# Allen House or Nell Gwynn House



## mikeemis

Does anyone have an opinion on these?


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## DeniseM

Here are the TUG reviews for Allen House.  I stayed there for a week last spring and loved it.  It is very convenient for exploring London.  Tuggers rate it 8.2, which I would consider a "B."  The Allen House is spacious and comfortable, but not fancy.  The kitchen is tiny, which is typical.  It is within walking distance of dining, shopping, and the Kensington High Street Tube Station.  We had a garden view and were on the 4th floor, and it was lovely.

I don't believe Nell Gwynn House is a timeshare, is it?

Here are it's reviews on Trip Advisor.

More reviews


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## x3 skier

Just finished another week at The Allen House last week. One nice thing is the Number 9 Bus goes right past it about a half a block up on High Street Kensington. The No. 9 goes past a lot of the major tourist sights like Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus, The V&A, Royal Albert Hall among others and ends in the West End for Theaters.

Just added a short review that will show up in a while. 

Cheers


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## Larry

x3 skier said:


> Just finished another week at The Allen House last week. One nice thing is the Number 9 Bus goes right past it about a half a block up on High Street Kensington. The No. 9 goes past a lot of the major tourist sights like Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus, The V&A, Royal Albert Hall among others and ends in the West End for Theaters.
> 
> Just added a short review that will show up in a while.
> 
> Cheers



Looking forward to reading your review as we are going to Allen house November 28-December 6. Actually leaving NY on Wednesday night November 27th and staying 2 nights near the airport and Windsor castle. Figured we will be tired from all night flight and can tour Winsor Castle on Friday and maybe take train into London and do double decker bus tour around London to get feel for city before going to Allen House.

This is my first trip to London and plan on spending 10 days sightseeing and a couple of nights theater. Any and all suggestions for must see must do sights for our trip?


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## x3 skier

Larry said:


> Looking forward to reading your review as we are going to Allen house November 28-December 6. Actually leaving NY on Wednesday night November 27th and staying 2 nights near the airport and Windsor castle. Figured we will be tired from all night flight and can tour Winsor Castle on Friday and maybe take train into London and do double decker bus tour around London to get feel for city before going to Allen House.
> 
> This is my first trip to London and plan on spending 10 days sightseeing and a couple of nights theater. Any and all suggestions for must see must do sights for our trip?



The HoHo bus is a good idea to get a lay of the land.

Two Plays I highly recommend are The 39 Steps and Oliver.

If you get a Paper 7 Day Travel Card from any Rail Station (NOT the Oyster Card you get at a Tube Station), there are many 2-4-1 deals on theater and dining. The Oyster Travel Card may be more convenient but does not usually have any 2-4-1 deals.

The No 9 Bus is a great ride to major sites. It and the No 15 will take you most places you will want to see. I prefer Buses to the Tube for most trips since you can see more. For longer trips, the tube is great.

I also highly recommend London Walks www.walks.com as one of the best deals in London.

If you have any specific questions, let me know. the Trip Advisor London Forum Board is also a good source of info.

Cheers


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## dwsupt

*Oyster card*

While the Oyster does not do 2 for 1s, it is great none the less. Your daily fees are capped and it has all the convienance of a debit card. Just tap and go. When you run out of credit, there are machines everywhere to reload it! I love it.


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## KevJan

We got the 7-day London Pass along with the 7-day Travel Card and stayed busy from early morning until late night and still didn't do everything.  We bought them online before leaving home and just picked them up when we arrived.  Easy and economical, I highly recommend it.  (If you purchase early enough, they will ship to your home enabling you to use for transportation into town.)  Enjoy your trip!


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## mikeemis

thanks for the replies


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## bigrick

KevJan said:


> We got the 7-day London Pass along with the 7-day Travel Card and stayed busy from early morning until late night and still didn't do everything.  *We bought them online *before leaving home and just picked them up when we arrived.  Easy and economical, I highly recommend it.  (If you purchase early enough, they will ship to your home enabling you to use for transportation into town.)  Enjoy your trip!



Please post the link.


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## x3 skier

bigrick said:


> Please post the link.



