London Hotel

[NicoleAJ]

In just over a month I'll be spending some time in London, and I have not yet booked a hotel. I have multiple food intolerances, so I generally try to avoid eating at restaurants. Usually when I travel in the U.S. I make sure that a mini fridge is put in my hotel room so that I can bring my own food, but I'll be gone for a while and going through customs and won't have a place to cook when I get to England. Does anyone know of a good hotel in London that has been helpful with putting a fridge in the room? If not, are there any hotels that seem to be in the vicinity of more gluten free food options than most? I know about Cotto Italian Restaurant and a few of the chains like La Tasca and Wagamama. I guess I was just wondering where people have had good luck staying in London. Thanks!

[irish daveyboy]

In just over a month I'll be spending some time in London, and I have not yet booked a hotel. I have multiple food intolerances, so I generally try to avoid eating at restaurants. Usually when I travel in the U.S. I make sure that a mini fridge is put in my hotel room so that I can bring my own food, but I'll be gone for a while and going through customs and won't have a place to cook when I get to England. Does anyone know of a good hotel in London that has been helpful with putting a fridge in the room? If not, are there any hotels that seem to be in the vicinity of more gluten free food options than most? I know about Cotto Italian Restaurant and a few of the chains like La Tasca and Wagamama. I guess I was just wondering where people have had good luck staying in London. Thanks!

This is a listing of own brand UK Supermarket Foods.

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Click on a Shop Logo, when the page opens click GO.

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check the boxes in the free from line (in my case gluten and wheat) then press find it.

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it will bring up a list of foods That should be suitable, double check the labelling!!

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At least you will know what areas to check instead of shuffling around the Supermarkets in ZOMBIE MODE.

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Open Original Shared Link

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I Stress again USE AS A GUIDE ONLY double check the labels.

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Best Regards,

David

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WARNING

recipes associated with a product (Delia's Recipe...)

MAY NOT BE GLUTEN FREE

[Gemini]

In just over a month I'll be spending some time in London, and I have not yet booked a hotel. I have multiple food intolerances, so I generally try to avoid eating at restaurants. Usually when I travel in the U.S. I make sure that a mini fridge is put in my hotel room so that I can bring my own food, but I'll be gone for a while and going through customs and won't have a place to cook when I get to England. Does anyone know of a good hotel in London that has been helpful with putting a fridge in the room? If not, are there any hotels that seem to be in the vicinity of more gluten free food options than most? I know about Cotto Italian Restaurant and a few of the chains like La Tasca and Wagamama. I guess I was just wondering where people have had good luck staying in London. Thanks!

When I go to London, I always rent an apartment. For the same price as a hotel room, you'll get much more room and a small kitchen for cooking. The only meal I end up eating in the flat is breakfast. London is an easy city for gluten-free food and I have never had any problems finding a good gluten-free meal when there. I usually have a big breakfast and then a snack, which I bring, at tea time, then a large dinner at night. It works out very well and I have had zero problems.

You will not find a hotel in the UK who will provide a small fridge unless you stay in an upscale place. I don't know what your budget is but the only fridges I have ever seen when staying there were in the more upscale hotels. I think if you look into renting a studio flat, you'll be happy with what you get, as compared to a hotel room! There is also a new Whole Foods market on Kensington High St., near to Kensington Palace, and they have all sorts of stuff for food intolerances.

La Tasca restaurant was just OK. Their gluten-free menu is extremely limited and if you order paella, you get enough rice for 10 people! I can't eat that much rice on any given day so ended up throwing a lot of it out, which is a huge waste. The food was tasty but there isn't much on the menu you can have. I was a bit disappointed, to say the least!

[Mango04]

I don't know about hotels but London is my favorite place to eat. I also have multiple food allergies and have had tons of luck with the restaurants there (in addition to Cotto and Wagamama check out Leon, the gluten-free sections at Sansburys and Waitrose, and the Whole Foods in Kensington)

Sorry if that's all info you already knew about....

oh and ps Cotto is amazing!!!! I was there last weekend and ate pasta, bread, pizza and an amazing chocolate dessert ... all gluten, dairy and soy-free

[NicoleAJ]

Thanks everyone for your replies. I'm really excited about this trip and can't wait to try Cotto. I'll definitely check out the Whole Foods and the other places mentioned. The last time I was in England (in Leeds) I had good luck getting breakfast and lunch at grocery stores and then going out to dinner. And actually La Tasca's little chicken skewers are pretty good, as is the manchego cheese with tomatoes. I didn't try the paella though, and now I'm glad that I didn't.

