Hotel alternatives in the U.K.
Alternative accommodations in England
There are dozens of hotel alternatives, from London flats to country cottages, farmhouse B&Bs to university dorms, rental rooms to residences, and campgrounds to castles. Here's how to find the lot of them.
This is one of my favorite little-known tips for European travel. Not only are non-hotel lodging options usually cheaper than hotels, they also usually offer a far more interesting experience, a chance to get closer to the local people and culture. There are even ways to sleep for free.
★★★
★★☆
Serviced flats, residence hotels, Aparthotels, and other townhouse suite lodging in the U.K.
★★★
Stay on a working farm and experience the best of British hospitality and countryside tradition
★★☆
Stay in a real castle and live happily ever after (temporarily) as King and Queen of the castle
★☆☆
Free
Free lodgings in Britain: Hospitality networks (couchsurfing), home swaps, and house sitting services
Free
Couchsurfing and other hospitality networks allow you to sleep for free in other member's homes
Free
Hospitality networks gather folks who are willing to put up fellow members in their homes for free or for a small fee
★★☆
A place to call your own for the night or the week—renting a cottage, house, or villa in the U.K.
Sleep in a religious guesthouse or retreat at abbeys, monasteries, priories, and convents across the U.K. from just £45
Free
If you love sailing, or just have an unquenchable taste for adventure and new experiences, you can sign on to help crew a boat just about anywhere in the world, including the U.K.
Free
Trading spaces isn't just a show on basic cable anymore. It's a way to live life like a local on your travels absolutely for free—so long as you let the local borrow your life (and home) in return.
Free
Sleep for free on vacation by watching someone's house (and, often, watering their plants and feeding their cat)
Free
A network of free stone cabins where you can sleep off the beaten path in the U.K.
Free
Programs like WWOOF and Helpx let you barter your services for a free place to stay
Hotels links
- Booking.com - We have done extensive testing, and Booking.com is hands-down the single best booking engine, with by far the largest number of hotels (and other lodging options) in all price ranges.Partner
- Agoda.com - This booking engine, once just an Asia specialist, has recently rocketed to second-best all around the world.Partner
- HotelsCombined.com - An aggregator looks at the results of all the booking engines and presents the prices it finds at each side-by-side. It's a great concept (and works well for airfares), however in our tests the actual booking engines themselves often offered better deals on more properties.Partner
- Hostelz.com - A booking engine that specailizes in hostels and cheap hotels.Partner
- Hotels.com - Since Hotels.com absorbed its Venere.com sibling, it has been performing much better in Europe than it once did.Partner
- Priceline.com - Priceline not only offers decent deals on standard hotel bookings, but also "Express Deals" in which you only get to know the hotel's star rating and neighborhood before you pay for it—but the savings can be substantial (usually 18%–20%, though occasionally much higher).Partner
- Hotwire.com - Like its competition Priceline, Hotwire offers both straightforward hotel bookings as well as "Hot Rate" deals that save you 25%–65% on hotels that you book blindly, knowing only the neighborhood and star rating before booking (and paying) for it.Partner
- Trivago.com - Depsite its aggressive advertising camapaigns, in our tests Trivago does not actually perform all that well as an aggregator (and it has gotten worse as time goes on). Still, it can be handy.Partner
B&Bs links
- Booking.com - One of the best general booking sites out there, and one of the few that includes B&Bs (filed variously under the categories of "Bed and Breakfasts," "Guesthouses," and "Inns"). By the numbers: 282 B&Bs in London, 151 in Edinburgh, 76 in Bath.Partner
- Bedandbreakfast.com - B&B specialist listing more than 5,500 bed and breakfasts across the U.K., with more than 300 in London alone, 153 in Edinbugh, and 23 in Bath, starting at £19 ($30). User reviews help you make informed decisions.Partner
- Hotels.com - Another generalist lodging booking site with a huge representation of B&Bs: 135 in central London, 130 in Edinburgh, and 37 in Bath.Partner
- Airbnb.com - Famous network of both official and unofficial B&Bs, homestays, room rentals, and apartment and house rentals. So many I can't even post total numbers here, but for an idea: There are more than 300 private room offerings in Central London for under £35 ($54) alone. The idea of someone inflating the old air mattress for you is just a metaphor. Usually, you stay in a guest bedroom, futon, or fold-out couch. Its rates are among the lowest around, averaging £59 ($91), though charging anywhere from £15 to £160 ($24 to $247) per night, with a handful charging more. Airbnb.com is less regulated than most official or online resources, and many of the places to stay are not registered with the local authorities—which helps make them cheaper, but they are not inspected, or subject to official compaints, and certainly do not pay taxes. Buyer beware.
