What Is the Best Accommodation for a Family Trip to London?

Most families start planning a London trip the same way. They pick a budget, choose a few things they want to see, and then look for somewhere to stay close to the middle of it all. Accommodation often feels like a box to tick rather than a decision that deserves much thought.

One recent family guest described London Serviced Apartments as “the best option for families”, which was one of the reasons we wanted to explore what actually makes family accommodation work well in practice.

Then the trip actually happens, and the accommodation choice turns out to matter a great deal.
For families, the question of where to stay is not really about finding the nearest hotel to a tourist attraction. It is about finding somewhere that works practically for the way a family actually lives for a week, or however long the trip lasts. Space, routines, bedtimes, meals, costs, and the simple need to have somewhere to sit and relax in the evening all become more relevant than many parents anticipate.

For many family trips to London lasting several nights, serviced apartments often start to become a genuinely practical option. But like most honest answers, that one comes with caveats, and they are worth understanding before you book.

Space becomes a bigger issue than many families expect

Hotel rooms are generally designed with couples in mind. The layout works well for two adults who want somewhere comfortable to sleep, a bathroom, and a decent amount of wardrobe space. For a family of four, the same room starts to feel very different.

In practice, a standard hotel room for a family often means one double bed and a sofa bed, or a room with two single beds where the space is tighter than it looks in the photos. Some families manage fine with this. Others find it a genuine problem, particularly with younger children or when one parent is a light sleeper.

The alternative is booking two hotel rooms. That solves the space issue, but it creates a different one: the family is now split across rooms, possibly on different floors, and the cost has roughly doubled. For a five-night stay in London, that can become a significant sum.

A family apartment solves this more straightforwardly. Two or three bedrooms, a shared living area, and enough space for everyone to exist without stepping on each other. The room count does not force an awkward conversation about who sleeps where, and the cost, when compared against two hotel rooms, often starts to look considerably more reasonable.

Why kitchens become more useful than people think

Nobody goes to London hoping to spend their evenings cooking. That is not the point. But a kitchen in family accommodation turns out to serve a different purpose than full meal preparation.
Children eat constantly and rarely at the same times as each other, let alone at the times restaurants expect them to. Having somewhere to keep snacks, fruit, cereal, and breakfast things means the day starts without queueing for a hotel buffet or paying four pounds for a croissant on the way to the Tube.

The savings on breakfast alone across a week-long family trip can be meaningful. London hotel breakfasts are not cheap, and paying for four of them every morning adds up quickly. In most London neighbourhoods, a Tesco Express, M&S Food or a local convenience store is rarely far away. Picking up a few things for breakfast and snacks for the following day often takes ten minutes and saves a noticeable amount across the course of a week.

There is also the drinks and snacks question. Children want juice, water, crisps, and everything else throughout the day. Having a fridge and a few cupboards makes this much easier and considerably less expensive than relying entirely on cafes and corner shops.

The bedtime problem that many parents do not think about in advance

This is the one that catches people out more than any other. With young children especially, bedtime happens at a fixed point in the evening regardless of where you are. Once the children are settled, the parents’ evening is not over, but their options in a standard hotel room have become very limited.

Sitting quietly in a dark room trying not to wake a sleeping child is not a comfortable way to spend a London evening. The television cannot go on. A phone call is probably out. The evening effectively ends when the children go to sleep.
A serviced apartment changes this entirely. The children sleep in their own room, the parents have a living room to use, and the evening continues in a normal and comfortable way. It sounds like a small thing until you have spent three evenings in a darkened hotel room and realised it is not small at all.

For families with children at different ages, separate bedrooms also mean younger children can go to bed without disrupting older ones who are still awake.

Longer stays often change the maths

A two-night visit to London is a different thing from a seven-night family holiday. The longer the stay, the more the practical realities of the accommodation start to matter.

Laundry becomes an issue. Families generate a lot of washing, particularly with children, and the idea of either paying hotel laundry prices or bringing enough clothing for a full week for everyone is not appealing. Most serviced apartments include a washing machine, which makes this a non-issue.

The sense of having somewhere that feels like a temporary home rather than a room you are checked into also matters more over longer stays. Being able to spread out, keep things in the fridge, have a routine, and not feel like you are living out of a suitcase makes a genuine difference to how comfortable and relaxed the trip feels.

Cost is also worth revisiting over longer stays. Serviced apartments often become more competitive per night as the stay length increases. When you factor in the savings on meals and breakfasts, and the avoided cost of booking two hotel rooms, the comparison can shift noticeably in favour of an apartment.

