opinion. Want something close to Victoria Station so we can catch train to Southhampton and watch a show at the Appollo Victoria Theatre.

 

1. The Lime Tree Hotel

2. Luna Simone

3. Premier Inn Victoria Station

 

Anyone know which is closer to the station? All are priced about the same. Any comments or opinions appreciated. Any other hotels I should consider?

Just a word of note, most trains to Southampton Central Station depart from London Waterloo station, not London Victoria. Those trains that do depart from Victoria, take 1hr longer than the ones from Waterloo. Either way, all of downtown London is compact (Victoria to Waterloo is 1½ miles), so getting around isn't really that much of a deal, and it has an excellent subway and bus system.

Just a word of note, most trains to Southampton Central Station depart from London Waterloo station, not London Victoria. Those trains that do depart from Victoria, take 1hr longer than the ones from Waterloo. Either way, all of downtown London is compact (Victoria to Waterloo is 1½ miles), so getting around isn't really that much of a deal, and it has an excellent subway and bus system.

Seconded

John Bull

Thanks very much for the waterloo information. Did not know it was best to take train from there to southhampton.

Know any of these hotels I mentioned?

Thanks

TD

Trying to make a decision between these 3 London Hotels. Anyone have an opinion. Want something close to Victoria Station so we can catch train to Southhampton and watch a show at the Appollo Victoria Theatre.

 

1. The Lime Tree Hotel

2. Luna Simone

3. Premier Inn Victoria Station

 

Anyone know which is closer to the station? All are priced about the same. Any comments or opinions appreciated. Any other hotels I should consider?

 

Thanks

TD

As said above the fast direct trains to Southampton are from Waterloo Station about 2 miles from Victoria. (You can get the cheaper National Express coaches to Southampton though from Victoria Coach Station).

The Premier Inn and Lime Tree are very close to both rail and coach stations. The Luna & Simone is further away in Pimlico, (however the Luna and Simone) is towards Waterloo Station.

There is an accurate Victoria hotel map at the link below. The Lime Tree isn't marked but its close to no 47 on the map, the other two are marked.

Victoria Hotel Map

Although the Luna & Simone isn't so convenient for Victoria Stations, I would heartily recommend it as outstanding accommodation. The two brothers who run it make sure all the basics are right and give wonderful personal attentive service.

The Premier Inn is one of the best no frills budget chain hotels and the Lime Tree in my opinion although decent, in my opinion is overpriced for what you get.

Thanks very much for the waterloo information. Did not know it was best to take train from there to southhampton.

 

Know any of these hotels I mentioned?

 

Thanks

 

TD

Sorry, can't help with these hotels, for hotel reviews websites such as www.booking.com or www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ tend to offer a lot more detail & opinion than this cruise site.

Altho it's perhaps slightly less conveniently located, Luna & Simone is rated 20th out of over 1000 London hotels on tripadvisor http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/HACSearch?geo=186338&q=London%2C+United+Kingdom&inDay=18&inMonth=01%2F2010&checkIn=dd%2Fmm%2Fyyyy&outDay=19&outMonth=01%2F2010&checkOut=dd%2Fmm%2Fyyyy&searchAll=true&adults=2

Location-wise, Victoria is a little bit left of centre but, as Scottbee's comment, its pretty easy getting around London on public transport.

Have a great time

John Bull

LUNA SIMONE! It is all of a 10 minute walk (if that) to Victoria Station...and there were 3 of us dragging our luggage. Taxi is under 5 pounds. We stayed there 4 nights in September/09.

LUNA SIMONE! It is all of a 10 minute walk (if that) to Victoria Station...and there were 3 of us dragging our luggage. Taxi is under 5 pounds. We stayed there 4 nights in September/09.

Which would be great if the trains to Southampton left from Victoria, but they leave from WATERLOO.

Actually.........you did say some trains leave from victoria but they take 1 hr longer. Correct? I assume its 1 hour longer because they make more stops or direction of travel is a bit different?

TD

If you plan on staying in the Victoria area, why not take the National Express Coach (bus) to Southampton. Walk or taxi to the Victoria National coach station. The bus is comfortable with a bathroom and is only a couple of hours. Take a taxi from Southampton coach station is only 5-7 GBP to the port. We bought our coach tickets a couple months in advance of our cruise and were able to get funfare price of only 7 GBP each.

We used http://www.justairports.com (car service) to get to our hotel,Thistle Westminster hotel (Victoria area).