Here's the best description of Travel Cards, etc I have found. Good site for London things.
http://www.londontoolkit.com/briefing/travelcard.htm

And here's where you can buy an Oyster Card.
https://oyster.tfl.gov.uk/oyster/entry.do

Cheers


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## DeniseM

You can also buy an Oyster Card at the Tube Station at Heathrow and use it to take the tube into London.  [See correction below - I forgot about the zone thing.]


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## x3 skier

DeniseM said:


> You can also buy an Oyster Card at the Tube Station at Heathrow and use it to take the tube into London.



If you do, you would either need a PAYG version or a cash addition to the Zone 1 and 2 Travel Card. Zones 1 and 2 cover almost all of "Tourist" London but Heathrow is outside of Zones 1 and 2.

I prefer to use the train into London and then the Oyster for daily trips.

Cheers


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## DeniseM

I forgot about the zone thing - You can still buy your zone 1 & 2 Oyster Card at Heathrow, and then buy a separate ticket just for the tube trip from Heathrow to London.

The Tube is cheaper than the train, and there is a Tube Station within 2 blocks of Allen House.  The time of the trip is about the same, because you have to wait longer for the trains.

London Underground Train (Tube)	£4.00	Visits all terminals, approx every 5 minutes. 
45-60 mins to central London. 
Travelcards or Oyster Cards cheaper, zone 6.

Heathrow Connect Train	£7.40	Every 30-60 mins. Journey 25-30 mins to London Paddington. Travelcards + Oyster Cards not accepted. 
Doesn't stop at T5.

Heathrow Express Train	£16.50	Every 15 minutes. Journey 15-20 mins to London Paddington. Travelcards + Oyster Cards not accepted. 
Doesn't stop at T4.​
More info. - http://www.londontoolkit.com/travel/heathrow.htm


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## KevJan

The website for the London Pass is www.londonpass.com.  We felt that it was the best way to go.  If you purchase enough time in advance they mail it to you at home so that you can use the Travel Card on the tube from Heathrow. (Just a suggestion.)  You'll be sure to enjoy London.  I'm jealous!


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## rsonc

we stayed at the Nell Gwynn from Royal Holiday in Aug. and really liked it. It was about a 2 blocks or so from the main road and there were several busses that went up and down that road or you could walk down to Sloan Square. 

There were lots of shops and even a McDonalds and a coffee shop both offering free internet close by. They do not offer internet in the Royal Holiday rooms. 

I had added skype to my netbook and purchased a headphone/mic and was able to call my family often. 

Have fun. 

Susan


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## vettebuf

rsonc and all the rest of you.

Thanks for all your posts. We're staying at the Nell Gwynn House in a few months through RHC and this information will really come in handy.


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## ecwinch

Anyone know if the Allen House has internet access or any nearby establishments that offer access?


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## DeniseM

ecwinch said:


> Anyone know if the Allen House has internet access or any nearby establishments that offer access?



They do have internet access, but not in all units.  The office rented us a portable wifi device to plug into our laptop, but they couldn't explain how to use it, and the (necessary) program disk that came with it was lost.  But my DD, who is a computer whiz, went online at Starbucks and downloaded the program and got it to work. I will ask DD exactly what it was.

There is a (Starbucks?) on the corner with WIFI, but it's expensive.  The McDonald's up the street advertises that they have it, but we could never pick up the signal.

There is also an internet cafe nearby that wasn't as expensive as Starbucks.


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## KevJan

We walked across the street to the Public Library and used internet in the basement and it was *really*inexpensive, but can't remember the price.


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## x3 skier

The folks at Allen House will rent you a "Dongle" (gizmo that plugs into your USB Port) to connect you to the 3 network. Easy and Cheap as Chips. IIRC it was around 10 pounds for the week.

Cheers


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## DeniseM

x3 skier said:


> The folks at Allen House will rent you a "Dongle" (gizmo that plugs into your USB Port) to connect you to the 3 network. Easy and Cheap as Chips. IIRC it was around 10 pounds for the week.
> 
> Cheers



That must be what they gave us, but there were no instructions, and the software was missing, so it took a bit of work to get it working.


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## ecwinch

Thanks to all for the 411 - glad to know that there are some affordable options.

Thanks!


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