Hotel and money saving in London advice required

JGB1955

Have you considered Youth Hostels?  There are 3 within a short distance of Euston.  Private en-suite room for just over £100 per night.  YHA London St Pancras Hostel | Cheap Kings Cross Accommodation

joedenise

When you've done Covent Garden jump on a No 11 bus and ride round the route - it goes to quite a lot of the London sights such as Buckingham Palace, St Paul's Cathedral.  You can just get off whenever there is something you want to see and then walk back to the bus stop and get the next No 11 that comes along.  You can easily spend a day or 2 doing all the sights depending on how long you spend at each one and how often you get off the bus.

onashoestring

p00hsticks said:

onashoestring said:

Sign up to the TooGoodToGo App and pick up a discounted bag of delicious food ( breakfast / lunch and dinner ) from cafe’s , bakeries, restaurants around London . 🧁🍰🥐

Having been following the thread on this app over on the Food Shopping board, the results seem to be decidedly hit and miss (not always delicious or necessarily that good value for money) I

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6326841/has-anyone-here-used-too-good-to-go/p1

Personally have had a bag weekly from either Paul’s bakery or many of the other bakeries in Covent Garden -  have also had great meals from Absolutely Starving . Has saved me a fortune when in London . 

IrenRyb

Very good topic, thanks!

CKhalvashi

JGB1955 said:

Have you considered Youth Hostels?  There are 3 within a short distance of Euston.  Private en-suite room for just over £100 per night.  YHA London St Pancras Hostel | Cheap Kings Cross Accommodation

You were thinking roughly along the lines of my thoughts here.

We tend to buy on Booking the cheapest private room hostel with good reviews and close to the centre. This isn't something that has let us down in any of the many cities we've visited and we've met some amazing people along the way, so is definitely worth considering.

We also tend to find they have full kitchens, which most hotels don't have.

Emmia

zagubov said:

This site shows where the shops are. I'd take them to Hamley's.

When you're in central London you can find most attractions near tube stations using this tube map.  The underground's rubbish for kids compared with being upstairs on a bus.

Trust me when I was a kid, my relatives took me round the central London shops at Christmas, and the memories are still with me. We must also have travelled on the underground but that didn't stick in the memory.

Plus, you can go a long way on the underground without getting very far, IYSWIM.

And for buses, these are some of the ones that show you the touristy bits (they're just ordinary buses so you use your Oyster card), and maybe use this website to find stuff to do.  I'd recommend Chinatown for good eating but many of their best deals are for two or more and I don't know if your kids appetites are  equal to your own.

I'll recommend the Duck Tour.

Hope you have a great time!

I wouldn't take them to Hamleys, unless you're also willing to buy toys for them whilst you're there... To be honest, Hamleys is looking pretty shabby, and not very magical these days.

The Duck Tour also ceased pre-pandemic, when their entry point into the Thames was compulsorily taken for a (tube? crossrail 2?) development project.

Brasserie Zedel on Piccadilly Circus is a wonderful (underground) spot (and not too pricey) for dinner.

You could also look at Mail Rail, which is an underground railway that used to to transport post in london, but now has passenger cars (you should book in advance) - the Postal Museum over the road is also good, but for older kids.

Also a bit age dependent, The V&A is also well worth exploring - lots of free and quieter areas, like the casts gallery, and the Science Museum is geared up for kids of most ages!  

A bit out of town, and a (longer) tube ride away, the Dinosaurs at Crystal Palace are also fun - but that may not work with other things. 

first78

Emmia said:

zagubov said:

This site shows where the shops are. I'd take them to Hamley's.

When you're in central London you can find most attractions near tube stations using this tube map.  The underground's rubbish for kids compared with being upstairs on a bus.

Trust me when I was a kid, my relatives took me round the central London shops at Christmas, and the memories are still with me. We must also have travelled on the underground but that didn't stick in the memory.

Plus, you can go a long way on the underground without getting very far, IYSWIM.

And for buses, these are some of the ones that show you the touristy bits (they're just ordinary buses so you use your Oyster card), and maybe use this website to find stuff to do.  I'd recommend Chinatown for good eating but many of their best deals are for two or more and I don't know if your kids appetites are  equal to your own.

I'll recommend the Duck Tour.

Hope you have a great time!

I wouldn't take them to Hamleys, unless you're also willing to buy toys for them whilst you're there... To be honest, Hamleys is looking pretty shabby, and not very magical these days.

The Duck Tour also ceased pre-pandemic, when their entry point into the Thames was compulsorily taken for a (tube? crossrail 2?) development project.

Brasserie Zedel on Piccadilly Circus is a wonderful (underground) spot (and not too pricey) for dinner.

You could also look at Mail Rail, which is an underground railway that used to to transport post in london, but now has passenger cars (you should book in advance) - the Postal Museum over the road is also good, but for older kids.

