Visiting any foreign city can be a real strain on time and effort for the business traveller. With a place like London you’ll be faced with a range of obstacles such as the busy rush hour on public transport. Here you’ll find the city becoming ever crammed with the grey of commuters as you all rush to the same large stations. On top of this, you can find yourself feeling under exercised due to the huge amount of business meetings and taxis you get City should be a city for walking and exploring the great outdoors, not being shot off in a taxi with a mere tinted view of the grand cityscape. As a business traveller, we are subject to work, not play and this can lead to spending time in some of the greatest spots in the world but only seeing a grey strip lit conference room and bored suit choked faces hidden behind smart phones. Life can be made easier for the eager business traveller. You can get both fun and work done with minimal hassle and a memorable experience. Shed the dull skin of the clock ticking business snake and evolve into the well-travelled and seasoned river croc.
Using London as an example, you can find a range of tips for business travel which will help you keep on top of a terrific trip for work.
Best airport Connectivity
Depending on where you’re coming from, there are various ways to reach the centre of the city from the five major city airports.
Gatwick
The Gatwick Express takes you from the South Eastern airport to Victoria station in half an hour. Based in the South terminal of Gatwick Airport, the station has trains running to London every fifteen minutes and Gatwick Express services, direct to Victoria every half an hour. This means that as a business traveller you can reach the city centre in next to no time at all.
Heathrow
The Piccadilly Line gets from Heathrow into Central London within 45 minutes whilst the direct train from Heathrow to Paddington Station takes around half an hour. This large airport is the biggest in the city and is well frequented by international travellers.
Luton
Getting from Luton to central London is easy due to the Thameslink service to West Hampstead. This train will take you right to the Jubilee Line, one of the fastest underground services in the city, hitting most of the business centres of the capital.
City
City Airport is a small airport in the Docklands area of the city. This airport is one of the most popular for business travellers, the dockland light railway taking you right into the centre of the city all the way to bank in under half an hour.
Stanstead Airport
Using the greater Anglia service, you can reach Central London hotspots such as Liverpool Street from this East London airport in no time at all.
Navigating the city
The London Underground can be an intimidating beast to overcome, especially with so many lines and train stations to navigate. It is especially crucial for you to know where you’re going when you have a huge amount of business meetings scattered across the city. Whether you’re looking for the quickest journey or trying to avoid rush hour, the best bet for you in terms of navigating London is by downloading the app CityMapper. This app gives you an easy to navigate interface which allows you to type in your starting point and your destination. It will then calculate your best options for travel, whether that be by walking, car or public transport. We can’t all afford a limousine but CityMapper will even calculate the closest Uber taxi to your location, helping you to find almost exact timings for your journey.
Great business hotels you must try
There are a range of hotels in London which are suited perfectly for the business traveller due to their on point amenities and quick as a flash customer service. Here are some of the best of the city.
Piccadilly London West End
This five star hotel offers you opulent rooms, ranging from single to deluxe doubles as well as a range of amenities which can make your business stay as pampered as possible. With a Piccadilly West End location, the Piccadilly London West End hotel you’ll be in the heart of it all and at your doorstep you’ll find bright lights, buzzing night life and the best in West End shows. This location is for the business traveller who wants a taste of the good life and finds that business is best served with a side order of fun.
Park Grand London Kensington
This business hotel is for those who want a classier venture into the city. Everything you need, whether it is high end gourmet food or designer retail experiences are a stone’s throw away and our grand hotel building will be sure not to disappoint, especially with the delightful rooms on offer as well as a bar and restaurant, serving and staffed by the best there is. The <ahref=”https://www.premierclubrewards.org/hotel-park-grand-london-kensington-16.html” target=”_blank”>Park Grand London Kensington rewards its customers with great service and also has a brilliant location, being a short walk from Hyde Park, truly one of the best places for you to clear your head. We know it can be difficult to truly get out of the business mind-set, so the onsite bar and conference rooms.
Premier rewards club
With so many hotel rewards clubs, it’s hard to find the best of the bunch, but Premier Rewards Club’s premier hotel membership for the Park Grand group are simply the most honest and great value out there. If you’re looking for top notch service and massive freebies like a fruit basket on arrival, then the Rewards Club will not disappoint. Made up of the best deals the Park Grand Hotels can offer, the PRC is made up of a Silver, Gold and Platinum memberships. Each membership is offered for however many days in a year you have stayed at the hotel. So, for instance, if you’re a business traveller who has stayed in a hotel using the PRC for more than 60 days in a year, then you are entitled to a platinum membership. Each range gets a huge amount of amenities which can help you to really get the most out of your business stay.
Where to eat as a business traveller in London
London is well known for having some of the best food in the city. There are a variety of areas for you to taste the best in fine dining and some of our hotels are right round the corner from the best eateries in the city. Whether it’s Chinese, Michelin Star or street food you’re after, there’s plenty on offer. For instance, why not try the wonderful Borough Market near London Bridge for some of the best street food in the city Borough Market has been running for centuries and is known for its delicious international cuisine. On top of this, China Town in Soho is a well-known area in which you can find some of the best value Chinese restaurants in the country. On top of this, the Shoreditch area is well known for its Bangladeshi community and India Restaurants, serving great quality food in traditional curry houses and not a stone’s throw from the business sector of the Liverpool Street and Old Street area. If you’re looking for some of the best Michelin star restaurants in the city then Kensington and Chelsea are the places to go. For high society fusion restaurants and delicate bites to eat then this area is a prime location, not only for it being close to the Park Grand Kensington Hotel.
Art and culture in London
There’s no work without play in the city. With so much to entertain you in London you’d be mad (or boring) to miss out on the wide variety of great stuff on show. If you want to soak in some art then try the Saatchi gallery in Chelsea, where you can find some of the best in contemporary artists showcasing their cutting edge work. The Tate Britain in Pimlico is one of the best galleries to explore the history of British art, with works dating back centuries. The Tate Modern, on the other hand, has a more forward thinking approach rather than retrospective. In this ex-power station on the Bankside of the Thames, you can find a range of international artists dating back to the beginning of the 20th century.
If it’s a show you’re after, you’re in for a treat if you’re a guest at the Piccadilly London West End Hotel. The Piccadilly area of London is near some of the best theatres in the country. With the Gielgud showing the sell-out Ferryman by the prolific Jez Butterworth, you can also find more niche off West End shows at the Soho Theatre, which focuses on comedy, up and coming theatre and cabaret shows. This fashionable off West End theatre is well known for its raucous and rebellious comedians and forward thinking and politically aware theatre.
