Where to stay in London

Pick the base before the hotel

London is large enough that a good hotel in the wrong place becomes a bad stay. I choose the base from the work, walks, or airport I need most.

Trip	Base	Why
First-time sightseeing	Tower Hill, Liverpool Street, South Bank, or Bloomsbury	Easy walks to the river, the City, museums, and the West End
Museums with calmer evenings	Kensington	South Kensington museums, Piccadilly Line, quieter nights
Food and bars	Shoreditch, Spitalfields, or Bermondsey	Better evening density than the main tourist strip
Work in Canary Wharf or ExCeL	Canary Wharf, Royal Docks, or Stratford	Shorter commute, better transit, less wasted energy
Early Heathrow flight	Heathrow hotel	Only for the flight, not for the trip

Tower Hill, Liverpool Street, and the City

citizenM Tower of London became my favorite central London hotel for solo business trips in 2026. Some rooms look directly across at the Tower of London, the staff were excellent, and Tower Hill station is below the hotel. The rooms are tight for two people and the bathroom uses frosted glass, so I would not choose it casually for a shared trip.

Andaz London Liverpool Street is the larger, more traditional option beside Liverpool Street station. I liked the old railway-hotel building, the location, and the breakfast enough to keep it high on my London list after a 2025 stay.

Hotel Indigo London Tower Hill had unusually large rooms for London, strong walk-in showers, and a small staff who got to know me over a longer stay. Aldgate, the Tower of London, and Tower Bridge are all close.

Hyatt Place London City East was good value in 2025, and the terrace breakfast was excellent. The immediate street could feel unsettled for short periods in the evening, though people moved along quickly.

Kensington

Hotel Indigo London Kensington is close to Earl's Court station, food shops, and an M&S. The courteous staff and broad breakfast selection are what I remember from my 2024 stay. This side works when the museums, Earl's Court, or Heathrow matter more than the City.

Canary Wharf, ExCeL, and Stratford

Use this side of London for the eastern side of the trip. Hyatt Regency London Stratford can make sense when the price is right and you want the Elizabeth, Jubilee, DLR, and Central lines nearby.

Crowne Plaza London Docklands and Moxy London Excel are practical conference hotels. Book them for ExCeL, the Royal Docks, or an early meeting. They are not central sightseeing hotels.

Heathrow hotels are for the flight

I stay at Heathrow only when an early departure or late arrival makes the airport night worthwhile. Moxy London Heathrow Airport and Delta Hotels Heathrow Windsor solve that problem. I would not use either as a base for seeing London.