I think this is exactly what we will do. I appreciate everyones input here. We arrive to London on a Thursday morning from Miami, will probably be adventurous and try the train from heathrow to Victoria and catch cab to hotel (Luna and Simone). Rest up that thursday a bit....do a little sight seeing on our own. Friday was considering a private tour (londonstours.com)...anyone know this guy Harry or have other options for private tours. We could do the hop on hop off but I want to make sure we see everything and know what we are seeing. Had good experience with private tours in Italy. Will travel to Southampton Saturday morning via national express from victoria bus station. Unless we take train from waterloo :) thanks scottsbee. Cruise for 14 days and upon return take train from southampton back to heathrow that saturday.

One last detail.....1030am flight out of heathrow not feasible if arriving from cruise that morning in southampton correct? Virgin Atlantic 1030 vs British Airways 130pm.

Thanks so much

I think this is exactly what we will do. I appreciate everyones input here. We arrive to London on a Thursday morning from Miami, will probably be adventurous and try the train from heathrow to Victoria and catch cab to hotel (Luna and Simone). Rest up that thursday a bit....do a little sight seeing on our own. Friday was considering a private tour (londonstours.com)...anyone know this guy Harry or have other options for private tours. We could do the hop on hop off but I want to make sure we see everything and know what we are seeing. Had good experience with private tours in Italy. Will travel to Southampton Saturday morning via national express from victoria bus station. Unless we take train from waterloo :) thanks scottsbee. Cruise for 14 days and upon return take train from southampton back to heathrow that saturday.

 

One last detail.....1030am flight out of heathrow not feasible if arriving from cruise that morning in southampton correct? Virgin Atlantic 1030 vs British Airways 130pm.

 

Thanks so much

A couple of minor points:

Train from Heathrow goes to Paddington station, then Circle Line underground (tube) to Victoria http://www.afn.org/~alplatt/tube.html & short cab ride, or easier to get cab from Paddington station to hotel (get driver to go past Buck House)

Or tube (Picadilly line) from Heathrow to Hyde Park Corner, then easiest to take a cab from there to hotel (get the driver to go past Buck House)

To Southampton, take your pick, either coach from Victoria coach station or train from Waterloo rail station.

Southampton's coach & rail stations are near each other, all cruise terminals are a very short cab ride from either.

But there's no train Southampton to Heathrow. A train ticket will do the job, but it involves a train to Woking rail station, then a price-inclusive connecting coach to Heathrow. You should make the 08.30am, or the 09.00 http://ojp.nationalrail.co.uk/en/s/planjourney/query

Alternatively take the National Express coach from Southampton, you should make the 08.40. http://www.nationalexpress.com/home.aspx

Both take around 2 hrs.

You might even consider the cruise line's transfer coach from quayside to Heathrow, more expensive but total journey time about 90 mins.

Guess you can figure from these times that you've no chance of the 10.30 VA flight. The BA 13.30 shouldn't be a problem, if things change for the worse you've still got a good margin even if it requires a priority disembarkation & a £80 cab ride to Heathrow.

Have a great time

John Bull

John this information is priceless.........thank you!!

TD

Actually.........you did say some trains leave from victoria but they take 1 hr longer. Correct? I assume its 1 hour longer because they make more stops or direction of travel is a bit different?

From Waterloo, the three trains/hour take the South Western Main Line, covering the 90 miles in just over an hour.

From Victoria, the one train/hour (and 0 on Sunday) head south along the Brighton Main Line (past Gatwick airport) to just before Brighton, then head west on the slower West Coastway Line. Total journey about 2½ hours

There's a number of reasons that Waterloo makes more sense;

1) It's a faster journey due to a shorter distance. Think of a triangle, the Waterloo route takes the shorter route down the hypotenuse, the Victoria route heads due south, then due west.

2) It's a faster journey due to faster trains. The Southampton service is a main line service.

3) It's a faster journey due to fewer stations stopped at.

London Waterloo [WAT]     11:05   
Clapham Junction [CLJ]    11:12
Basingstoke [bSK]         11:47 
Winchester [WIN]          12:04 
Southampton Airport [sOA] 12:13 
Southampton Central [sOU] 12:25

vs 

London Victoria [VIC]     11:32 
Clapham Junction [CLJ]    11:37 
East Croydon [ECR]        11:48 
Redhill [RDH]             12:00 
Gatwick Airport [GTW]     12:08 
Three Bridges [TBD]       12:14 
Crawley [CRW]             12:18 
Horsham [hrH]             12:26 
Barnham [bAA]             12:56 
Chichester [CCH]          13:04 
Southbourne [sOB]         13:12 
Emsworth [EMS]            13:15 
Havant [HAV]              13:19 
Cosham [CSA]              13:26 
Portchester [PTC]         13:30 
Fareham [FRM]             13:35 
Swanwick [sNW]            13:42 
Southampton Central [sOU] 13:59

It's actually kind of tough to even get http://nationalrail.co.uk/ to show you the direct service, as it recommends riding the subway to Waterloo if you ask it for a schedule for Victoria->Southampton.