- Bedandbreakfastsguide.com - Online catalog that, depsite its name, lists hotels, self-catering (apartments), and pubs/inns as well. In the striclty B&B category: 118 in London, 206 in Edinburgh, 84 in Bath.
- Wolseylodges.com - A collection of 155 premier B&Bs installed in manor houses, Georgian mansions, Victorian country rectories, and the like across England, Scotland, and Wales (with a smattering in France). Just a handful in any given destination—3 each in London and Edinburgh, 2 in Bath—but all stunning. Even at this level of luxury, prices still range around £95–£140 ($146–$216) for a double (though rates on the site are presented, annoyingly, per person).
- Visitus.co.uk - A mind-boggling array of B&Bs in England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland: 210 in central London, 224 in Edinburgh, 86 in Bath. No grouped mapping feature, however, and it is annoyingly database driven, with London sliced into eight geographic sections (for Central London, you'll have to sift through each of London NW, London SE, London SW, and London W; the other four sections are all way outside the center).
- Hostelz.com - Aggregator bringing together from many hostel and cheap hotel booking engines. If you select "Guesthouses" as the Accommodation Type you will find plenty of B&Bs in there.Partner
- Welcomehomes.co.uk - This London B&B agency lists about three dozen budget and value lodgings in London, with per-person rates from £18–£60 per night.
- Uptownres.co.uk - Uptown Reservations is a long-standing agency devoted to, as its name implies, upscale B&Bs in London, about 65 of them, rated at least four stars, and largely in the tonier neighborhoods (Kinghtsbridge, Kensington, South Kensington, Sloan Square, Chelsea, etc.). Frustratingly in the Internet wera, they don't actually give you a selection of B&Bs from which to choose, but rather have you contact them with your requirements. Still, the lodgings are lovely, and charge a flat £125 for a double, which isn't bad.
- Bedandbreakfastnationwide.com - Network of about 550 B&Bs across Brtiain and Ireland, including 43 in London (via a sister agency), 3 in Edinburgh (and another 9 nearby), and 6 in Bath (well, one atually in Bath and five nearby).
- Bedandbreakfast.eu - Massive database of 1.8 million places to stay around the world (more than 1,400 in London alone), but it is more of a classifieds site, with each property submitting and writing its own listing, and many are not, actually, B&Bs in the traditional sense. Still, a good resource for the room hunt.
Apartments links
- Homeaway.com - So many places it doesn't even bother listing rentals past the first 5,000—and that's just in London.Partner
- Vrbo.com -
VRBO stands for "Vacation Rentals By Owner," a worldwide virtual classifieds section devoted to villas, apartments, cottages, houses, and other places to lay your head fromas little as $400 per week in England. There are a stunning 33,761 properties available in England, 4,896 in Scotland, and 5,123 in Wales.
Though designed to allow villa and vacation home owners to rent to the public directly—ostensibly cutting out the extra costs involved in working through a middle-man rental agency—in my experience plenty of small-fry local rental agencies use it as well (not that there's anything wrong with renting through those folks; just wanted to let you know that not every property listed is truly direct from the owner).
Partner - Booking.com - More than 10,800 apartments across the United Kingdom, including more than 4,300 in London.Partner
- Rentalo.com - Another sizeable database for one-stop shopping, with more than 2,600 properties across the U.K. They also handle everything from standard hotels to B&Bs, agriturism, and even castles.Partner
- Hotels.com - Good generalist booking engine with plenty of "Apartments" options in the filter screens for each destination.Partner
- Interhomeusa.com - 966 rentals in the U.K., of which 212 in London. Partner
- Villasintl.com - Around 770 rental homes and flats of all sizes across the U.K., mostly in England (561 in London) with about 100 in Scotland.
- Belvilla.com - 386 holiday cottages across the U.K., inlcuding 15 flats and homes in London.Partner
- Airbnb.com - Tens of thousands of listings—but caveat emptor. Anyone can post a listing, so trust only the ones with lots of reviews.
Residence hotels links
- Booking.com - More than 120 residence hotels, aparthotels, condo hotels, and townhouse suites in the U.K.Partner
- Hotels.comPartner
- Adagio-city.com - More than 290 residence hotels all across the United Kingdom.Partner
- Sacoapartments.com - Some 80,000 serviced flats in 160 locations around the world, including in 95 cities and town across in the U.K.
- Staybridge.com - Staybridge Suites condos from London to Liverpool, Birmingham to Newcastle-Upon-Tyne.Partner
- Gonative.com - 20 serviced flats in London, and partnerships with aparthotels in other UK cities.
