More about Express By Holiday Inn London-Swiss Cottage
Great hotel just north of Central London
by TripAdvisor Member mresolver
I was very pleased with my stay at the Express by Holiday Inn - Swiss Cottage. The modern rooms were clean, and the road noise mentioned in other reviews wasn't an issue. When booking the room, we requested a room facing away from the street. This request was honored.
The complimentary breakfast was fine (cereal, bread, juices, tea, coffee, etc), and we ate breakfast at the hotel every day.
The tube is a three minute walk from the front of the hotel door (Finchley Road stop), which is about 15 minutes from central London.
If you walk about 10 minutes to the south, there we ate at two very good restaurants near the Swiss Cottage tube stop.
The first, Eriki (Indian, ----) , was very good and reasonably priced by London Standards. Dinner for two with one starter, two entrees, and two drinks came to about 38 pounds.
For a cheaper meal, nearby Arabesque (Middle Eastern Food, on Winchester Rd.), was pretty good as well.
I can't speak about the options at the O2 Centre across the street, but it seemed like typical "mall food" you can get almost anywhere.
All in all, if I return to London I'd stay there again and look forward to it.
Clean Hotel in a Good Area
by TripAdvisor Member Roy2804
This Hotel is certainly value for money. It is Bright, Clean, Comfy Beds and the Staff are Excellent, check in hassle free. We had a problem with the original room that we were allocated and upon receiving our complaint, a member of staff got straight to resolving our problem quickly. I do recommend that if you book this hotel through the HI Express website, request a room to the rear of the Hotel, the noise level is to a minimum. The front of the hotel is situated right at the Traffic Lights on the main Finchley Road and can be noisy. The room an average size, was cleaned daily with fresh towels, there is also Tea/Coffee facilities & Breakfast is continental. there is also plenty of brochure information that you can uplift about the Underground Bus Routes and Trains to the Airports. The number 13 Bus Stop is outside the main door and will take you to Trafalgar Square via Baker/ Oxford Street and passes Lords Cricket Ground and Regents Park for London Zoo. The O2 centre across the street is superb, plenty of places to eat plus a Gym,Cinema & large book store & there is a Sainsburys/Waitrose Grocery Store close by. The underground is served by the Metropolitan and Jubilee Lines - Good Service direct to Central London via Baker Street, Journey time around 15Minutes, ideal for Paddington Station where you can connect to the Heathrow Express. I also recommend the London Pass to include the Travelcard not just great but terrific value for money. Would we return to this hotel........definately.
Very convenient London Hotel
by TripAdvisor Member alnewell
We stayed in this hotel for 1 night. It was very conveniently located, only a 2 min walk from Finchley Road Underground station (Jubilee Line). Shops/bars etc opposite the hotel. The room was very clean and comfortable. Only problem being we were in a room at the front of the hotel, and as other reviewers have said it is quite noisy, esp. for a new hotel (better sound proofing needed!). It didn't matter too much to us as we were only there 1 night, and got back quite late, but definitely request a room at the back!
All in all very good esp for under £100/night.
Clean, modern and convenient
by TripAdvisor Member canmark
Good clean, contemporary low frills hotel not far north of central London. Contemporarily designed breakfast room (incl.) features cereal, toast, pastries, yogurt and various drinks. Rooms are small but efficient, as is the bathroom. Only 2 minute walk to Finchley Road tube station (Metropolitan and Jubilee lines), which is only about 15 minutes to central London. Mall across the street with cinema, bookstore, grocery store (Sainsbury), and several restaurants (Italian, Chinese, Indian, burgers, chicken, and pub). Safe neighborhood with relatively heavy traffic; some other restaurants and shops. Good choice for tourists, families, as it's a bit less expensive than more central hotels, yet is clean, safe, efficient and modern.
good hotel, good price, review from monterrey, mexico.
by TripAdvisor Member apliego
Antonio Pliego, Monterrey, Mexico we have stayed there twice now, the first time on december 2004 and then a year later on december 2005 and both times it was a very good choice, and better for the price. It is a good new and clean hotel with very friendly hotel staff, the rooms are quite small for america standards but you can still sleep very comfortable in the rooms, the hotel is very good located in front of the O2 shopping center mall which is very good cause you can shop, and eat in there a wide variety of options there, also cinema theatre there so plenty of entertainment. Theres even a Sainsbury supermarket in there so if you need to buy cheap things you can allways go there and save some money. For the transportation it couldnt be better cause in front of the hotel theres the swiss cottage tube station (subway) and bus stations as well. In all a very good choice if u want to save real money on your london stay and very conveniently located near a nice and posh neighborhood.
Modern and clean
by TripAdvisor Member eurotourist75
I live in the area and booked this hotel for family coming to visit. We like it because it's new, modern and clean. I recommend checking prices both on their website (which by the way has lots of photos) and calling the hotel directly, as in my case the price quoted by phone was lower than that on the internet. As others said, ask for a room at the back of the building. Also, for the same price some rooms
are a bit more spacious than others. Another point to note are the low ceilings, but this wasn't a problem for us.
My family had previously stayed at the Quality Hotel Hampstead, also in the area, and they found it ok but a bit old. If you can get them at the same price, the Holiday Inn has better rooms, however my guests preferred breakfast at Quality Hotel, as Holiday Inn has only a few dining tables and they didn't like having to sit on a sofa to eat their food.
As others said, the O2 centre, just opposite the hotel, has a choice of restaurants, a supermarket, and a Starbucks. To get to the city centre, as a cheaper alternative to the underground, you can catch bus N.13 on Finchley Road, which goes to Oxford Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly Circus.
