Finding a short-term rental in London
My family is spending a month in London next summer. Can anyway recommend a reputable website or agency for finding short-term, furnished rentals in London? Thanks!
Aug 26, 2023
My family is spending a month in London next summer. Can anyway recommend a reputable website or agency for finding short-term, furnished rentals in London? Thanks!
Parent Replies
We used Veeve.com for a week-long rental in 2019 - they do mostly London, some Paris. We had 6 people including 2 teens and needed a big place. Through Veeve we rented a gorgeous house near Portobello Rd. close to the tube station that we remember fondly. We had a good experience with Veeve and I'd use them again but they don't have a huge number of properties at any given time and they might be more pricey than necessary!
We travel a fair amount and I like using a local agency rather than renting from individuals on AirBnB or VRBO because they are in the community and have a reputation to protect, they know the area and can make suggestions, and if you hit any snags, you're dealing with a professional service, not an individual who might be flakey or out of town. To find agencies in the city we're visiting, I first look on VRBO, AirBnB, and/or HomeAway for the week we're visiting. Agencies often list their properties there in addition to on their own website and you can also get a sense of cost and read reviews. It's always cheaper dealing with them directly though, rather than through their ad on VRBO or AirBnB. Once you have the names, Google them or look on Tripadvisor to find reviews. We've had good luck with this strategy for week-long and month-long stays in Europe and Hawaii.
Have fun!
If you are open to someone being in your home while you are away, I would recommend a home swap. My family did home swap vacations when I was a kid and we recently went on our first home swap vacation with our kids. It's great, you can stay in a regular house and know that someone is taking care of your house while you're away, and of course you can save a ton of money. The site I use lets you find other families who you can do a direct swap with, or there is a point system where you get points if someone stays at your home (we put our house on there when we are traveling, e.g. someone can stay here while we are away camping and we earn points) and you can use the points to stay somewhere else. For a whole month, it would be a lot of points, so a direct swap would be your best bet. https://www.homeexchange.com/?sponsorkey=abbie-4ecc8 (full disclosure that this link gives both of us a few bonus points if you end up signing up.)
We have used A Place Like Home many times over the last 20 years and have always been delighted with their services, from pickup to greeters to dealing with issues if anything breaks. I think they may be high-end and perhaps more expensive than other places, since they seem to focus on Chelsea/Kensington/etc. but that always suited us given the proximity to Hyde Park, Stamford Bridge [go Chelsea FC!], and a number of tube stops within walkable distance.
https://www.aplacelikehome.co.uk/blog/find-your-perfect-london-rental-h…
Hi! We lived in London for 12+ years and when we’ve been back have stayed at Hamlet Gardens via https://www.residentialland.com and it was quite good.
Otherwise also check https://underthedoormat.com, they have good properties. Depends on your budget and what part of London you want to be in, I imagine.
London is great in the summer!!!
Check out Citadines Islington. We stayed there (with our then 4-year old) for a month for work and it was great. It’s not in the touristy areas which was a plus for us, yet Islington is convenient, there were a couple of markets nearby, and a couple of amazing amazing playgrounds where my son got to play with local kids. It’s also right on the bus line, or a short-ish walk to Angel station. The apartments are fully furnished and have kitchenettes.
I used a company called Vacation Perfect for a short term rental in Florence, but they also have properties in London and Paris. Visit their website: www.vacationperfect.com. Not the cheapest option, but the properties are quite nice and they seem to be a bit less of a gamble than some larger short term rental companies.
You might want to look into a home swap. There are a few different websites you can sign up for and they connect you with someone who comes to stay in your house. There is a small charge for access to the site, but no money changes hands for the swap itself, it’s up to you to work out the details. My mom has done this for years and has had great experiences.