Castles links
- Landmarktrust.org.uk - This organization helps oversee and preserve over 190 historic buildings—from castles to mansions to cottages—across Britain. Since there are few enough Lords of the Manor these days to pay for their upkeep and keep them lived-in (old homes deteriorate rapidly when vacant), the Landmark Trust has hit upon the perfect solution: preserve the buildings (and help fund the organization!) by renting them out.
- Celticcastles.com - Castles in England (14), Scotland (39), Wales (1), and Ireland (19) (plus 8 in France)
- Castleandpalacehotels.com - Not the most complete, but by far the most user-friendly site, maintained by professional travel writer and guidebook author Pamela Barrus (always gotta give props to my colleagues). All castles—9 in England, 4 in Scotland, 2 in Wales—are hand-selected. The interface is quick and intuitive: Click on a country, click on a region, then click on a castle (or palatial hotel) to get a concise but info-packed single page on the property, complete with photographs, prices, direct contact info, brochure-like descriptions of the castle and its history, and a few choice words and tips on the hotel from Pamela herself. Other nice touches: basic intel on how castle hotels work in each country, useful phrases in each language for booking a room, information on holding weddings, etc. She also just has a good eye for castles. I've written about them myself—for guidebooks and magazine articles—so I know what's out there and can tell you that Pamela tends to pick some of the best.
- Castlesontheweb.com - Bukoos links on the "Accommodations" page. Could do with some organization though: some are booking engines, some direct links, some hotel reservations services... still, most seem to at least hook you up with bona fide fortresses. Happy hunting.
- Relaischateaux.com - One of the granddaddies of refined luxury, an association with extremely high standards (and price tags) with more than two-dozen properties in the U.K. Not all are castles, despite the name, but even the manor houses, palaces, mansions, historic villas, and regular hotels are of the utmost in comfort, quality, charm, history, and are usually really, really expensive.
- Historic-uk.com
- Visitscotland.com - The Web site of Scotland's tourist board lists 180 Scottish castles and other historic homes that have been turned into hotels, self-catering flats, B&Bs, and even a hostel—fancy staying in a real medieval castle for just £15/$28?
- Luxuryscotland.co.uk - More than 30 properties in Scotland—some modern, some lodges (one a train), but several are hotels converted from castles or castle-like old manors houses. All of them are luxurious.
Farm stays links
- Farmstay.co.uk - A not-for-profit, farmer-owned umbrella group for local farmstay and agritourism associations that lists nearly 1,000 rural accommodation options—farmhouse B&Bs, self-catering rural cottages, campgrounds, caravans, and rural hostels—across England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
- Organicholidays.com - B&Bs, rental cottages, camping slites, or homestays all on working organic farms—including about 200 in England, 47 in Scotland, 73 in Wales, and 1 in Northern Ireland.
- Booking.com - The general booking site lists around 90 farm stays, the luxury tents, and more than 520 "Country House" lodgings across the United Kingdom.Partner
- Featherdown.co.uk - An intriguing glamping ("glamourous camping") experience in wood-floored, cottage-like, multi-room "tents"—think of a higher-end safari tent, only with a rustic-ramshackle British decor—that sleep up to six with all the comforts of a (modest) country home. There around 33 across around England, Scotland, and Wales. Very hobbity. From around £100 per night for three-night midweek stays (higher on weekends).
- Wwoof.net - If you really want to get your hands dirty, sign up to become a temporary farmhand through this volunteer organization. Gigs last from a few weeks to a few months, and while you pay (a mdoest sum) to join, room and board is free in exchange for your work.
- Helpx.net - Similar to Wwoof, but with more varied opportuniites, Helpx is another place where you can volunteer your services—as a farmhand, handyman, or other skill—in exchange for room and (sometimes) board on farms, B&Bs, hostels, and boats. Gigs can last from a few weeks to a few months.
Hostels links
- Booking.com - Booking.com lists more than 350 hostels across the U.K., with nearly 100 in London alone, complete with verified user reviews.Partner
- Hostelz.com - An aggregator shows you the rates its can find at multiple booking engines at once, so you can find the lowest price out there on hostels and other cheap accommodations.Partner
- Independenthostels.co.uk - A guide to about 400 hostels, bunkhouses, and camping barns all across Great Britain, including England, Scotland, and Wales. It is much stronger in the countryside, towns, and smaller cities than in London (which is pretty much ignores, weighing in with less than half a dozen).
- Yha.org.uk - The official hostelling site, linking to all 158 official YHA hostels and bunkhouses in the U.K. This does mean, however, it ignores the many, many excellent private hostels.
