On the UK portion of our July trip we stayed in London and Wokingham.

Ampersand Hotel – South Kensington

Eric had stayed at the Ampersand once before and was happy to return for this trip. This boutique hotel has a great location, just steps to the South Kensington tube stop on the Piccadilly and District lines, and a few blocks to the V&A and Science museum.

We were issued a double room, which is quite small – just enough room to walk around the bed to the bathroom, with a tiny desk and a small wardrobe. It’s tight for two adults, but we knew that going in, and it was only for the weekend. You would want a larger room if you have more than carry-on sized luggage.

Given those caveats, our experience was great – the bed is very comfortable, the bathroom has a good sized shower and amenities (including a rubber duck!), there are free drinks in the mini-fridge, and the staff was quite helpful. What more do you need in London?

Cantley House Hotel – Wokingham

We decided on this hotel based on location between Bracknell and Reading, plus we could walk into Wokingham for dinner. Parking is easy and the exterior definitely has a grand charm.

We were assigned a room on the second floor. Given the summer heat in the UK it was very warm, so right away we opened the windows to cool things. The bathroom was even warmer, due to the towel heating rack pumping out heat. Unfortunately, the front desk was unable to turn it off on a Sunday evening, so we had to wait until Monday for a maintenance person to address the issue. We also asked for a fan, and at first the front desk said they were out. Thankfully they scrounged one up. Given that temps had been warm for weeks both these issues were quite surprising and a little disappointing.

Besides the temperatures, our room was rather shabby, with blue stains on bathroom tub and loose paint on ceiling. On the plus side it was rather quiet at night.

Overall, location is good but the room and experience were underwhelming.