Gemini, is there a particular site you visit to rent an apartment? I've looked into the option, but so many of them seem to have their drawbacks. I've seen reviews on sites about this place being unclean and that place having awful plumbing problems or another place being in either a sketchy neighborhood or a neighborhood that is a little too far removed from all the great things the city has to offer, so I'm just not sure where to go for a reliable flat rental.

[Gemini]

Thanks everyone for your replies. I'm really excited about this trip and can't wait to try Cotto. I'll definitely check out the Whole Foods and the other places mentioned. The last time I was in England (in Leeds) I had good luck getting breakfast and lunch at grocery stores and then going out to dinner. And actually La Tasca's little chicken skewers are pretty good, as is the manchego cheese with tomatoes. I didn't try the paella though, and now I'm glad that I didn't.

Gemini, is there a particular site you visit to rent an apartment? I've looked into the option, but so many of them seem to have their drawbacks. I've seen reviews on sites about this place being unclean and that place having awful plumbing problems or another place being in either a sketchy neighborhood or a neighborhood that is a little too far removed from all the great things the city has to offer, so I'm just not sure where to go for a reliable flat rental.

Nicole.....try Open Original Shared Link. Do a search for "49 Hans Place" in Knightsbridge and this should take you to the apartment we rented on our last trip. I do not know what your budget is but their current quoted on-line prices start at about 150 GBP per night, per flat. We rented a larger, deluxe studio in this building and it was lovely. However, there is no AC, which did not bother me as we went in the cooler weather. I don't know how important AC is to you but you will be traveling in summer. When I went the exchange rate was a lot higher so these prices are good at the current rate.

Their prices for this place include the VAT tax and service. 49 Hans was clean, in an awesome neighborhood (I saw many a Maserati and Ferrari parked on the curbs in the morning) and it's close to everything important. I never felt unsafe and had fun people watching the very wealthy. They really are different!

A couple of things.......you are correct, renting a flat can be hit or miss. I learned from past experience to rent as much as your budget allows because it does make a difference. These flats at 49 Hans are in one of the most upscale neighborhoods in London and are right behind Harrod's. Gorgeous area with many restaurants and shops a stones throw away. My husband had to drag me out to the airport when we came home! The kitchens are small but serve their purpose well. I would also advise you to buy those toaster bags because the toaster will be unusable without them. In case you haven't heard of them, they enable you to put a slice of bread into the bag and toast it contamination free. They work awesome! These flats are also serviced, which is an added bonus.

It works the same way as a hotel.

If you stay in an area closer to the City of London itself, it will be noisier at night when you are trying to sleep. I found Kensington/Knightsbridge area's to be quieter and more residential at night. However, you are minutes away by Tube to the waterfront and touristy places of interest. Use the Tube, it's the fastest way around the city and much, much cheaper than cabs. You could actually walk through the parks to these places from Knightsbridge also, that's how close they are. A longer stroll but do-able. If you make use of the Tube, buy a Tube Pass from the States before you go and you'll save money and won't have to keep buying tickets.

Do a search on this site and see what they have to offer. Renting an apartment is really the way to go and you can keep food there.....very important. Harrod's also has a fair amount of gluten-free stuff and a Food Hall to die for. If you find something and want to know if the area is good, post here and I'll help you out. I've been to London 7 times and I absolutely LOVE that city. It's a blast! I also found a few small patisseries on the main road from this place where I could get a gluten-free breakfast some mornings. The French places did a good job of that.

Geez...all this talk about London, now I want to go again! When we do go, we have already agreed that we would re-rent this place again. The service was good and there were no hidden surprises, money-wise. I did rent this flat from a different company than this site but they advertise on other sites as well so I think who you go through won't make much difference. The deal seems the same. Happy hunting!

