Bags Posts

Fixed check-in and check-out times can leave you with valuable hours to explore the city -- but also with heavy, cumbersome bags to lug around. Here's where to store your luggage in London, so that you can enjoy your day. It's not just tourists who might need bag storage -- it is also worth checking if you are planning a day out in the city, to see a show, or head to a gig or club. Many venues and tourist attractions in London, such as Harrods, operate a policy of banning large bags -- so if you have a suitcase or backpack, you will need to find somewhere to store your stuff first. Note: Always check if there are any time restrictions on when you can deposit and collect your bags, as not all locations are available 24/7. 1. Hotels and hostels Let's start with the most obvious solution: If you're a visitor to our fair city, your accommodation may provide somewhere to store your bags for free. Just check that you will be covered by insurance -- either your travel insurance, or the accommodation's own -- in case there are any problems. 2. Bag storage services There are several companies which connect you with locations around London, usually shops or hotels, where you can store your bags. Our favourite is Radical Storage, but they all tend to have a good selection close to main tourist spots such as Buckingham Palace, The Tower of London, The Houses of Parliament and the major museums and shopping areas. Things to keep in mind You can book in advance or on the day, as long as there's availability. Even though the site may say no size or weight restrictions, if you need to store large or awkwardly-shaped items like surfboards, skis or musical instruments, check with the customer-service team first. Check if there are restrictions on the insurance -- for example, it is usually invalidated if you pay cash rather than via the booking site, and can apply to the loss, theft or damage of an entire item of luggage but NOT individual items within it, including cash and electronics. Here are some of the most well-known bag storage services in London: 1. Radical Storage With storage partners called "Angels" in hundreds of local businesses, from cafés to hotels and restaurants, to grocery stores across the city, Radical Storage has significantly more locations in London than other storage services, plus 24/7 customer service. If your plans aren't fixed, you can add a free cancellation option for per bag. Pro tip: London Cheapo readers get a 5% discount when booking with this link -- that's unbeatable value. Share with your friends for maximum savings. Price: from per day Number of locations: Over 400 Size/weight restrictions: No restrictions Guarantee/insurance: Up to €3000 per item App: Yes 2. Stasher Store your bags for a few hours or a few days in one of the secure storage lockers at participating hotels and stores; customer service is available 24/7. Price: from per day; most sites are per day Number of locations: Roughly 300 Size/weight restrictions: No Guarantee/insurance: Up to per item App: Yes 3. Luggage Hero Luggage Hero use certified local shops, cafés and hotels to store your luggage for anything from a few hours to a few days, with hourly, daily and multi-day rates, plus a service charge. They have a timer function, accessible via your confirmation email or text, which you start when you deposit your bags and stop when you collect them; this would be a lot cooler if there wasn’t a flat daily rate on top. Also, some venues have a minimum charge/number of bags to ensure they cover their costs, so it's best to check the pricing for your chosen location. Price: A flat rate from per day, plus an hourly rate from per hour Number of locations: 140 Size/weight restrictions: No Guarantee/insurance: $400 included, or up to per bag for an additional charge of App: Yes 4. Bounce Bounce partners with local small businesses and shops in key tourist areas to provide secure short-term luggage storage, and is a popular option. Price: from per day Number of locations: Over 200 Size/weight restrictions: No Guarantee/insurance: Up to $10,000 App: Yes 5. Nannybag Leave your luggage with a "Nanny", one of Nannybag's partner businesses, which include supermarkets, shops and post offices. Insurance is included and there is free cancellation. One red flag though is that there seem to be a significant number of reviews complaining that storage sites booked were closed, or had different opening hours to those advertised, which could really mess with your day. It might be worth calling in advance before lugging your bags over. Price: from per day Number of locations: Not listed Size/weight restrictions: No Guarantee/insurance: Up to €10,000 App: Yes 3. Railway and coach stations Left luggage facilities are provided by Excess Baggage at the following locations: Charing Cross: Main concourse Euston: At platforms 16 to 18 King's Cross: Main concourse Liverpool Street: At platform 10 London Bridge: On the upper concourse, near the taxi rank Paddington: At platform 12 St Pancras International: Main concourse Victoria: At platform 8 Bags can be stored for anything from a couple of hours to several weeks and booked either online in advance or in person at the station, although pre-booked luggage has a quicker priority queue. On the plus side, storage areas are manned and have 24-hour CCTV monitoring; not so reassuring is the insurance liability of just per transaction. Additionally, even this is waived if the bags are "unsuitable, overweight, unsafe or previously damaged"; the weight limit is 32kg (66lbs). Price: from per item for up to 3 hours, or per day Number of locations: See above Size/weight restrictions: Anything over 32kg/66lbs is not covered for damage. Guarantee/insurance: per transaction, with the above exceptions App: No 4. Last resort: Airports Left luggage facilities are available at all London airports, but it's not cheap and there's not much to do in the immediate areas, so this probably isn’t much use. Check the website for the relevant airport for details on both long-and short-term storage. While we do our best to ensure it is correct, information is subject to change.

Bags Posts

Where To Store Your Luggage in London