It is hard to find an accommodation with 5 proper bedrooms in central London, so we were thrilled to find Henrik and Joana's lovely apartment.
Location: We took the Heathrow Express straight to Paddington (so quick and easy!). We walked to the apartment from Paddington, which was totally doable even with our luggage (although in hindsight it probably would have been easier to hire a car since our group of 10 included two seniors as well as two toddlers which made the walk with luggage a tad challenging). The apartment is a short walk to the Bayswater tube station, which worked out great for us since most of the sites we visited while in London were on the District and Central lines - very few transfers were necessary. It was about a 15-20 minute tube ride from Bayswater to Westminster. There was a Waitrose right next to the apartment for groceries and many great casual restaurants nearby - we grabbed a quick breakfast at Arro coffee most mornings, had dinner twice at Lokkanta (yummy Turkish cuisine), fish & chips at Hobson's, and more! Only 1-2 tube stops away from some amazing restaurants in Kensington! The apartment was a quick and easy walk to Kensington Palace/Hyde Park and the amazing Princess Diana Memorial Playground, which our 3 and 5 year olds loved!
The Apartment: The apartment itself was perfect! An unassuming exterior but a truly beautiful and well laid-out interior. A few steps up a gated front entry led into a small entry way on the first level, off of which was a king-size bedroom, a full bathroom with shower, and lovely modern kitchen/dining/laundry (we did multiple loads of laundry in the full-size washer and separate dryer... these were much better appliances than we've had in most other European apartments). Up the stairs to the next level was the spacious and comfortable living area and another king-size bedroom with a large en-suite bathroom with bath/tub combo. Up the stairs on the top level was a spacious landing, off of which was a king-size bedroom next to a double-size bedroom. These two bedrooms shared the hall baths - one with toilet and sink and the other with a shower and sink. There was one other king-size bedroom on the top floor with its own en-suite bathroom with shower. Everything was really spacious (for European standards), beautifully decorated, and very clean. Linens and towels were all clean and comfortable. The Wi-fi worked flawlessly throughout the apartment.
Communication/Hospitality: From the first correspondence to the last, Henrik was kind, helpful, responsive, and hospitable. We requested an early check-in, which could not be guaranteed in advance (understandably), but Henrik notified us the day before our arrival that he would be able to provide one. Due to delays at airport customs, we ended up being about an hour later than we had arranged, but it was easy to keep Henrik and his check-in manager updated, who was there waiting for us when we arrived. Check-in was flawless and the host was very kind and helpful. There were several "extras" left for us to enjoy during our stay - coffee, tea, candy, cookies, drink mixers, etc. Check out was very easy - we had an early train to catch and were able to just leave the apartment locked behind us and go on our way.
This was the perfect London apartment for our group of 10, and I highly recommend it! Thank you for a wonderful stay!!