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Expertly reviewed by richard on 20th Feb 2007. |
| Date of Holiday: Feb 2007 |
Overall Score: 3/5
 
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Review: The area of Docklands itself has very little of interest compared with Central London. There are a number of hotels (Royal sunborn Yacht Hotel, Crowne Plaza etc) and the Excel centre but in terms of things to do and decent places to eat, they are thin on the ground. The area is also soulless (and even fairly intimidating) at night. The only redeeming factor is that there are reasonable links into Central London via the Docklands Light Railway (DLR). I didn't eat out in the are, but a number of people ate at the Chinese Restaurant close to Excel, but reported a disappointing and over priced experience. There are a couple of sister pubs - The Fox Excel and The fox Connaugt, but they were fairly soulless places as well. A Caribbean restaurant overlooking the Dock at the side of Excel looked like it was worth a look, but I can't comment on the actual food.
A couple of things that are worth taking in if you're in the area - there is a spectacular footbridge spanning the Thames which gives great views of Canary Wharf at night. Planes take off on a frequent basis from the nearby City Airport and rather than climbing steeply, they fly quite low along the Thames, so standing on the bridge gives you a great view of the planes as they pass directly overhead (flights finish at about 9pm, so don't leave it too late). Also nice (in a menacing sort of way) is the walk along the Thames from Excel towards the City as it takes you past the original dock cranes, towering like black sentinels into the night sky - pretty impressive.
Overall, I'd say there are two reasons for staying in the area:
1.If you're attending a conference at Excel
2.If you fancy staying at a hotel slightly outside central London but with reasonable access.
(NB It is zone 3 and is a 50 minute train ride from Euston with 2 changes - if you decide to travel by train, it's worth considering purchasing an Oyster Card, which ensures you pay the lowest fares and saves hassle with tickets - these can be purchased online in advance or at the station - you can also set the mup so they automatically top up from your credit/debit card)
worth staying in this part |
Ratings
| Value For Money: |
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3 |
| Review Score: |
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3 |
| Operator | |
LateRooms |
| Length of holiday | |
2 - 3 nights |
| Number of Adults | |
1 |
| Type of Holiday | |
Bespoke |
| Accommodation Features: | |
City Break, Weekend Break, Disabled Access, Airport Transfer Less Than 2 hours, Quiet, Tranquil, Relaxing, |
| Recommended for: | |
Singles, Couples, Groups, |
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England
