For a couple of years now I wanted to check out Days Hotel London Waterloo, a Wyndham Rewards brand hotel with a good value GoFast rate at 3,000 points + 53 GBP ($72 USD). The experience was better than expected. I also celebrated Christmas in London with the cheapest pint of beer I have had in a London bar in the past four years, Stella Artois at 2.75GBP in the Days Hotel Waterloo lobby bar.
Even better than the GoFast deal for Days Hotel Waterloo was a Christmas day AARP rate of 71.10 GBP ($96 USD). This was one of the first hotels where I found AARP rate was the lowest available. This is a pattern I have seen at several Wyndham brand hotels in Europe where AAA discounts are not available, but AARP offers a discount rate.
My $96 rate using Visa Checkout payment earned 3,000 bonus points + 1,000 stay points for a 4,000 points increase to my Wyndham Rewards account. I think the Visa Checkout promotion is the best value loyalty program offer available right now with the potential to pick up 18,000 Wyndham Rewards points for 3 stays through February 28, 2018.
Loyalty Traveler – 3 Visa Checkout stays 21,000 points Wyndham Rewards $159 (I am considering booking 3 stays at Days Inn Monterey through my wife’s account to pick up 18,000 points for $129).
Arrival
The receptionist gave me a Wyndham Rewards elite recognition bag with a bottle of water and a small candy bag of malted milk balls. Our arrival on Christmas Day meant most of London was closed up and any open pubs offer set Christmas Day dinners generally at fixed prices from 35-100 GBP per person.
We stocked up on food at M&S market inside London Heathrow Terminal 3 before catching the National Express bus from London LHR central bus station to Victoria Coach Station. Tickets were 18GBP each to the city and then 20GBP after tip to take a taxi two miles to Days Hotel Waterloo.
In the future I will remember to avoid arriving or departing London on Christmas Day when virtually all public transportation in London shuts down.
The Room – Two Singles Please
I learned from experience that beds in London are officially smaller than beds in other parts of the world. I wrote an article about London King Beds last year after our stay at Holiday Inn Kensington High Street when I argued with the hotel receptionist that the bed in my room was nowhere near the size of a King bed. Turns out UK King size is 60 inches and officially 12 inches narrower than USA King size. Double beds in the UK are 54 inches wide.
Two Singles Please
A standard single bed is 36 inches wide and Kelley and I find that arrangement much more to our liking for European hotels that do not offer a King Bed. Even a small single bed in UK is 30 inches wide and far more space than a small double at 48 inches. No complaints so far about hotel rooms with two singles compared to a small bed for two.
Room Size is in the Eye of the Beholder
Kelley’s first comment was about the room’s small size. My first impression is the room was larger and better than I expected. I have been in some truly small rooms in London hotels, especially around Victoria Station.
Two windows in the room opened to provide fresh winter air. One word of caution is there was a portable room fan indicating no air conditioning to cool the room on warm London summer days.
Bathroom is room highlight
The bathroom was small, yet nicely decorated. We joked about the close proximity of the toilet to the large sink. We tended to sit on the toilet seat at an angle to comfortably fit our knees beneath the sink.
 
Days Hotel Breakfast
We were given vouchers for 2 GBP off breakfast. Continental Breakfast is normally 8GBP and hot breakfast is 10GBP. We paid 16 GBP for two hot breakfasts, but I did not not think it was worth the price. Standard bacon, beans, scrambled eggs and some fruit and pastries and yogurt in the style you would expect at any Days Inn in the USA.
Near the elevators in the lobby is an ice machine.
Lobby Bar 2.75GBP pints at Happy Hour 6-8pm
The highlight of our stay was finding Stella Artois on tap in the lobby at 3.75 GBP and only 2.75 GBP during 6-8pm Happy Hour. That is the cheapest pint I have found in a London pub in the past 4 years.
The lobby had comfortable seating in a Christmas decorated room with a tree and lights.
Bag Storage at Days Hotel Waterloo
The hotel charges 1 GBP per bag stored at the hotel.
Lambeth North Underground Station
Lambeth North Underground is on the Bakerloo Line and the closest station to the hotel. The hotel is only about ten minutes walk to the River Thames and Westminster Bridge, where London Eye is located on the south bank of the river. Houses of Parliament and Big Ben are on the north side across Westminster Bridge.
Days Hotel Waterloo London combines low rates with close walking proximity to some of the major tourism areas.
Days Hotel London Waterloo Review Ratings
- Facilities 4/5
- Lobby Comfort 4/5
- Bed 4/5
- Bathroom 3/5
- Bar 5/5
- Breakfast 2.5/5
- Elevator 1.5/5 slow for 7 floor hotel.
- Location 4/5
- Likely to return = Yes, when price is best deal for area.
Days Inn has 57 hotel locations in the UK.
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