London Leisure Accommodation

Where are you planning to stay next time you come to London for a family holiday or romantic weekend? Browsing the internet for bargain last minute offers in central locations or desperately searching for outback B&Bs that won’t cost you a fortune is a daunting task.

The most difficult one, though, is to decide where to stay. Hotels have their perks like 24 hour room service and dining options on the premises but when you travel far and often enough you get familiar with the numerous downsides. Overpriced or unattractive meals, noisy neighbours whose private affairs do not excite you the least, and the nagging uneasy feeling that hundreds of other people have used the same room are just some of the disadvantages of staying in a hotel. 

When it comes to disappointing hotel experiences my personal favourites include a refusal to be refunded when I had to leave a pre-paid spa holiday a week earlier and being served a dish that had clearly gone off despite the chef’s insistence that it was a masterpiece of culinary art. Over the years I have explored various accommodation options. On occasions when either my budget was too modest or I traversed the wild countryside I stayed at B&Bs. While the facilities are always less than limited and the walls as thin as paper cups, the service has always been friendly and topped with a smile that one keeps for waving goodbye to dear old friends. The menu gives you a choice between two different dishes, yet you feel the comfort of having a home cooked meal. 

The question all travellers ask is how do you manage to put it all in one bag – to tie up your budget and still stay at a nice decent place? The answer is neither a hotel nor a bed and breakfast because nothing can beat the comfort of staying in private quarters. 

In recent years, the leisure accommodation market has boomed. It could be taken down to the fact that vacation apartments often come out a lot cheaper than any hotel and that travellers and holidaymakers have tightened their belts.

The unrivalled quality of staying in private accommodation is a major factor. The wealthier traveller can always splash out on the kind of luxury flat that adorns the covers of  magazines. Yet, even those with a modest budget can afford to stay in a well-furnished vacation apartment with all modern cons at their fingertips and privacy incomparable to that of hotels. Properties range from modest small studios to accommodate the needs of one person or a couple to large four bedroom flats that can house an entire family or a group of friends. 

Friends who travel in a group quickly find out that renting a vacation flat for the entire group is highly convenient. Whether they come to London to attend a local event together or simply to have a weekend of good old-fashioned boys’ or girls’ fun sticking together and staying under one roof makes the experience more intimate and rewarding. Plus, several people staying together save themselves a lot off accommodation costs. The larger the group, the smaller the charge per person per night and often the bill comes out a lot cheaper than hotel rates. 

Leisure accommodation is highly attractive for one more reason. You can stay in the most fashionable and desirable parts of London and still pay less than what a hotel next door would charge you. A vacation flat in the heart of colourful Soho, trendy Chelsea or old-fashioned Kensington is a superbly located base for exploring London. 

Seasoned travellers know this for certain – where you stay can make or break your entire journey. Ditch the hotel room and book a vacation apartment. Say goodbye to the nosy maids, dull receptionists or greedy hotel staff demanding tips.

Truly, you might have to drag your bags all by yourself but that is your least problem because when you walk into your own private apartment you feel as if you are no longer a weary traveller or a disoriented tourist. You are a local who can tour the city, indulge one’s senses in all sorts of attractions and delights and then go home, yes home, to a cosy comfortable place.