Today I finalized my train and hotel reservations for London. I’m not going until June, but you need to book several months in advance, especially to get the lowest rate on the Eurostar. For a one-way ticket from Paris to London, I paid 67 Euros. And for a return ticket from London to Lille, I paid 50 euros.
People who know me know that I LOVE LONDON. I can’t get enough of it. And every year I say to myself (and to others) – this year I’m going to visit Lisbon or Stockholm or go back to Amsterdam or maybe to Copenhagen or Berlin (I’ve heard amazing things about Berlin). But London keeps drawing me back, it’s crazy.
I usually stay at The Penn Club then move over to South Kensington. But this year I’ve decided to try two different hotels, one in the East End near the Docklands, the other in the heart of Bloomsbury. I’ve heard good things about both of them, so if you’re looking for a different kind of accommodation that’s reasonably priced, here are my recommendations:
In the East End –
http://rfsk.org.uk/
This second one I stumbled across last year while wandering around Bloomsbury. It’s in a perfect location right beside a big park, the British Museum, the Charles Dickens museum, my favorite bookstore/tea shop, St. Pancras train station where the Eurostar arrives from Paris (within walking distance), and a hundred other wonderful places.
http://club.goodenough.ac.uk/
For budget travel, Hostel World offers a stunning array of award-winning accommodation, some in listed historical buildings.
http://www.hostelworld.com/
Below is a former blog post of mine about Bloomsbury, The Penn Club, and my favorite small bookstore/tea shop with seriously good cakes, steps away from The British Museum.
