More about Travelodge Kingston upon Thames
Accommodation in London is...
by tazmaniak
Accommodation in London is expensive and the quality is not very good. B&B's can be quite expensive but more personal than some of the big hotels. The 5 star hotels vary in cost and quality ... if you have the bucks ... you can stay in beautiful surroundings. The Dorchester Hotel or Claridges are excellent. Cheaper ones include the Terrence Conran 'My Hotel' in Bloomsbury which is very central and not so cluttered with 'Englishness' ... nice minimilism.
£175 per night for a double room at the MY HOTEL.
Another quintessential British tea experience
by londonlover about The Dorchester
Since Brown's was closed for refurbishment in 2004, we chose another London institution for our big splurge on a ritzy afternoon tea--the Dorchester Hotel on Hyde Park. The atmosphere reeks with class (but may also smell of smoke, unforunately!), and the tea service is superb. Three courses--tea sandwiches, scones, and pastries, with your choice of any of over 20 tea varieties. Go with the Dorchester's own blend for a tea that compliments each course excellently.
It's definitely a splurge, but any tea-lover needs to do this once on every visit to London! The pastries, of course--baked fresh and almost too beautiful to eat!
Private Dining
by bmw10111 about The Krug Room
When a great restaurant is just not enough, the Dorchester Hotel has more to offer. Under the direction of Executive Chef Henry Brosi, the hotel operates the chef's private dinning room, The Krug Room. About six possible menus are delivered to your suite, one menu only must be picked for all guests, and substitutions are frowned upon. Chef Brosi is there to explain and discus each of the roughly nine courses. Each served with a unique glass of Krug Champaign. The dinning room seats up to twelve in comfortable Red leather chairs. I would consider any over eight to be too many. The lighting is dramatic, The Krug Room is situated in the basement of the hotel. There is a large window which can be made clear or clouded, it looks directly into the kitchen where at least six chefs professionally prepare your dinner. This is a real lifetime experience. I will go again. If you have the opportunity to partake, please plan ahead. Even with the room costing £500.00 for dining, and each place costing ~ £200.00 the Krug Room is often booked. If you want to dine on either Friday or Saturday night, you need to arrange well in advance as Chef Brosi is not normally working.
Maiden Castle
by leics
Maiden Castle is a vast Iron Age (and probably earlier) hillfort just outside Dorchester in Dorset. You will be staggered at the sheer amount of soil which had to be moved to build this place, with its massive defensive ditches and ramparts. The entranceway is complex, designed for defenders to rain missiles down on any attackers well before they approached the fort (dumps of slingshot pebbles, brought from the local beaches, have been excavated).
Unfortunately, the Romans did manage to successfully attack the fort, and eventually built a temple there!
Artefacts from Maiden Castle are displayed in Dorchester museum, which is well worth a visit.
The English regions: the South West
by toonsarah
This region includes some of the most popular holiday destinations for English families and rightly so. Indeed many of my own childhood holidays were spent in Cornwall. As well as the West Country Peninsular (the part that sticks out of England in its lower left corner) it includes beautiful Wiltshire and some of the counties that border Wales. Its highlights include:
~ the dramatic cliff scenery of Cornwall’s coast and also parts of Dorset and elsewhere
~ family resorts such as Bude (also famous as England’s best surfing beach) and Torquay on the so-called (because of its mild climate) “English Riviera”
~ attractive and historic Bath, with its restored Roman Baths, lovely Abbey and elegant parades of terrace houses dating back to the times when Jane Austen, my favourite English novelist, was a resident here
~ ancient historic sites in Wiltshire, including world famous Stonehenge and the possibly even more fascinating Avebury
~ the area around Dorchester known as “Hardy Coutry” because of its association with that other famous novelist
~ various places linked to the myth of King Arthur such as Glastonbury Tor (now the location for the world-famous music festival) and dramatic Tintagel Castle on Cornwall’s north coast
~ wild moorland scenery on Bodmin and Dartmoor
~ St Ives, a picturesque fishing village that attracts numerous artists because of the wonderful light, and now home to an outpost of the Tate Gallery
Practicalities:
Bath is very easily reached on a day trip from London, either by train from Paddington or on an organised coach tour, although its attractions are such that it merits a weekend at least. Elsewhere a car would be very useful, unless you’re happy to restrict your explorations to a relatively confined area. Accommodation options are as varied as elsewhere in the country, with grand and more modest hotels in the seaside resorts and in Bath, pretty bed and breakfast establishments, cottages for rent and plenty of camping and caravanning sites.
