In the summer we started planning an international group trip, our first since 2018. The UK ticked a lot of boxes – the direct flight from RDU to London was quite open, and London is always fun and especially festive before Christmas – so it was a natural choice. I had heard good things about the Manchester Christmas markets so we decided to explore that city for a few days, and Leandra even tacked on a day trip to Liverpool as well.
While in the UK we got to check out a play, experience the lights across the various shopping districts, and see family for the second time this year. As a bonus, there was only one day with rain, not bad for the UK in December!
Where we stayed
Welcome London – The York
Liked — The location is fantastic, less than five minutes to Trafalgar Square, and although the front desk was never staffed we had no trouble communicating via WhatsApp. All the bedrooms were spacious and we liked that each bedroom had their own bathroom and included shampoo, body wash and lotion. We were able to easily store our luggage before the apartment was ready which was a huge plus.
Disliked — Kitchen lacked basics like salt, pepper, paper towels, and napkins. The largest bedroom downstairs was open to the floor above via a large opening in the ceiling – you can clearly see the bed and into the bathroom from the living room / kitchen. Very strange design that leads to diminished privacy! Sofa bed takes up most of the shared living space when open.
Manchester Apartment “Roof Terrace – Luxury Townhouse”
Liked — The hosts provided clear check-in instructions and we loved the location near Piccadilly station and popular attractions, including the Christmas markets. The main living space on the third floor was comfortable and the kitchen was well-equipped and spacious. Bathrooms had a lot of storage and great water pressure and beds were comfortable.
Disliked — No paper towels or napkins in the kitchen and could have used a drying rack for our clothes. In the hall bath, the sink was tiny and the placement of the shower head was weird as water hit the crossbar and sprayed outside the shower area. The Sky TV hookup was also a bit tricky to use with our laptop. The biggest issue was street noise from late night pub patrons and trucks in the primary bedroom, although the other sleeping areas were very quiet. It would also be easier for groups to have keypad entry or an additional set of keys.
Premier Inn London Paddington Station
The rooms were larger than expected and included a small couch, plus it very quiet and dark at night which made for good sleeping. Bathrooms had a reasonable counter space and the tub was appreciated. The one issue is that the free wifi was very slow at 1 mb down, 0.5 up. Overall this was probably the nicest Premier Inn we’ve been to and it was a good value at this time of year.