The City Inn London is The Best of The Budget Chains

March 11, 2009 at 9:31 AM | by juliab | 0 Comments

So you want a cheap hotel in London? Not as hard as we used to think (as long as you understand that �cheap� in London is always going to mean �relatively cheap�). For a start, it�s just been named cheaper than New York for the first time since 2002, thanks to the dropping pound.

And for another thing, thanks to the whole credit crunch, the top hotels are cranking out some pretty sound offers to entice people in.

So, if you�ve planned it properly, you shouldn�t really have to think about staying in a budget chain. But say you haven�t, there�s no handy �1 sale at the Hoxton, and you don�t fancy the horrid Cromwell Crown. You might need to venture into chainland.

Which to choose? Lucky for us, the Observer�s Tom Robbins stayed in a different one each night for a week, to save us the hassle.

There are lots to choose from � Travelodge are set to open 40 new hotels this year, for a start, while Premier Inn is opening up in Dubai. Robbins visited a Premier Inn, Travelodge, Express by Holiday Inn, Jurys Inn and City Inn, all in London.

The verdict? Well none of them are bad at all, but City Inn (Westminster) wins by a mile, with a perfect score of 10/10. According to Robbins:

� It's better equipped than any hotel room I can remember, at any price. There's an Apple iMac (providing free internet access, music and 36 TV channels), an iron and ironing board, safe, hairdryer, free chocolate cookies, complimentary library of CDs and DVDs, big fluffy towels, even bath robes, and - at last! - a minibar. Puts many five-star hotels to shame.�

How much does amenity heaven cost? From just �59 ($82). There was even a minor UK celeb at check-in next to Robbins (though we can�t guarantee that for your visit).

If you�re really budget-minded, you might like to try Travelodge, though. They have consistently good offers of �29 and up for rooms, and get a 8/10 from Robbins.

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