- Hostelworld.com - Booking site with hostels, cheap hotels, apartments, and B&Bs in more than 80 destinations across England, including an impressive 184 in London alone. Partner
- Bookhostels.com - A classic hostel booking engine, offering deals on more than 115 hostels in London alone.Partner
University dorms links
- Universityrooms.co.uk - Around 3,000 accommodations available in four dozen cities across the UK in the summer season. The site was started in 2007 by an Oxford grad who—appropriately enough—dreamed it up while still in school.
- London Metropolitan University - In addition to its own dorms and residence halls, the London Metropolitan University maintains a page of links to information on other educational institutions in Lonon providing summer accommodation.
- London School of Economics - Locations in Holborn, Bloomsbury, Bankside, Butler's Wharf, Clerkenwell. Sumer lodgings listed under "Vacations" in "Life at LSE - Accomodations" section.
- University College London - Ten locations, from Bllomsbury to Fitzrovia to Camden.
- University of London - Summertime accommodations at three residence halls (plus one self-catering flat building) in Bloomsbury, plus another each in Paddington and Marble Arch.
- International Students House - Two locations in Marylebone/Fitzrovia on Great Portland Street near Regent's Park.
- Studentroomslondon.com - Network of a half-dozen student housing operations run by a private firm.
- University of Westminster - Residence halls in Marylebone, near Tower Bridge, and farther afield.
Camping links
- Booking.com - Nearly 400 campgrounds and "Resort village" holiday parks in the U.K.Partner
- Campingandcaravanningclub.co.uk - Lists more than 3,000 member campgrounds in the U.K., including more than 1,600 "Certificated Sites"—small, private camping plots with space for a maximum of only five motorhomes or 10 tents (so lots of lovely farms), open to members only.
- Caravanclub.co.uk - An RV club with around 200 club campgrounds and motorhome parks, another 50 affilaited campgrounds, and more than 2,000 "Certificated Locations"—lovely, small private sites, each with room for no more than five motorhomes (so lots of farms and such) open to members only.
- Eurocampings.co.uk - More than 650 campgrounds in the U.K.
- Nationaltrust.org.uk - Four dozen National Trust locations (under "Holidays") offering tents, yurts, tipis, Berber tents, cabins, pods, bothies, bunkhouses and motorhome parks across the U.K.
House sitting links
- Trustedhousesitters.com - By far the biggest, with thousands of house-sitting opportunities in 130 countries around the world, of which—at press time—752 in Britain, and 35 in London alone. This one is upfront that it is primarily a pet-sitting service. Fee: $99 a year.
- Luxuryhousesitting.com - Several hundred listings, and mostly in the U.S.—though there were 37 in the U.K. at press time. Fee: $25 a year.
- Mindmyhouse.com - Currently lists around 240 houses, including 57 in the U.K. Fee: $20 a year.
- Housecarers.com - Currently lists around 300 houses, including nine in the U.K. Fee: $50 a year.Partner
- Caretaker.org - It's a newsletter (physically and online), not an online database, with around 150 listings per bi-monthly issue. As you can tell from the name, many are for caretaking or staff positions rather than simple house-sitting. Still, lots of intriguing opportunities. Fee: $29.95 annual subscription ($49.95 for two years).
Home swapping links
- Homeexchange.com - The outfit the characters in "The Holiday" used is one of the biggest, with more than 65,000 listings worldwide, including 2,000 in England (800+ in London)—though I have noticed that includes some regular rentals, not swaps. Membership: $150 per year.Partner
- invented-city.com - This web-only service has the cheapest membership rates out there, listing a taggaring 1,071 in Great Britain, of which 234 in London. Membership: $25 for three months, $35 for six months, $59 per year.
- Homelink.org - Listing more than 900 home swaps in the U.K., including 116 in London. Membership: $95 for one year, $152 for two years.
- intervac-homeexchange.com - Intervac is one of the older ones (founded in 1953), with a focus on Europe, listing 323 in the U.K., of which 64 in London. Membership: $99 per year.
Couchsurfing links
- Couchsurfing.com - The largest free hospitality network, with mroe than 12 million users in 200,000 cities, including more than 130,000 hosts in London, more than 10,000 hosts in Edinburgh, and nearly 5,000 in Oxford.
- Hospitalityclub.org - Nearly 25,000 users in the U.K., including nearly 7,000 in London, 780 in Edinburgh, and 292 in Oxford.
- Globalfreeloaders.com - More than 9,000 users in the U.K., including 2,600 in London and 258 in Edinburgh.