Stayed at Better
by TripAdvisor Member goldcoastguy71
Nice clean hotel in a convenient spot near Finchley Road tube station and a bus stop.
Don't make the mistake I did of getting off at Swiss Cottage tube station. Despite the name of the hotel, it is a good 10 min walk from that station. Finchley Road station is virtually across the road.
The slightly overpriced wireless internet didn't work at all. It was a weekend when I stayed and was told that it wouldn't be fixed until the following Monday.
Another downside. No fridge! I can understand not having a mini-bar available, but an empty fridge so I can stock up on midnight snacks/drinks would have been nice.
There isn't even a vending machine in the lobby.
On the upside, breakfast (largely cereal/bread/fruit) was free.
Good value, can be noisy
by TripAdvisor Member ag51
I stay here regularly when in London - even paying full rate, is very reasonable compared to hotels closer to the West End.
A couple of minutes walk from Finchley Road tube station, or several buses stop almost outside going to Central London (or direct buses to Luton or Stansted Airports in the other direction). Safe, busy area with a large Sainsburys supermarket just over the street (open 6 a.m. til midnight), a cinema and some restaurants (Nandos, upmarket burgers, Starbucks, etc.). No restaurant in the hotel although free breakfast and a bar in the evening.
Hotel is fairly new, rooms always clean and in good condition, air conditioned but this can be tempermental. Staff generally helpful.
Main drawback is traffic noise for the rooms at the front - Finchley Road is very busy virtually 24 hours a day, so try to get a room at the back or consider earplugs.
Fair
by TripAdvisor Member Tingeling
I've never stayed in this part of London before, but this time I wanted to give it a try after reading that it was an upcoming, safe area and this was a new and affordable hotel (we were three persons in the room and I did NOT want to end up in one of the old hotels in Paddington/Bayswater)
The hotel : Nice start, were asked if I would prefer a later check out due to a card I had (nice surprise), had requested a room at the back (and got one).
Room : Decent. Except for the extra bed (the sofa), that perhaps below the standard one excepts from a new hotel such as this one. "Average London size", which means not very large, but not as small as the many more or less old, rebuilted ones downtown.
Breakfast : Decent. Not spectacular, but choices enough. Sort of the standard HIE, I think.
Location : Nice. Actually, I was quite surprised. 02 center right across from the hotel, but also a nice, safe area to walk around in. A few smaller shops here and there. Easy access to downtown (10min+ on the tube, not the busiest schedule, but worked fine for us. Both Oystercards on the local tube station, they were very helpful)
But a busy road is just in front of the hotel (so get a room in the back).
VERY convenient with the National Express stopping just ouside the O2centre (if you fly to/from Stanstead).
I'm not sure if I'll stay there again, but have no problem recommending it.
NB : Please note that the tube is FINCHLEY ROAD, not Finchley Central or east Finchley.
Cannot fault this hotel. Perfect for visitors to London
by TripAdvisor Member PIR-SLM
As a couple we needed somewhere to stay which would allow easy access to Wembley stadium and to visit Londons main attractions the following day, with parking, and in a lively location, which was clean, modern and comfortable. This hotel was perfect.
This hotel met every need i had and exceeded my expectations. The hotel was easy to find, although it is within the congestion charge zone, we did not have to pay because it does not operate on weekends. We paid £20 to park the car in the hotels garages which was a massive saving compared to parking accross the road at th O2 centre. To park there it was about £50 for 24hours i think!
The reception staff were efficient, friendly and cheerful. I had asked at the time of booking for a room at the back as i had read on here that front rooms were noisy. We got a room on the top floor at the back. It was VERY quiet. Perfectly clean, modern, air conditionned, nice view to garden area, and most of all it was a very comfy undisturbed nights sleep.
The nearest tube station is the Finchley Road stop which is on the Jubilee line. This was less than a 2 min walk away and from there you could be at any of the main london attractions within a few stops. Wembley took approx 5 stops and from there was a 10min signposted walk away. Ideal.
We didnt have the breakfast but the facilities downstairs looked good, however the hotel is on a busy part of Finchley Road with many shops, bars, restaurants all around so you have loats of choice nearby.
The staff let us pay a half day rate (£7) to leave our car in the garages for an extra 6hours the day we checked out which was very useful for us. And again a bargain compared to other parking prices nearby. this was a nice option to have.
I will definitely return to this hotel the next time i go to London, regardless of the purpose of my visit, due to its perfect location, how easy it is to find, and the overall excellent package i got during my stay here.
Photos
Shakespeares Head pub - London
Mounted guard in 1950
Great Court & Central Reading Room
London Sept 11, 2009 - peace for all...
Forum Posts
Public Transport in All England
by irish147
Hi, Can you get a weekly travel ticket you can use on all trains in England for 5 or 7 days?
Thanks
Michael
Re: Public Transport in All England
by puerto_lover
You can get an England pass - yes -if you are from Ireland. (These Passes are not available to buy in the UK or available to residents of the UK- they are designed specifically for International guests to the UK.) Take a look at http://www.britrail.com/ then look for the Where are you from? Click on Europe then Ireland.
Also use http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/ for all the travel details.
Re: Public Transport in All England
by leics
You can get the Britrail pass, as mentioned, but there are no 'weekly tickets' as such.
Before you buy a pass do check the total of your point-to-point fares by using www.nationalrail.co.uk Buying tickets in advance (up to 6pm the night before, from the station) can give you good savings (although advance fares are not available on all trains on all routes on all days).
Whether a pass is financially worthwhile will depend entirely on how many train journeys you intend to take.
You might also explore Railcards. I can find no indication that they are limited to UK citizens (although they may be):
http://www.railcard.co.uk/
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