I hate to break it to you but London is one of the most expensive cities in the world when it comes to accommodation. But there are a few ways to make sure that you're getting the most for your money whether you're planning on staying in a hostel or a high end hotel. By the way I have a special freebie for you, so make sure you watch till the end of this video to find out how to get it. Get a place with a kitchen! This is one of my favourite ways to save money on accommodation.
While the actual per price night might not be much better than if you were to stay at hotel you actually will be saving a load of money by eating in as much as you can, even if you end up just having really nice breakfast in the morning that's at least 10 pounds per person that you're going to be saving each day. You can stay at a hostel that has a kitchen in it and use theirs or choose an Airbnb apartment that has a kitchen in it that you have access to. Try a private room in a Hostel if you're not really up for sharing a room with strangers but still want to get the hostel experience along with the great price that usually comes with it then choose a private room this will be cheaper than a hotel room but you'll still have your own space. If you're travelling in a group or as a family this is really easy to do because you can actually book out an entire room of maybe four to six beds you guys will all be in the same room but you've actually gotten a pretty good deal just make sure to check if the bathroom is going to be on suit or if it's shared with other people in the hostal.
Sign up for hotel newsletters.
If you're loyal to an international hotel chain or you just have your eye on a specific hotel, you need to sign up to their email list! You'll either get yourself a discount code right away or if you give it some time before booking you might find that you'll get emails with a special package offer or a discount code because they want to entice you to actually book. Don't stay in the touristy areas! If you want to stay in the most popular and touristy area of London you're going to be paying for it not just in the room per night rate but also in everything else because food and shopping and anything else you'll need around that area is going to cost more. Plus the food might not be that good anyway. So if your budget is conscious you'll want to branch out from areas like Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus..
In the freebie that I'm going to talk about in a bit I give you a list of some great areas to stay in London so watch to the end. Check to see if you can use airline miles to pay! A few airline loyalty programs allow you to use your points to pay for things other than flight like car rental or hotel rooms. If you've got a lot of miles saved up then look into your program to see what you can book that's in London, even if you don't have tons though, just have a look because sometimes you'll get special discounts just for having like a couple of thousand miles.
Consider getting apartment if there is a group of you! If you totally can't deal with a hostel which I completely get I'm past the hostal years myself, then getting an Airbnb apartment is the adult version of that, for just a little bit more you'll have access to a kitchen like we talked about before but you'll also have potentially all of your own spaces in bedrooms and then you can all convene together in the living rooms to have meals or to have drinks before going out, all that will save you from going out for every single drink and meal. Only pay for the things you need! Some the hotels and hostals in London keep their room costs low by only giving you the bare basics and having you pay for anything that you might need in addition, this could be for towels, for Wi Fi, for access to cable TV... This is pretty common practice with hostels, more and more budgeting hotels are starting to do it as well, for example there's a chain of hotels called 'Tune' you can get a room for about 60£ a night but you'll pay for the extras if you need a towel, Wi Fi, Hair dryer, etc but to get a room for 60£ a night Is pretty good in London.
Visit during the off peak and the weekday times. As in all cities rates during the week and also in off peak times, which is January, February, March ish time here in London, it's going to be cheaper than going peak times and on the weekends. You can arrange for your visit to be during one of those times you could actually save yourself quite a bit of money.
Stay for longer! I know this sounds a little bit counterintuitive but some hotels and hostals will actually reward you for staying a little bit longer, so keep an eye out for deals that say 'Book three nights and get a fourth' and things like that, also Airbnb hosts will sometimes give you a discount if you book for a whole week or for a whole month. If you want an accurated list of some of the best places to stay in London including really great areas to your stay then you need to download my free 'Where to Stay in London Guide' and you can do that by clicking on the card popping up here. This video is part of my London accommodation series so you can watch this video about accommodation next.