All that being said, the Victoria-Southampton service is EXCELLENT for getting between Gatwick Airport and Southampton; and I've taken that part of the journey myself. It was uncrowded, and a nice trip.

I think this is exactly what we will do. I appreciate everyones input here. We arrive to London on a Thursday morning from Miami, will probably be adventurous and try the train from heathrow to Victoria

The train runs from Heathrow to Paddington, or the London Underground from Heathrow to Victoria with a change of line (from Piccadily to Central) at Hammersmith or Earl's Court to get to Victoria. To get to Pimlico Station (closer to your hotel than Victoria), take the Piccadily line from Heathrow and change to the Victoria Line at Green Park.

Will travel to Southampton Saturday morning via national express from victoria bus station. Unless we take train from waterloo :) thanks scottsbee.

Coach from Victoria to Southampton is as slow as the (Victoria) train, mostly because it goes via Heathrow; causing it to take up to 3hrs.

Cruise for 14 days and upon return take train from southampton back to heathrow that saturday.

There is no direct train from Southampton to Heathrow, this is the one place where I would suggest the coach...

Given your three stops, and your willingness to be adventurous, I would suggest;

• Tube (subway) Heathrow to Victoria/Pimlico.
  
• Tube Victoria/Pimlico to Waterloo (might even just grab a taxi for this, it's less than 2 miles, but tube requires at least one transfer); train to Southampton.
  
• Coach from Southampton to Heathrow.
  

One last detail.....1030am flight out of heathrow not feasible if arriving from cruise that morning in southampton correct? Virgin Atlantic 1030 vs British Airways 130pm.

Not a chance for a 1030 flight, as you'd be on the M3 heading towards London right in the middle of rushhour. To put it in perspective, BA want you to check in 3 hours prior to flight, and the 1st coach arriving before 0730 leaves Southampton at 0535 from the Southampton Coach Station (and you'd still have to get there...)

Scottbee thanks for all the info. I was looking at the nationalrail website plugging in the waterloo to southampton trip just to get the details.......it gives several options for each station.

waterloo (london) WAT

waterloo (merseyside) WLO

waterloo east (London) WAE

southampton (All stations)

southampton airport parkway (SOA)

southampton central (SOU)

I assume its WAT to SOU.........thanks for clarification.

I live in southflorida so I dont deal with public transportation I would say ever........so thanks so much.

TD

Scottbee thanks for all the info. I was looking at the nationalrail website plugging in the waterloo to southampton trip just to get the details.......it gives several options for each station.

 

waterloo (london) WAT

waterloo (merseyside) WLO

waterloo east (London) WAE

 

southampton (All stations)

southampton airport parkway (SOA)

southampton central (SOU)

 

I assume its WAT to SOU.........thanks for clarification.

 

I live in southflorida so I dont deal with public transportation I would say ever........so thanks so much.

 

TD

Yep, Waterloo (London) to Southampton Central.

Train ticketing/pricing is a bit of a nightmare, but the journey itself is very straightforward. Waterloo is the starting point for the train, so if you're a few minutes early you can get a good seat.

On fast trains, Southampton Central is after Winchester and Airport/Parkway.

Exit Southampton central station on the same side that your train arrives (there's direction signs for cruise passengers) & you'll find taxis on the forecourt. Taxi about £5 to £8 depending which cruise terminal.

John Bull

Scottbee thanks for all the info. I was looking at the nationalrail website plugging in the waterloo to southampton trip just to get the details.......it gives several options for each station.

 

waterloo (london) WAT

waterloo (merseyside) WLO

waterloo east (London) WAE

 

southampton (All stations)

southampton airport parkway (SOA)

southampton central (SOU)

 

I assume its WAT to SOU.........thanks for clarification.

Yep, WAT to SOU.

Hey john or scottbee.........looking at the tube map.....sure it will be clear once im there but taking the tube from victoria or plimco to waterloo........there is a change of lines as I see...........is this a change to the northern line at stockwell then to waterloo?

Just secured reservations at luna simone....at least thats one worry gone.

TD

taking the tube from victoria or plimco to waterloo

There are several public buses that operate direct between Victoria and Waterloo and probably preferable to the Tube which is a bit of a pain on this journey, especailly with luggage.

