11/1/2009

Caring Hotel is a great place to stay if you are on a budget but want a room of your own.  I stayed there in January '08 and it was everything I needed at an insanely cheap price. I had a single room with a shared bathroom in the hall for 35 pounds/night ($70 at the time). This was a bunch cheaper than other places.

The Neighborhood.
The neighborhood is Paddington though Yelp calls it Bayswater. It's a safe relaxed neighborhood with shops and houses and no street people (think like parts of Sunset in SF), walking distance to two Tube stations and Hyde Park (Like Golden Gate Park). I never felt weird or scared when I walked back to the hotel at night.

The room:
I was out walking around London most of the day so I just wanted a a basic  comfy room and I got it.
It had a good bed, a sink, a TV with antenna reception. (2 BBC channels and Sky TV which is like FOX) and a closet. It has a heater, and it got a bit warm at times, but I opened the window. Street noise wasn't a problem as I was on the 3rd floor.  However no elevator just stairs, for me no big deal. And the hotel staff was really helpful and carried my suitcase up the to my room when I got there on the first day and arranged a taxi on the last to get me to the Tube station. (easy without suitcase, a bit of a pain with one)

Bathroom situation. It was cheaper to get a room that shared a bathroom down the hall with the other shared rooms. I think I shared it with two other rooms, but it was never a problem because January is the off season and in the 10 DAYS that I was there, I never had to wait to use the bathroom or shower ever. It was just like having my own for less money. So really no problem at all.

Breakfest was included, I usually didn't stop for it, because it was served earlier than I got up, but I had it one day. Fried egg, potatoes, toast or cereal. Juice (grapefruit I think).

Service, Service was basic but really nice. It's a nice looking but inexpensive place so don't expect all fancy service or room service, but the staff is really nice and attentive. They have 24/hr front desk, so you can come back at any time rather than having to worry about being locked out.  This is important.
Upon arrival they took my bags up 3 flights of stairs to my room. They reserved  a cab for the trip back to the Tube station with my suitcase. The manager recommended a nearby  coin laundry when I needed to do laundry during the middle of my trip. He recommended a decently priced lunch place (but never actually got there).
They had one of those things that allow you to plug more than one appliance into an outlet. (There was only one outlet in the room and I wanted to charge both PDA and shaver over night).
Maid came in every day, but not too early.
And all for $70/night.
For a cheap 'base of operations' in a decent neighborhood, you can't beat the Caring Hotel

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