Bed & Breakfasts in London ★★★
London B&Bs range from knockabout pensions to classy modern mini-hotels to the classic Victorian-looking inn
The U.K. has raised the B&B concept—a handful of rooms run as an inn by a family in their own home—to an art form. Nothing says "British vacation" like afternoon tea at your cozy bed and breakfast.
Sadly, there are precious few B&Bs in London iteslf—well, in central London, anyway. Most you will find on listings sites are north or west of the sightseeing center where most visitors will spend the bulk of their time.
There are really two types of Bed & Breakfasts in London these days: the old pension-type inn—cheap, worn about the edges, and pretty hit or miss, but cheap—and the upscale private home upscale B&Bs that burgeoned in the 1990s.
How much does a B&B in London cost?
B&Bs are usually anywhere from 5% to 40% cheaper than hotels.
Expect to pay anywhere from about $50 to $170 for a double room at a typical B&B (perhaps up to $250 for historic properties).
Breakfast is, of course, included (though it is usually of the cold, Continental variety, not a cooked full English breakfast).
What is a London B&B like?
Many types of lodging actually categorize (and sell) themselves as "B&Bs"—if they provide both a bed and breakfast, they figure it's fair.
In general, those that choose to use the moniker "B&B" as part of their name tend to be the smallest, generally ranging from 4 to 12 rooms. "Guesthouses" or "Inns" might have anywhere from 9 to 20 rooms. Small hotels of 18 to 30 rooms may also consider (and list) themselves Bed & Breakfasts.
A bed and breakfast essentially works something like a small hotel, one which provides breakfast and is located in the owner's home (or at least an a converted apartment in their building)—though these days the "breakfast" half is as often continental (rolls and tea) as a huge English spread.
The largest concentration of London B&Bs is the Bayswater/Paddington Station area north of Hyde Park. Another B&B-packed area is just to the west of Bayswater in Notting Hill.
Reid List
A postcard-worthy Victorian B&B in Notting Hill between Hyde Park and Portobello Road
Eight elegant, bookish-themed B&B rooms above a gourmet pub in Clerkenwell
Perhaps the nicest B&B in London—though not the most central (in Hammersmith and Fulham)
- 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.
General info about B&Bs 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.