Useful Websites:
~ The Trainline, a great place to go to buy train tickets in advance and save yourself some money in the process as it always points you towards the best deals
~ the South West England Tourist Board, a very comprehensive site
~ Living Heritage, a history and heritage website with some attractive photos and good ideas for interesting sightseeing
~ Visit Cornwall, with a comprehensive guide to the county’s attractions including its best beaches
~ Tate St Ives
~ the Jane Austen Centre in Bath
I also have a couple of small VT pages which you might like to check out, covering the historic village of Corfe Castle and the wonderful coastal scenery around Lulworth Cove.
Fabulous - worth every penny!
by TripAdvisor Member Zan78
My fiance took me to The Dorchester to celebrate our engagement. It is fantastic. The service, food, atmosphere.... I couldn't fault a thing. If you have the opportunity, don't think twice and don't miss the afternoon tea!
This is not a good hotel, it is a Bad hotel. Seriously bad.
by TripAdvisor Member QVSINT
The Dorchester is a classic example of what a hotel should not be. The level of service here is very poor. First, upon checking in, I was lectured about why my room wasn't ready (it is not yet check-in time) though I have not only requested an early check-in, but also called from the Heathrow pick-up arranged by the hotel to let them know that I was on the way (during the conversation they confirmed that my room was ready and waiting for me).
Security is horrible. A drunken hotel guest was wandering my floor for over an hour, ringing the VERY loud doorbells (further enhancing my jet lag). When I called the frint desk to let then know that I had been awoken four times (and asked if they had security or a camera) I was not given a simple apology.
Okay, on to the room. At around $900 US dollars per night, the room is 0 out of 10 on value. The bed is not comfortable, the sheets and pillowcases are starched to the point that they can almost stand on their own. The bathroom is very nice and the honor bar well-stocked. The TV is horrible with two volumes, it seemed: no sound or really loud.
Back to the service. Though my inquiries were very few and I am not at all rude (I travel all the time and genuinely like people who work at hotels) the attitude at The Dorchester is that guests are an unwanted bother.
Location is good, but not great. There are MANY better-situated hotels to the city center.
The fitness room is fair at best. Very small, poor TVs, aging equipment.
Finally, the hotel has a smell. It smells...old...like your grandmother's house when she's either too infirm to tend to it or getting too old to care.
This is NOT a good hotel. Take the huge sack of money required to stay here and go elsewhere.
great bath tub but the room is the luck of the draw
by A TripAdvisor Member
We stayed at The Dorchester for two nights, courtesy of the BAFTA awards. The front desk staff wasn't very accommodating. When we were shown to our room I have to say I was a bit shocked. The hallways were very dismal and claustrophobic. our room was unremarkable. The view out the one small window was of a roof sandwiched in between an alcove of the exterior of the hotel. In other words we had no view and no light coming in the room. The carpet was dirty and basically the furnishings felt very worn. I asked the front desk if they could switch us to another room and they said no. We offered to pay the difference for an upgrade and again they said no. so we settled in and I basically spent my time in the room asleep or in the wonderful big marble bath tub. we visited two other rooms while we were in the hotel. One was far worse than ours. The other was absolutely gorgeous. I suppose it's typical of older hotels for the rooms to vary so much. But all I could think about was the crummy room we were stuck in and the gorgeous one we could have had.
I do have to say that the location was great and the concierge was one of the nicest I have ever come across. I would, however, stay at The Claridges down the street and around a few corners. That was a great hotel.
Just the best....!
by TripAdvisor Member LeilaJake
We stayed here for 4 nights during October/November and have to say that we were not disappointed. The hotel is in a great location. We love to walk and found that all the great tourist places were all around. We were lucky enough to be upgraded to a DEluxe King Room which was just great. Heaps of room, roomy bathroom with HUGE bath and VERY comfy bed.
