Hotels in South Kensington

Hotels in South Kensington are abundant and range from two to five stars.  These tend to be situated either side of the Cromwell Road from Earls Court in the east along to Knightsbridge in the west finishing around Harrods. 

Most South Kensington hotels are easy walking distance to either Gloucester Road tube station or South Kensington tube station.  Both of these are on the Circle and District line which encompasses central London and also runs directly to Heathrow Airport.

For small family groups not wanting to pay the earth try the Montana Hotel this hotel has proved itself a hit with guests,  being well placed for the underground station at Gloucester Road (Piccadilly Line) which connects to Heathrow Airport.

Next door to the Montana Hotel is the 4 star Rydges Kensington Plaza Hotel which sometimes has great prices on offer so also worthwhile checking out. This is a lovely modern and comfortable hotel worth checking out.

In the eastern part of South Kensington close to Harrods is the very popular 4 star Rembrandt Hotel  a well known landmark boasting an excellent health and leisure complex.  

Another hotel in South Kensington worth considering is the Holiday Inn Kensington Forum. This hotel is close to Gloucester Road tube station from where you can travel all around central London on the District and Circle lines. 

In 2009, the Crowne Plaza Kensington London opened opposite the Forum and is getting great guest reports. Not cheap but very nice.

Should you wish to locate a hotel in Kensington which is generally known as the area around High Street Kensington running from Olympia in the west to the Royal Albert Hall and Hyde Park in the east, you will find several top quality 4 and 5 star hotels.  You can also check out our hotels in Earls Court, also in the same area of London.

HOLIDAY APARTMENTS IN SOUTH KENSINGTON

Hotel Assist also offers several Holiday Apartments in Kensington bookable for even just one night.  If you are on a budget then check out the Citadines South Kensington Apartments close to the Royal Albert Hall.  If money is no object then have a look at the 5 star deluxe Beaufort House Luxury Apartments just 5 minutes walk from Harrods.

South Kensington Guide

Kensington, the regal quarter of London bordering the royal Hyde Park and Buckingham and Kensington Palaces is a huge favourite of London tourists, and South Kensington which borders Chelsea and Earls Court is an area full of excellent places to stay.  It is also where you find three huge tourist attractions, the three museums on Exhibition Road – the Science Museum, Natural History Museum and Victoria & Albert Museum. These London landmarks offer a world-class experience for millions of visitors each year, and are so filled with family-friendly sights, sounds and experiences that you can easily lose a full day in each one.

Kids really love the Science Museum (Exhibition Road, 0870 870 4868, www.sciencemuseum.org.uk) and it’s not hard to see why: seven floors of interactive exhibits include spacecrafts, the original steam engine, a 3D IMAX cinema, entertainingly insightful staff and hours of guaranteed fun.

The dinosaurs in the neighbouring Natural History Museum (15 Cromwell Place, 020 7942 5000, www.nhm.ac.uk) are another huge family attraction – the entrance-hall Diplodicus and animatronic T-Rex get the biggest screams, and there’s over three and a half million specimens of animal, vegetable and mineral life dating back millennia scattered around the rest of this vast, fascinating and brilliantly executed museum.

Making up the hat-trick, the Victoria & Albert Museum (Cromwell Road, 020 7942 2000, www.vam.ac.uk) is one of the world’s centres of decorative arts, with the largest collection of Italian Renaissance items outside of Italy and some of the best East Asian and Islamic ceramics, glass and textiles ever collected.

The Royal Albert Hall (Kensington Gore, 0845 401 5045, www.royalalberthall.com) is one of the country’s grandest, home of the annual BBC Proms providing outstanding classical music from July to September each year, large-scale concerts from rock legends like Eric Clapton and Van Morrison, and the occasional musical spectacular.

Then there’s the fashionable stores and restaurants of Kensington proper, including the must-visit institution that is Harrods (87-135 Brompton Road, 020 7730 1234, www.harrods.com). Ensure you have a day spare and a full wallet to browse the numerous floors filled from top to bottom with designer-ware and wonderful household items.

South Kensington is also the location of the Lycee Francais Charles de Gaulle, a large school for French students opposite the Natural History Museum.

If you are staying in Kensington then check out the Wholefoods Store on High Street Kensington, 80,000 square feet of fantastic food to take away or eat in.

South Kensington is served by the District, Circle and Piccadilly Underground lines.

Editors Comments about hotels in South Kensington

For sure this area has a lot going for it with its huge selection of restaurants and shops.  It is also a district where when walking home late at night, I dont feel the need to look over my shoulder.

There are lots of good hotels but my advice is to look around Gloucester Road tube station.  Generally speaking all the hotels here are decent and are 3 and 4 star standard.  If sub 100 pounds is offered, the Montana is well worth looking at, as is Baileys Hotel.  At over this nightly budget check out the ever so comfortable Harrington Hall, Rydges Hotel or the Holiday Inn Forum. If 200 pounds upwards is ok then (although strictly not South Ken) the 5 star Royal Garden Hotel is a worthy candidate.

For family rooms up to 5 persons, it has to be the Montana for a great deal.

Wherever you stay do not worry too much about breakfast as there are several good places to eat heartily or healthy around the tube station.