[NicoleAJ]

Nicole.....try Open Original Shared Link. Do a search for "49 Hans Place" in Knightsbridge and this should take you to the apartment we rented on our last trip. I do not know what your budget is but their current quoted on-line prices start at about 150 GBP per night, per flat. We rented a larger, deluxe studio in this building and it was lovely. However, there is no AC, which did not bother me as we went in the cooler weather. I don't know how important AC is to you but you will be traveling in summer. When I went the exchange rate was a lot higher so these prices are good at the current rate.

Their prices for this place include the VAT tax and service. 49 Hans was clean, in an awesome neighborhood (I saw many a Maserati and Ferrari parked on the curbs in the morning) and it's close to everything important. I never felt unsafe and had fun people watching the very wealthy. They really are different!

A couple of things.......you are correct, renting a flat can be hit or miss. I learned from past experience to rent as much as your budget allows because it does make a difference. These flats at 49 Hans are in one of the most upscale neighborhoods in London and are right behind Harrod's. Gorgeous area with many restaurants and shops a stones throw away. My husband had to drag me out to the airport when we came home! The kitchens are small but serve their purpose well. I would also advise you to buy those toaster bags because the toaster will be unusable without them. In case you haven't heard of them, they enable you to put a slice of bread into the bag and toast it contamination free. They work awesome! These flats are also serviced, which is an added bonus.

It works the same way as a hotel.

If you stay in an area closer to the City of London itself, it will be noisier at night when you are trying to sleep. I found Kensington/Knightsbridge area's to be quieter and more residential at night. However, you are minutes away by Tube to the waterfront and touristy places of interest. Use the Tube, it's the fastest way around the city and much, much cheaper than cabs. You could actually walk through the parks to these places from Knightsbridge also, that's how close they are. A longer stroll but do-able. If you make use of the Tube, buy a Tube Pass from the States before you go and you'll save money and won't have to keep buying tickets.

Do a search on this site and see what they have to offer. Renting an apartment is really the way to go and you can keep food there.....very important. Harrod's also has a fair amount of gluten-free stuff and a Food Hall to die for. If you find something and want to know if the area is good, post here and I'll help you out. I've been to London 7 times and I absolutely LOVE that city. It's a blast! I also found a few small patisseries on the main road from this place where I could get a gluten-free breakfast some mornings. The French places did a good job of that.

Geez...all this talk about London, now I want to go again! When we do go, we have already agreed that we would re-rent this place again. The service was good and there were no hidden surprises, money-wise. I did rent this flat from a different company than this site but they advertise on other sites as well so I think who you go through won't make much difference. The deal seems the same. Happy hunting!

Gemini--thank you so much for this reference. This place looks great! Air conditioning would probably be nice, but I'll look around the website to see what else they have that's available.

[NicoleAJ]

In case this helps anyone in the future, I wanted to let people know where I'm staying in London. I took Gemini's suggestion of going through citybaseapartments.com to find a reputable apartment in London with a kitchen. This is especially important to me for my trip back to the states, as I live in CA, so my travel time will be upwards of 13 hours. I'll definitely need to cook some food in London to bring on the plane with me home, and this will give me the opportunity to do so. I'm going to be staying in the Presidential Apartments in Kensington. All rooms have a full kitchen (range, microwave, fridge/freezer, dishwasher), free wifi, and air conditioning. The place just opened recently and is offering some great introductory rates. It looks great on the website, and the view on Google maps street view shows that the apartments face a beautiful garden square right near Earl's Court tube station. I'll let you know if the place ends up being as nice as it seems.

[Gemini]

Gemini--thank you so much for this reference. This place looks great! Air conditioning would probably be nice, but I'll look around the website to see what else they have that's available.

Hey...good luck and have a wonderful trip to the UK! London is such a fun city and this year is the 500th anniversary of the accession of King Henry the VIII to the throne. There are all kinds of displays and exhibitions going on around the city so it might be fun. Another suggestion for you, which I totally enjoyed, was doing some of the London Walks. They are called the "Official London Walks", I believe, and are all over the city and run by registered guides. If you like history, you'll love these tours. It's a great way to see the city and you'll see places that many tourists never find. You are gonna have so much fun......