Overview
First Impressions
Crane Court by City2Stay sits tucked away on one of those narrow cobblestone passages in the City of London that you’d walk right past if you didn’t know it was there. I mean, Crane Court itself is basically a hidden alley — but that’s actually part of the charm. The building has this understated elegance that feels authentically London, without trying too hard to be boutique-y.
The Room Experience
The apartments here are what really set this place apart from your typical hotel stay. Each apartment comes with a proper kitchen, which honestly saved me a fortune during my week in London. You know what’s refreshing? The space doesn’t feel cramped like so many London accommodations do. The room layouts are smart — they’ve maximized every square foot without making it feel like you’re living in a shoebox.
Location Perks
Being right in the City means you’re walking distance to places like St. Paul’s Cathedral and the Thames, but here’s the thing most people don’t realize — it gets pretty quiet after business hours since this is the financial district. That worked perfectly for me because I could explore during the day, then come back to a peaceful area at night. Fleet Street is literally around the corner, and if you’re into history (the old newspaper district), you’ll geek out over the neighborhood.
Practical Details
The staff actually knows their stuff — they gave me solid recommendations for local pubs that weren’t tourist traps. There’s no on-site restaurant, but with Borough Market and all the City pubs nearby, plus your own kitchen setup, it’s really not an issue. The four-star rating feels spot-on — it’s polished and professional without being stuffy or pretentious.
Why Guests Love It
Look, if you want to stay in London like you actually live here rather than just visit, this is your spot. The apartment-style setup means you can grab groceries at Tesco Metro, cook breakfast, and head out exploring without feeling rushed to check out or grab hotel breakfast. Plus, being in the City puts you on multiple tube lines — I could get anywhere in London within 30 minutes. It’s that sweet spot between hotel service and having your own London flat, even if it’s just for a few days.
Guest reviews
"Nice and comfortable"
Location
1 December 2025
"Ten Lovely Nights in London"
We stayed in Studio 12 which was as advertised. Two windows were available for light and air flow. The bathroom was roomy and the kitchenette was nicely stocked with dishes and some pans. We were there for 10 nights and thought there would be a change of towels, but we never heard from them. I also never asked, so there you go. My only contact with maintenance was while trying to open our door, George (I think) was doing some other task and said we needed new batteries. A life saver! The location is great. Plenty of near by bus and train stations within reasonable walking distance. We'd go back in a heartbeat.
What could be improved: Overly complicated self check in. Timing of the instructions while you are on the move. We took a train from Edinburgh and had a train transfer and didn't like having to be tied to our phones with dire instructions coming about our codes. Maybe it was just bad commmunication skills.
9 November 2025
"Very good"
V comfortable, well equipped, clean apt. Great location. Highly recommend.
What could be improved: Found it difficult to get in initially. Probably our own fault though. I would suggest reading instructions beforehand and not last minute outside door late in the eve.
27 October 2025
"Perfect for business or leisure break"
Very clean… everything we needed
What could be improved: N/a
26 October 2025
"Exceptional"
Location
What could be improved: Nothing
25 October 2025
"Excellent well located apartment"
Excellent location. Clean. Tidy and relatively spacious.
What could be improved: Heating system was a little hard to decipher but a search online turned up the correct way to adjust things.
22 October 2025
"A perfect, private escape in the centre of London."
The location was excellent; very central and close to buses and so many food choices. It was a source of joy every morning to step out of the apartments onto Fleet Street and see St Paul’s Cathedral so close by. The apartment was small but perfect. It had everything we needed including a washer / dryer and a drying rack as well as an oven and stove top. We were surprised that there wasn’t a microwave but so many other excellent facilities. We were met at the apartments by George who was the perfect introduction to the apartments and London. He was calm and accommodating and so helpful which was exactly what we needed after the long flight from Australia. Our apartment was on the fourth floor which involved climbing a few stairs after taking the lift to the top but this wasn’t a problem, particularly with the lovely George to help us with our bags on the first day. Crane Court felt like home and was the perfect, private escape.
What could be improved: The bathroom had a few stray hairs from the previous occupant which we promptly cleaned. A microwave would have been useful.
15 October 2025
"Very good"
good location within 30-40mins walk to most major landmarks . metro 7 mins walk away to get direct to Gatwick. They sent message they could meet us there to help us with bags if needed.
What could be improved: more towels than 2 ,for 3 night stay. more specific instructions on how to use washer dryer, as in how long it would take. staff helpful when we rung. but no specific verbal contact with staff before entry. all done by digital check in . We were sent email , to digitally check in, but it needed to be done within a certain hour time frame , which was stressful , when we were travelling at the time. I asked if digital link to be sent by whats app, rather than email, as our email was playing up.
6 October 2025
"Great place for first trip"
Perfect walkable location. We were met by a staff member who helped us carry our bags and make sure we were able to get in our room using our door code. He met us again when we were checking out, helped with bags and made sure we found our cab…in the rain! He was amazing. Room was clean and comfortable. Hubby loved that there was a coffee shop 2 businesses down.
25 September 2025
"Clean and central location"
Central location, clean
What could be improved: No tea towel or dishwashing liquid to wash coffee cups up
20 September 2025