Its also worth noting that Waterloo is only a mile from Pimlico and 1.5 miles from Victoria. if you paid cash fares on the tube for 2+ people (8 GBP) it would be cheaper or similar priced to get a taxi.

Hey john or scottbee.........looking at the tube map.....sure it will be clear once im there but taking the tube from victoria or plimco to waterloo........there is a change of lines as I see...........is this a change to the northern line at stockwell then to waterloo?

 

Just secured reservations at luna simone....at least thats one worry gone.

 

TD

HandfordR is the London tube expert. Unless he says otherwise, head for Victoria underground. Take the District Line, direction Upminster, change at Embankment to Northern Line, direction Morden and the very first stop is Waterloo. But like I say, HandfordR is the expert, and some line changes are difficult with luggage

Your hotel is only 2 miles from Waterloo station. With luggage, a cab is probably worth the cost.

But by then, you'll know enough to decide for yourself.

My last posting on this thread - off tomorrow for a Far East cruise. If you find London too hectic, don't even think about Hong Kong. But I love it.

Have a great time

John Bull

ps. I see HR's posted while I was typing. Seems we both reckon take a cab. Or a big red London bus.

Victoria to Waterloo by tube - I would change at Westminster for the Jubilee Line as it has escalators all the way down and there is a lift. Much easier with luggage. (Don't do it in the rush hour though - it's rather crowded - I know - I do it every day!)

I have a different question. I want to get off the ship in Southampton on Sept. 3 and take a day tour of Stonehenge, Bath, etc. and be delivered to a hotel in London. What is the best area to find a hotel if we want to spend 2 nights and maybe see The Mousetrap, and do the basic tours of London. Do any of the tour companies pick you up at your hotel? Is it best to get a taxi to the airport. Should I book my flight and see what airport I will fly in to or does it matter.

I guess what I am saying is HELP!

I have a different question. I want to get off the ship in Southampton on Sept. 3 and take a day tour of Stonehenge' date=' Bath, etc. and be delivered to a hotel in London. ![/quote']

Most of the cruise ships at Southampton seem to offer a tour transfer to London, usually via Stonehenge and Salisbury.

Stonehenge and Bath is doable but you won't get back into London until early evening and you will need to put together a private trip.

Especially if you can put a small group together, perhaps using the roll call facility on CC this can be cost effective. e.g. such a tour with FCMBS (link below) costs 460 GBP for 8 people, which is as cheap or cheaper than a straight Southampton - London transfer with the cruise lines bus.

Southampton - London Tour Transfer via Stonehenge & Bath

 

What is the best area to find a hotel if we want to spend 2 nights and maybe see The Mousetrap' date=' and do the basic tours of London. Do any of the tour companies pick you up at your hotel? Is it best to get a taxi to the airport. Should I book my flight and see what airport I will fly in to or does it matter.

I guess what I am saying is HELP![/quote']

 

First of all you will have a much richer experience in London if you get your head around the use of public transport being a superior way of travelling, and secondly the 'downtown' concept which really doesn't apply in London because of the public transport. London is spread out and you will need to use public transport, this is a plus, riding the buses and Underground is a highlight of many visitors trip.

A very small percentage of people take the formal tours of the London sights, though they are available from people like Evan Evans, Premium Tours. I would recommend you look at taking the Hop on Hop Off buses, (Original London Tour and Big Bus) that cover much more of London than the formal tours and are an excellent orientation and introduction of the best of London.

With regards accommodation, the Mousetrap is off Leicester Square in the heart of the West End. Accommodation in the immediate area is 4 and 5 star and very expensive. Within 10 minutes walk is Bloomsbury, the book/literary district of London and very atmospheric where prices come down a step. There is a lot of good mid/high end hotels here.

To save more money about 10 minutes from the centre using the Underground are districts like Kensington, Paddington, Bayswater Kings Cross. The Underground runs until about midnight and you are very safe in the centre.

 

If you are fling from North America your flight will almost certainly come into Heathrow or Gatwick. It doesn't really matter which, just go for the one with the cheapest price and most convenient schedule, though if there is very little between them Heathrow is closer and less expensive for transfers as a result.

handfordr, this tour is perfect! I have posted on my rollcall to see how many people may be interested so I can reserve the correct size bus.

I think we will take your advice and use public transportation. What type of money do I need or do I buy a pass?

This also expands my search for a hotel. Do you have any that you can recommend?

I would love to see The Mousetrap; where do I get tickets? Thanks for all the help.