Also a bit age dependent, The V&A is also well worth exploring - lots of free and quieter areas, like the casts gallery, and the Science Museum is geared up for kids of most ages!  

A bit out of town, and a (longer) tube ride away, the Dinosaurs at Crystal Palace are also fun - but that may not work with other things. 

Thanks for the info. I agree, a visit to Hamleys would cost a fortune as the kids would want toys!!

The Dinosaurs at Crystal Palace Park look fab!! Which would be the closest Tube station to the park?

Many thanks

Emmia

first78 said:

Emmia said:

zagubov said:

This site shows where the shops are. I'd take them to Hamley's.

When you're in central London you can find most attractions near tube stations using this tube map.  The underground's rubbish for kids compared with being upstairs on a bus.

Trust me when I was a kid, my relatives took me round the central London shops at Christmas, and the memories are still with me. We must also have travelled on the underground but that didn't stick in the memory.

Plus, you can go a long way on the underground without getting very far, IYSWIM.

And for buses, these are some of the ones that show you the touristy bits (they're just ordinary buses so you use your Oyster card), and maybe use this website to find stuff to do.  I'd recommend Chinatown for good eating but many of their best deals are for two or more and I don't know if your kids appetites are  equal to your own.

I'll recommend the Duck Tour.

Hope you have a great time!

I wouldn't take them to Hamleys, unless you're also willing to buy toys for them whilst you're there... To be honest, Hamleys is looking pretty shabby, and not very magical these days.

The Duck Tour also ceased pre-pandemic, when their entry point into the Thames was compulsorily taken for a (tube? crossrail 2?) development project.

Brasserie Zedel on Piccadilly Circus is a wonderful (underground) spot (and not too pricey) for dinner.

You could also look at Mail Rail, which is an underground railway that used to to transport post in london, but now has passenger cars (you should book in advance) - the Postal Museum over the road is also good, but for older kids.

Also a bit age dependent, The V&A is also well worth exploring - lots of free and quieter areas, like the casts gallery, and the Science Museum is geared up for kids of most ages!  

A bit out of town, and a (longer) tube ride away, the Dinosaurs at Crystal Palace are also fun - but that may not work with other things. 

Thanks for the info. I agree, a visit to Hamleys would cost a fortune as the kids would want toys!!

The Dinosaurs at Crystal Palace Park look fab!! Which would be the closest Tube station to the park?

Many thanks

From Euston, I'd do the Victoria line to Highbury and Islington, and then the overground to Penge West or Crystal Palace. 

first78

Emmia said:

first78 said:

Emmia said:

zagubov said:

This site shows where the shops are. I'd take them to Hamley's.

When you're in central London you can find most attractions near tube stations using this tube map.  The underground's rubbish for kids compared with being upstairs on a bus.

Trust me when I was a kid, my relatives took me round the central London shops at Christmas, and the memories are still with me. We must also have travelled on the underground but that didn't stick in the memory.

Plus, you can go a long way on the underground without getting very far, IYSWIM.

And for buses, these are some of the ones that show you the touristy bits (they're just ordinary buses so you use your Oyster card), and maybe use this website to find stuff to do.  I'd recommend Chinatown for good eating but many of their best deals are for two or more and I don't know if your kids appetites are  equal to your own.

I'll recommend the Duck Tour.

Hope you have a great time!

I wouldn't take them to Hamleys, unless you're also willing to buy toys for them whilst you're there... To be honest, Hamleys is looking pretty shabby, and not very magical these days.

The Duck Tour also ceased pre-pandemic, when their entry point into the Thames was compulsorily taken for a (tube? crossrail 2?) development project.

Brasserie Zedel on Piccadilly Circus is a wonderful (underground) spot (and not too pricey) for dinner.

You could also look at Mail Rail, which is an underground railway that used to to transport post in london, but now has passenger cars (you should book in advance) - the Postal Museum over the road is also good, but for older kids.

Also a bit age dependent, The V&A is also well worth exploring - lots of free and quieter areas, like the casts gallery, and the Science Museum is geared up for kids of most ages!  

A bit out of town, and a (longer) tube ride away, the Dinosaurs at Crystal Palace are also fun - but that may not work with other things. 

Thanks for the info. I agree, a visit to Hamleys would cost a fortune as the kids would want toys!!

The Dinosaurs at Crystal Palace Park look fab!! Which would be the closest Tube station to the park?

Many thanks

From Euston, I'd do the Victoria line to Highbury and Islington, and then the overground to Penge West or Crystal Palace. 

That's brilliant, thanks so much for your help

mvk0016

Science Museum and Natural History Museum (dinosaurs!) are both free and great for kids. Also consider that renting an AirBnB might be cheaper than a hotel, especially since you can make your own breakfast and meals (they usually are proper flats with kitchens and all utensils).