Meininger Hotel

The only London outpost of a small German hostel chain, the Meininger Hotel London Hyde Park is a hotel/hostel hybrid offering affordable, immaculate rooms (dorms and privates) and easy proximity to Hyde Park.

Quick read

Pros: Impeccably clean. Fantastic value. Convenient location. Elevator.

Cons: Basic (more hostel than hotel). Can pick up noise from other guests. Dorm guests must pay to rent towels.

Rooms

Rooms at the Meininger are streamlined and maintain the spic-and-span mood so familiar in budget lodgings throughout the German-speaking countries. Think spartan simplicity, minimal furnishings and floors so clean you could slurp scrambled eggs off of them without worry (no, we didn’t do this—but we could...).

Furniture is blonde, duvets are perky and every bed is blessed with a tiny package of gummie candies. The Meininger’s private singles and doubles have air conditioning and a television and private bathroom. Dorms, which sleep up to 12 people, are also available with these amenities, although the cheapest rooms lack them.

Tip: Ask for a room overlooking the Museum of Natural History.

Bathrooms

Singles, doubles and some dorms have private bathrooms, while the cheapest rooms share facilities.

In their rounded plastic, the cramped bathrooms resemble ship quarter lavatories, down to the little sign emphasizing that the water from the faucet is not potable. Towels are only included with a private room rental (dormitory guests can rent towels at reception).

Hotel

The Meininger shares a building with the British Scouting organization, which has offices and meeting rooms in the building. Appropriately, rooms are decorated with scouting posters, and common areas feel ever so slightly like scouting indoctrination holding cells. (Not really, but you get our drift.)

Although the nightly rates seem a bit high for what is essentially a hostel with some perks, the Meininger is a great pick for guests who are moved by hygienic simplicity over musty British guesthouse charm.

Wi-Fi is free for the first hour and then costs £5 per day. Breakfast costs an additional £4.50 (if you reserve before arrival, it’s £4). Bonus: The Meninger has an elevator (a rarity in London budget hotels).

Location

The Meininger boasts a superb location just across from the Natural History Museum and a short walk from Hyde Park and a number of other attractions. For jaunts farther afield, the Gloucester Road and South Kensington tube stations are both easily accessible.