London Hotel after cruise 2 choices

[vacationlady]

We will be heading to London after our British Isle cruise in July for 2 nights.  We have narrowed our choice to Great Scotland Yard Hotel or Hyatt Regency London - The Churchill.  We will be staying on points.  Which is the better hotel for visiting all the main sites before heading back to the airport.  We plan on walking off the cruise ship with our luggage and taking the train to London.  I am leaning toward Great Scotland Yard Hotel but would like input since we have never been to London before.

[gnome12]

44 minutes ago, vacationlady said:

We will be heading to London after our British Isle cruise in July for 2 nights.  We have narrowed our choice to Great Scotland Yard Hotel or Hyatt Regency London - The Churchill.  We will be staying on points.  Which is the better hotel for visiting all the main sites before heading back to the airport.  We plan on walking off the cruise ship with our luggage and taking the train to London.  I am leaning toward Great Scotland Yard Hotel but would like input since we have never been to London before.

Since you have no chance of visiting "all the main sites" in 2 days, you will need to give some idea of what you hope to see in this time, before someone can really advise you.

[princeton123211]

1 hour ago, vacationlady said:

We have narrowed our choice to Great Scotland Yard Hotel or Hyatt Regency London - The Churchill.  We will be staying on points.  Which is the better hotel for visiting all the main sites before heading back to the airport. 

As others have said, "hitting the main sites" in two days is like saying the same about New York City-- cant be done well.

 

That being said, Great Scotland Yard Hotel will most likely be a little more central to what you want to see than the Hyatt. From Great Scotland Yard you can easily walk to Horse Guards Parade, Churchill War Rooms, past 10 Downing/Cenotaph, Houses of Parliament, St James' Park, Buckingham Palace, etc. It also provides you easy access over to the West End in case you were going to go to see a show. 

 

If the decision is purely on Hyatt for points, I'd take a look at St James Hotel and Club just off Pall Mall-- a pseudo private club that Hyatt manages. I think it's the better of the three. 

[Post Captain]

Answering your question purely in terms of location... 

 

The Great Scotland Yard Hotel is more central, relatively speaking.  Just around the corner from Trafalgar Square (Nelson's Column, the National Gallery, St Martin in the Fields, etc), and within walking distance of a number of other major tourist sights (e.g. Buckingham Palace, Churchill War Rooms, Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, the Thames) as well as many West End theatres. Also, a short taxi ride from Waterloo Station.

 

That said, The Hyatt Regency - Churchill is not off in the boondocks by any means. It's about two and a half miles from the GSY Hotel--in Marylebone, an attractive, upscale area of London. The streets thereabouts feel more spacious, less crowded and hectic (at least until you venture onto Oxford Street). But you can easily travel (by bus or underground) to the sights/attractions mentioned in the previous paragraph.

 

I don't have any experience of these two hotels themselves (other than familiarity with their locations) so can't compare them in terms of amenties, service, and the like, except to say that the Churchill looks quite massive from the outside.

 

Hope that helps.

 

 (I see that princeton123211 posted pretty much the same information while I was typing.)

Edited February 13, 2020 by Post Captain

[John Bull]

As per posts by Princeton and the Captain, Great Scotland Yard is the more convenient.

 

And I see it as no-contest. Right by Whitehall with the Prime Minister’s residence, Churchill War Rooms, Horse Guards Parade, Trafalgar Square, National Gallery, and a ten- minute sight-packed walk from Parliament Square - Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, etc.

And the hotel has history. It was the headquarters of the Criminal Investigation Department back in the days of (the fictitious) Sherlock Holmes.

 

The Churchill is a little too far north. OK for Marble Arch or the shops of Oxford Street, But little else in walking distance.

 

London,s sights are well_ spread so from either hotel for many you will need to use the Tube.  But Great Scotland Yard wins hands-down for important sights in easy walking distance.

 

JB 😀

[Globaliser]

12 hours ago, gnome12 said:

Since you have no chance of visiting "all the main sites" in 2 days ...

 

11 hours ago, princeton123211 said:

As others have said, "hitting the main sites" in two days is like saying the same about New York City-- cant be done well.

 

I'd go with what gnome12 said: it can't be done, full stop.

 

For some tangential entertainment, here's a recent review of the Great Scotland Yard Hotel's "signature restaurant".

[John Bull]

55 minutes ago, Globaliser said:

 

 

I'd go with what gnome12 said: it can't be done, full stop.

 

For some tangential entertainment, here's a recent review of the Great Scotland Yard Hotel's "signature restaurant".

 

I’m more inclined to agree with Princeton - can’t be done WELL in two days.

But the OP can certainly make a decent fist of it in two days  - not everyone has either the time or the money to delve deeply into a city which some reckon to be worth a month.

 

The hotel’s restaurant review is errrrr.... interesting.

Having mementos of a building,s history scattered around its restaurant is great, though with a. SLIGHTLY macabre history it needs to done in a seemly way. The reviewer clearly thought it wasn’t, 🤔

As to the quality of its food, I wouldn’t have gotten further than the prices before saying “not for me”. 

 

But the Lord Moon of the Mall  pub is almost opposite. A Wetherspoons pub, food extremely average and pub-style service but at Wetherspoons low National prices with no London price-loading.

Or rather better, the many Fullers pubs,

or just around the corner a huge number of restaurants all the way up The Strand to Covent Garden.

 

JB 😀

[Morgans]

The Churchill has a great restaurant - Locanda Locatelli. It's one of our favourites...... the hotel is only about 5 minutes from Marble Arch tube so convenient for travel. Handy for Oxford Street shopping, Hyde Park and Park Lane.

[vacationlady]

Thanks for all the information.  I know we can not do it all in two days, and really want a nice place to stay to wind down our fast pace cruise before going back home.  We are walkers and enjoy walking and don't have a problem riding the tube.  I think we will go with the Great Scotland Yard.  Thanks for all of your help.  Looking forward to visiting London and not just passing through.  It will be an excuse to come back and explore more.

[Post Captain]

6 hours ago, John Bull said:

 

The hotel’s restaurant review is errrrr.... interesting.

 

 

 "£26 for a dreary plate of fried dough and cauliflower."

 

I can get that around here for less than half the price! 😁

[geoherb]

How late in July will you be there? Buckingham Palace opens for tours this year on July 25. We enjoyed touring it a couple of summers ago. 

https://www.rct.uk/visit/the-state-rooms-buckingham-palace

[vacationlady]

We will be back home by then.  Thanks for the information.

[Birdnutty]

Having to do with Buckingham Palace... how far in advance does one need to buy tickets?  Can it be done a few days before or must it be done way in advance?

[princeton123211]

16 hours ago, Birdnutty said:

Can it be done a few days before or must it be done way in advance?

Our experience for the State Rooms is that a couple weeks in advance is plenty. If you try and do it same day, in all likelihood there will be some tickets but you may not get the time you are looking for. Of course you would also run the risk of not being able to get in at all. 

 

For the Royal Mews, no reservation or advanced purchase necessary. Just walk right up.