Where to Stay for ExCeL London: A Guide for Exhibitors, Delegates and Business Travellers

The ExCeL accommodation problem

ExCeL London hosts some of the largest events in the country, and the pattern around them is predictable. A major show is announced, the Royal Docks hotels fill months out, and the rooms that remain are priced for people who have no alternative. Exhibitors building a stand for four days feel it worst: they need the most nights, arrive earliest and leave latest, and they are the ones paying the surge.

There is a straightforward way around it. You do not need to sleep next to the venue — you need a reliable twenty-minute journey to it. Upton Park, three miles north of the Royal Docks, gives you exactly that, at rates that do not move every time the exhibition calendar does.

Getting to ExCeL from Upton Park

The journey is simple and does not touch central London.

• District line from Upton Park to Canning Town — around 8 minutes.
• DLR from Canning Town to Custom House for ExCeL (west entrance) or Prince Regent (east entrance) — around 6 to 10 minutes.
• Total door to hall — around 20 to 25 minutes, one change.

The Elizabeth line also stops at Custom House, which is useful if you are meeting colleagues arriving from Heathrow or Paddington. And London City Airport is around 20 minutes away, closer to Upton Park than most central London hotels are.

Contactless payment covers the whole route. Tap in and out and the daily cap applies automatically. For a full breakdown of routes and fares, see our guide to getting around London from Upton Park.

Why exhibitors choose apartments over hotel rooms

Stand teams have a specific set of needs, and hotel rooms meet almost none of them.

Space for a team, not a room each

Two or three colleagues in one apartment with a separate bedroom and a living area costs less than the same people in separate rooms and is considerably more workable. Debriefs happen at the kitchen table rather than in a hotel bar at hotel bar prices.

Early starts and late finishes

Build-up days start before hotel breakfast service and end after most kitchens close. A fridge, a hob and a kettle solve both ends of that problem. Nobody wants a room-service burger at eleven at night on day three.

Laundry

Four days on a stand in branded shirts is four days of laundry. A washing machine in the apartment is worth more than any hotel amenity on a trip like this.

Somewhere to actually work

Follow-up emails, lead lists and next-day briefings need a table, a chair and reliable Wi-Fi. A dining table beats a hotel desk wedged between a bed and a radiator.

Predictable, transparent cost

Apartment rates typically fall as the stay lengthens, which suits a four to seven night event cycle. Booking direct means no third-party booking fees and a clear invoice for expenses.

What delegates get out of it

If you are attending rather than exhibiting, the calculation is slightly different but lands in the same place. A conference day is long and heavily scheduled; the evening is the part of the trip you get to keep. Twenty minutes on the DLR and District line puts you somewhere with room to spread out, a proper kitchen, a quiet bedroom and a neighbourhood with genuinely good, genuinely inexpensive food on the doorstep.

Upton Park also leaves you well placed for the rest of the city. Canary Wharf is about fifteen minutes, the City around twenty, the West End around twenty-five, and Stratford and Westfield about twelve. If your trip includes meetings elsewhere in London, you are not starting every day from a peninsula.

Planning around the ExCeL calendar

• Book as early as you can. The largest shows move the whole east London market, apartments included.
• Count your build and break days. Exhibitors routinely need two more nights than they first budget for.
• Check the venue entrance. Custom House serves the west halls, Prince Regent the east. Confirm which one your hall sits behind before day one.
• Plan for weekend engineering works. Weekend closures on the DLR and District line are common; check before you set out on a Saturday or Sunday.
• Watch the football calendar. With a fixture at the London Stadium, allow extra time either side of kick-off.

Practical points for corporate bookers

If you are arranging accommodation on behalf of a team, the questions that usually matter are:

• What is included in the rate — utilities, Wi-Fi, linen, towels, cleaning?
• Is there a weekly rate, and where is the break point?
• How does check-in work for someone arriving at midnight after a delayed flight?
• Can you get a proper VAT invoice for expenses?
• Who answers the phone at ten at night if something goes wrong?
• How many people can each apartment take comfortably, not just technically?

We are happy to answer all of those before you commit. For groups taking more than one apartment, or for stays running across several events in a season, talk to us directly rather than booking through a platform.

What a United Stay apartment gives your team

Our Upton Park apartments are fully furnished and serviced: a separate bedroom, an open-plan living and dining space, a fitted kitchen with oven, hob, fridge and dishwasher, a modern bathroom, fast Wi-Fi, and a private balcony in several apartments. Check-in instructions and directions arrive before you do, and the team is contactable around the clock.

Twenty minutes on the DLR is a shorter commute than most Londoners have, and it costs a great deal less than a hotel room with a view of the same water.

Working an ExCeL show this season? Check dates and availability, see everything that is included on our Your Stay page, or get in touch and we will put something together for your team.