Cartref House

The Cartref House is a cheerful, family-run B&B with a fantastic location near Victoria Station. This is a simple place with very few frills, but the location is superb and proprietors Derek and Sharon create a homey environment.

Quick read

Pros: Fantastic location. Friendly service. Good English breakfast.

Cons: No elevator. No common spaces. A bit pricey for what it is.

Rooms

The Cartref House offers 10 homey rooms in a variety of sizes, from singles on up to family-style rooms that would suit parents with small children. Décor is simple, with utilitarian furnishings and cheery floral duvets. Decorative lamps and bed frames add a little flair to some rooms.

Amenities are the usual, no-frills B&B affair: coffee and tea facilities, a fan and small television.

Bathrooms

The private bathrooms are basic affairs. They are quite small and have free-standing stall showers. Each is equipped with a hair dryer.

Hotel

"Basic but homey" is the name of the game at the Cartref House, where the friendly management is one of the main attributes. Derek and Sharon are an affable pair, always happy to help out, offer advice or just enjoy a chat.

The B&B has no common spaces, aside from a cozy, traditional breakfast room decorated with pretty carpet, wooden tables and chairs and a smattering of English flags. A full English breakfast is included in the room rate, but guests are arrived to come down early, as the small room can get crowded (and you won't want to miss out on bacon and eggs!).

Wi-Fi is free throughout. Guests have their own key to the front door. The Cartref House is entirely non-smoking.

Value

The Cartref House is a simple place, and with rates starting at £103 for a double room, it is outside of our usual Cheapo range for London. That said, it’s a homey spot in a nice location, and we like that rates don’t skyrocket into the "extremely exorbitant" range.

The hotel is a good value for families, and unfussy guests looking for cozy and convenient will be happy here.

Location

The Cartref House has a fabulous location about a five-minute walk west of Victoria Station and a 10-minute walk south of Buckingham Palace.

In addition to good access to public transportation (and direct links to both Heathrow and Gatwick), the hotel is located near a variety of cafés, restaurants and shops.

Reserving at the Cartref House

As we point out in the box above, the hotel does not offer online reservations. To reserve a room, you’ll have to contact the hotel directly by telephone or via the form on the Cartref Host Web site (see below, under “more information”).

If you’d like a recommendation for a nearby cheap hotel that does offer online booking, check out our review of the Luna & Simone, located on hotel-packed Belgrave Road.