Long term lodging/accommodation in London - Options?

[Technotronic]

The initial message was deleted from this topic on 13 January 2025 at 19:25

[NDA]

I looked at this when I was working 3 days a week in London. Ultimately I negotiated a rate with Hilton Hotels (their DoubleTree brand) for two nights a week. I think last years rate was £147 a night.

I have to say that it was a soul-destroying experience, very Alan Partridge.

I looked at rental alternatives, but never pushed the button, the hotel was easier.

[OoopsVoss]

You could probably stay near Abbey Wood for 50quid a night in a Travel Lodge, that is only 15mins to Liverpool St on Elizabeth line. It will be grim, but probably far cheaper than any other options. If its a permanent role, I'd be rethinking my living arrangements.

[Pot Bellied Fool]

Speak to Myles at Murray Stays - https://murraystays.co.uk/contractors/ they do deals for long termers.

[Spare tyre]

I don’t know you personally / your ins and outs etc, but I have a friend who purchased a motorhome and found a drive to leave it in

My friend does this is central Berlin and works really well for him. Your mileage will vary of course

[12TS]

Hotels around Stratford possibly - there are lots of trains into the City and the journey time is less than 10 mins. You could go further afield for cheaper hotels e.g. Barking/Canning Town but I wouldn't fancy it TBH.

Other alternatives - how long do you want to spend travelling? Central Line/Greater Anglia/Elizabeth Line/c2c/Met Line/District Line all serve the City. Chelmsford is 30 mins from Liverpool St and has lots of flats. No idea of £££ though

[mikey_b]

Being in the office 'a couple of days a week' is one early start, one night in a hotel, and one late-ish arrival home. Surely almost anything with a decent bed and a shower would do for one night a week?

I would suggest getting your feet under the table, and then asking around. If your new employer is comfortable with people travelling in from anywhere, chances are good that others will be doing similar and can offer advice.

[Bill]

mikey_b said:

Being in the office 'a couple of days a week' is one early start, one night in a hotel, and one late-ish arrival home. Surely almost anything with a decent bed and a shower would do for one night a week?

I would suggest getting your feet under the table, and then asking around. If your new employer is comfortable with people travelling in from anywhere, chances are good that others will be doing similar and can offer advice.

Doing some work on the train would take the edge off the early/late finish. You'd be the perfect person for someone to rent a single room to for the one or two nights a week.

[Countdown]

Technotronic said:

I know what you mean, soulless hotels filled with business travellers are very ‘Partridge’, but at the same time they are just really easy.

I would prefer a room in a house or studio apartment where I can leave my stuff, the ease of hotel rooms cannot be understated.

The need to be constantly booking and paying for a hotel is the downside. Its just more time and admin.

Depending on how "central" you want to be I think you might be paying £1k per month upwards.

[Bluesgirl]

Have a look on spareroom.co.uk. I advertise there for lodgers. You can specify a Monday-Friday let and advertise on there to say you're only looking for 1-2 nights p.w. If you're lucky you might find someone who's happy for the extra income for only a couple of day's disruption each week. Of course if you're looking to leave belongings in the room, that might factor into the cost.

Gumtree is also a possibility, but it's a bit unpredictable.

[sherman]

How about a floating hotel in docklands
Its currently £105 per night.
Im sure you could work out a long term rate with them.
https://www.booking.com/hotel/gb/good-london.en-gb...

[GreatGranny]

As has been suggested you'll be able to get a room 1-2 nights a week on Spareroom.com.

[z4RRSchris]

I have a few flats around liverpool street, the tenants generally pay around 700-1200pm per person plus bills and CT. So perhaps 1300pm on average. They are always chopping and changing./

for your 8 nights a month thats c£162pn.

id rather hotel in one of the cheap ones around aldgate, nice walk to work.

[gotoPzero]

Technotronic said:

Hello all,

The job is located in The City/Bank area.


Thank you!

Do Mondays & Tuesdays in the office. Most city hotels will be cheap(er) on a Sunday night.
TL London Bank will be about half the peak price on a Sunday. IME.

Monday night is usually a bit cheaper too. 20-30% less. Avoid Tues-Thurs.

I reckon with some planning you can do Sun & Mon night for sub £200.

[omniflow]

A chap I used to work with did this - although home for him was Northern Ireland. He used to book a day or so in advance using Booking.com and picked whatever he liked the look of based on price, location and general look and feel. I think that there's so much choice, if you're not fussed about specific location you'll always find something affordable at short notice.

[Mont Blanc]

Technotronic said:

I also worked with a guy from N.I a couple of years ago, and also a lady from Jersey…. Both would do a couple of days in the office each week.

I sometimes moan about a direct train journey to work… I really couldn’t face flights and airports every week!

That is quite the commute!

[Greedydog]

I used to do this and looked at a number of options. The cheapest at the time was simply booking local’ish Travelodges, or if I was feeling flush, Premier Inns near a tube station or within walking distance a month or two in advance. The only issue was around big events etc. where rates would go up everywhere. As suggested earlier, if you are will to negotiate a long term commitment you may get a discounted deal for 2 nights a week from somewhere.

Edited by Greedydog on Thursday 4th April 08:44

[KAgantua]

Technotronic said:

Hello all,

I am currently negotiating a new role, and I need to factor in accommodation. The job is located in The City/Bank area.

I have worked in London on and off for years, but always on a consultancy basis, therefore just picked random Travelodge/Premier Inn/Hotels and these were paid on expenses and I did not have to think about it.

This time around, it is a standard salary arrangement and where I live is irrelevant to the employer provided I can be in the office a couple of days each week.

I live 2.5 hours outside London, and I get the train direct in to Euston.

The jobs isn’t well enough paid that I can just go and rent myself a nice house or apartment. The salary is around £100k and I would preferably like to spend as little of that on accommodation as possible.

I need somewhere that is available Monday to Friday, but realistically I will probably only need a couple of nights per week, and some weeks nothing at all.

Not concerned if it is a shared house, studio flat, B&B, or whatever.

Does anyone have any suggestions or advice with regards to where to look, what to look for, or what to pay?

Ideally something fairly central.

Thank you!

Where will you store all your Keyboards and samplers?

[Bobupndown]

Mont Blanc said:

Technotronic said:

I also worked with a guy from N.I a couple of years ago, and also a lady from Jersey…. Both would do a couple of days in the office each week.

I sometimes moan about a direct train journey to work… I really couldn’t face flights and airports every week!

That is quite the commute!

I live in Northern Ireland and occasionally go on short breaks to the mainland. Always see these types of commuters at the airport at silly o clock getting the first flight out to be in London or wherever to do a days work and maybe home again that night. I wonder how they put up with that commute.

[Maniacs]

I used www.spareroom.co.uk when I worked in Cambridge. You should find lots of options on there including people happy to rent rooms Monday to Friday.

If you do go down that route, make sure you get a chance to meet all the housemates, find out what else they expect you to contribute towards as well i.e. cleaning, extra bills etc.

It's a real mixed bag, I got a great place living with a landlord who took real pride in her house. On my search, I found real rough places and everything in between.