Planning what you actually want to do in London matters too

One thing many families discover quite quickly is that choosing accommodation is only part of the decision. London has a lot to fit into a trip, and a few days can disappear faster than expected.
The museums alone can absorb several days without much effort. Hyde Park, the South Bank, the London Eye, the aquarium, Kew Gardens, and the steady stream of other things the city offers means most families end up with a list of things they will save for next time. That is not a complaint about London. It is just the reality of how the city works.

What it does mean is that where you stay shapes how much you can realistically do, and how tired everyone is by the time you get back in the evening. Travelling across London with children looks quite different from travelling as a couple. Walking to a Tube station feels straightforward until you add a pushchair, bags, and children who have already walked further than they planned to. Getting on and off busy Underground lines during peak times with a buggy takes longer than the map suggests.

Families spending most of their time around the museums and Hyde Park often find areas like South Kensington or Kensington suit them well. Families whose plans are centred around the South Bank, the London Eye, and Westminster may find different connections more useful. The point is that the right location is always relative to what the specific trip involves, and a bit of thought about the daily geography before booking can save a lot of unnecessary travelling.

When hotels still make sense

It would be dishonest not to acknowledge this. There are situations where a hotel is genuinely the better choice for a family.

A one-night stay or an airport stopover does not call for an apartment with a kitchen and two bedrooms. The simplicity of checking into a hotel, sleeping, and leaving in the morning is exactly what you want in that situation.
Very short city breaks, particularly if the family’s plan is to be out from morning until late in the evening and the accommodation is essentially just somewhere to sleep, may not benefit enough from the extra space and facilities to justify a different type of booking.

Some families also travel specifically for the hotel experience. Room service, a swimming pool, a concierge, and daily housekeeping are things that some travellers genuinely value and want as part of the trip. Serviced apartments offer good housekeeping arrangements, but if full hotel services are important to you, a hotel will probably suit you better.

Choosing the right family accommodation in London

A few practical things are worth thinking through before you book.

Family size matters more than people often admit at the outset. Two adults and a toddler have different needs from two adults and three school-age children. Be honest about how much space you actually need rather than what you can technically fit into.

Length of stay shapes the decision considerably. As discussed above, the longer the trip, the more the practical advantages of an apartment start to stack up.

Area choice affects everything else. London is large, and the right location depends on what the family actually plans to do. South Kensington and Kensington sit well for families spending time at the Natural History Museum, the V&A, or Hyde Park. Areas with strong Central or District line connections work better for families planning to cover a lot of ground across different parts of the city. Proximity to a Tube station that is pushchair-friendly and not too congested at the times you will be travelling is a detail worth checking before you commit to an area.

Think about the trip’s rhythm too. If the plan involves early starts and long days out, having somewhere to put together a quick breakfast and sort snacks for the day saves both money and time. If the schedule is more relaxed, a comfortable living area to return to in the evenings makes the stay feel considerably better.

Frequently asked questions

Are serviced apartments cheaper than hotels for families in London?
For families who would otherwise need two hotel rooms, or for stays of a week or more, serviced apartments are often the more cost-effective option. The saving grows when you factor in reduced spending on breakfasts and meals, because having kitchen facilities changes what you actually spend day to day.

Are serviced apartments suitable for children?
Yes. Most family-oriented serviced apartments can provide cots, high chairs, and extra beds on request. The separate bedrooms and living areas are actually better suited to families with children than a standard hotel room.

Is a hotel or apartment better for a family of four?
For most stays longer than one or two nights, a two-bedroom serviced apartment will usually be a more comfortable and practical arrangement than a hotel room for four. The cost comparison also tends to favour the apartment once you account for what two hotel rooms would cost.

Which London areas work well for family stays?
It depends on what the family plans to do. South Kensington and Kensington suit families spending time at the museums or Hyde Park. Families whose plans are more focused on the South Bank, Westminster or the London Eye may prioritise different transport access. The right area is always shaped by the specific trip rather than a general rule.

Do family apartments provide cots or extra beds?
Most serviced apartments can arrange cots, travel cots, and additional bedding when requested in advance. It is always worth confirming this at the time of enquiry rather than assuming.

How do you choose between a serviced apartment and a hotel for a family holiday?
The most useful questions to ask yourself are: how long is the trip, how many people are travelling, and how much time will you actually spend in the accommodation? Longer stays with more people tend to tip the decision toward an apartment in most cases.

There is no single correct answer for every family visiting London. A lot depends on the length of the trip, the ages of the children, the budget, and what the family actually plans to do. But the practical advantages of having proper space, a kitchen, and separate bedrooms tend to become apparent quite quickly once you start thinking through how the trip will actually unfold day to day.

Many families also discover that trying to fit everything into one trip becomes almost impossible. A few days in London often turns into a list of things to save for next time.

If you are trying to work out which area of London would suit your family’s plans, or which type of apartment would make most sense for your group, London Serviced Apartments can help you think through the options and find something that fits.