The staff are just gorgeous, nothing was to much trouble. We had a bit of an issue with the printer, but they fixed it...even though it meant replacing their computer....!!! I would recommend this hotel to everyone, although it isn't cheap ($900 AUD p/night) it really was worth every cent.
Absolutely Fabulous
by TripAdvisor Member EmmaKnightley
Just got back from staying at this wonderful hotel. From check in to check out our stay was nothing short of perfect. The room was a generous size, absolutely immaculate. The staff were a real pleasure. This hotel definitely deserves its 5 star rating. I have stayed at numerous 5 star hotels around the world and without a doubt I would rank this amongst the best. I have finally found my hotel of choice in London.
Forum Posts
luxury spa hotel?
by xxclairxx
hiya all,
i wondered if anyone could recommend a really luxury spa hotel in london that doesnt cost the earth?..
my friend and i are coming up from brighton and just fancy getting really pampered,hair,nails,massages etc..that is after hitting the shops!
any ideas?
thanx..clair.x.
Re: luxury spa hotel?
by pedersdottir
Inexpensive luxury spa? Sounds like a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Please post again, once you've found it!
Re: luxury spa hotel?
by barbara.m
Hi, www.journeywoman.com had a report about a spa in London, in one of the hotels. I don't remember the name, but check their site, go to the London section and you'll find it. It sounded great, just too expensive for me for one afternoon.
barbara
Re: Re: luxury spa hotel?
by pedersdottir
Wonder if it was the Dorchester in Park Lane?
Re: Re: luxury spa hotel?
by barbara.m
Hi, yes I think it was the Dorchester. i just had a short look at the site, thought it sounded really nice and then had a look at the price.More than I pay for the flight to London! So, unfortunately, not for me.
Barbara
Re: Re: luxury spa hotel?
by xxclairxx
hiya,
the Dorchester was coming up as my fave anyway..so now its confirmed!! :o)
thanx guys
Heathrow to Piddletrenthide (Dorset)
by Geige
I understand you can take a bus from Heathrow to Woking, and then catch a SW train to Sherborne. Does anyone know how much these two trips would cost? Is it better to arrive at Heathrow with Pounds, or use the credit card to pay for the bus and train fares? Any tips/helpful hints would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks very much.
Geige
RE: Heathrow to Piddletrenthide (Dorset)
by planxty
Try this website for the trains - not sure about the bus but i wouldn't think it owuld be more than about £5 single, given the distance.
http://www.swtrains.co.uk/
RE: Heathrow to Piddletrenthide (Dorset)
by Britannia2
Have a look at www.wdbus.co.uk - there is a bus from Dorchester to this wonderfully named vilage.
London Hotels at Christmas
by Tao400
Thanks for all of the responses about London at Christmas, but now that I have already booked, before posting on this forum unfortunately, what are the best hotels to stay at? I am going with my wife and 10 year old daughter, though I do not really want to stay at a child friendly hotel per se. Assume that money is not an issue. the ones I have reasearched are the Dorchester, Claridge and Ritz.
Are any of these overrated and are there other hotels that would be better at Christmas. Please take into account Christmas lights, and other Christmas activities. My wife likes antiques and the whole English look. (Pride and Prejudice is her favorite movie, having watched it over 10 times and will be watching it once again when her mother, ugggh-god help me, comes in April. And to think I paid for her plane ticket).Thanks again for the responses.
Re: London Hotels at Christmas
by pedersdottir
Hello:
Don't know if the Claridge's crowd spend much time visiting the bargain-minded pages of VT, so it's questionable how many people could answer based on experience (yours truly included). However, I have long relied on a lovely volume called 'The Historic Hotels of London' and here are excerpts :
Claridge's, Mayfair: ...an annex of Buckingham Palace...it is magnificence revived
Dorchester, Park Lane: ...Perfection...looking like a luxury liner moored beside Hyde Park...Linen sheets and excellent room service. Currently owned by the Sultan of Brunei.
Ritz, Piccadilly:...a chateau ..gilded...dinner by the light of pink candles set on tables with pink linens, served on pink and white china. Service is excellent.
Pick whichever suits your fancy. Any of them should be beautifully decorated, warm and cozy for Christmas.
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