Do not make your hotel reservation in London until you have finished reading this article if you haven’t done so already! This article will help you avoid some of the most common hotel booking mistakes that travelers make, blunders that might wind up losing them money or wasting valuable vacation time.
Visitation during busy periods
From the second week in December through the beginning of the new year, July and August are often the busiest travel seasons in London.
Have no fear if you have already purchased your tickets and cannot make any changes to them! Those times are delightful to visit, apart from the rest of the year. If you go in December, the city will be decked up in many light displays, and there will be a lot of events to do that are linked to Christmas. The summer may have fantastic weather and a fun buzz around the local places.
Suppose you are traveling on a limited budget. However, arranging your trip during peak travel will almost always result in higher costs for your transportation (flights or trains) and lodging (hotels). For instance, the cost of a night’s stay in a cheap hotel room may be £75 during the middle of January, yet the same hotel room may cost £200 over a weekend in August.
Suppose you want to keep your expenses to a minimum. In that case, your best bet is to plan your trip for January or November, the months with the lowest average rates for hotel rooms, flights, and train tickets that are significantly more affordable.
Booking your accommodation last minute
If you wait until the very last minute to book a hotel room (within a week of the dates of your trip), you may be able to save a significant amount of money. But if you are going to London as part of an overseas trip, you shouldn’t be in danger by doing this. In most cases, the hotels that are finer and provide better rates are the first to be reserved, and then you will be forced to choose from the hotels that are not as desirable that are left over.
Check out HotelTonight or lastminute.com if you find yourself in a situation where you need to make a last-minute hotel reservation. Although you shouldn’t count on finding discounts during busy travel periods, attimes some hotels will offer nice discounts when they are just trying to fill up for the night.
An airport-proximity hotel
No one of London’s airports is located anywhere close to the heart of the city, and most aren’t even in the city. Therefore, I would not advocate staying near an airport unless you have a flight that leaves really early in the morning. Any money you *might* save on transportation expenses will be eaten up, and there won’t be any great places to dine, get a coffee, or pick up anything you forgot anywhere near your hotel.
Although nothing is going on in the surrounding districts, you may discover some reasonably priced choices if you go to and from London City Airport, which is the only airport located in the city of London.
Neglecting to look for direct business opportunities
Booking.com is where I make my hotel reservations the majority of the time. Still, before I make a reservation, I always check the hotel’s official website to see if they have a lesser rate or a direct booking freebie, such as a free welcome drink, breakfast, or anything else.
The citizenM hotels are a fantastic illustration of this concept. You will instantly get a 6% discount and more flexible booking conditions if you book directly via their website and join their free email list.
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Staying close to the most famous sites
You may reserve a room at a hotel in London to wake up with a view of the Tower Bridge or the Tower of London; however, you should be aware that doing so will cost you more money. Choose a hotel that is located a little bit farther outside of the very center of London, but one that is near to a tube station. That way, you’ll still be 10 minutes away from everything. This is the best choice if you don’t have a lot of money. Having trouble finding them? It doesn’t matter which hotel you choose. All of the ones we suggest in the Accommodation area of our site will do the trick.
Check out our London Spending Guide if you want suggestions on hotels to stay at depending on the amount of money you have available. In it, we provide you with an overview of the expenditures you may anticipate when you visit London as well as a great deal of information that is both useful and crucial for obtaining money in London and spending it there. There are also suggestions for activities, food, and drinks, categorized as either affordable, moderately priced, or luxurious. Finally, it comes with a detailed spreadsheet you can access using Google Sheets. This spreadsheet will assist you in determining the entire cost of your trip, how much more you need to save, where most of your money is being spent on your trip and a great deal more.