Travelling alone as a woman in London: why the apartment matters

The most useful thing a London serviced apartment can give a woman travelling alone is a person at the front desk who knows her name by day two. With a door that only opens with your key, a kitchen that makes dinner out a choice rather than a necessity, and a Tube station a few minutes away, most of the practical worries are covered before you've even landed.

Arriving, and getting home at night

When you book, give the residence your flight number and expected arrival time, and ask how you'll get in if you land late. The best answer is a named person on the desk, and the next best is a code sent in advance plus a phone number that actually gets answered at night. About half the residences we list have a reception, so ask whether it's staffed round the clock. From Heathrow, the Heathrow Express reaches Paddington in 15 minutes and runs every 15 minutes, and with luggage a black cab from the rank at Paddington is the simplest last leg.

London's taxi rules are simple and worth knowing before your first evening out. Black cabs can be hailed on the street when the orange 'taxi' light is on, but minicabs, app-based cars included, have to be booked in advance. TfL is blunt about it: a minicab that isn't booked isn't safe and isn't insured to carry you, whatever sticker it shows. When a booked car turns up, check the driver and vehicle match your confirmation before you get in.

On Friday and Saturday nights the Night Tube runs on the Victoria, Jubilee, Central, Northern and Piccadilly lines, and night buses run every night. If something on public transport makes you uneasy, you can text British Transport Police on 61016 without making a call. In an emergency, dial 999.

The building and the area

Look for controlled entry at the street door, a second lock on the apartment and, ideally, a staffed desk. An upper-floor apartment is calmer and feels more private, but if you ask for one, check there's a lift, because plenty of buildings don't have one. Smaller buildings have the edge here: fewer residents and longer stays mean staff notice who belongs, and a visitor gets checked with you before being sent up. If you'd like the desk never to confirm you're staying, ask for that explicitly.

Choose the area by how you'll spend your evenings. Marylebone and Kensington are residential, with busy high streets and restaurants where dining alone feels perfectly normal. Mayfair goes quiet after about 10pm, while Covent Garden and Soho keep going late, which means lively streets on the walk home but more noise at night. Transport matters more than postcode. Almost every residence is within about ten minutes' walk of a station, and a short walk from the station along well-lit main roads is worth more than a smarter address further out.

Eating alone, and small habits

Eating alone in London is completely unremarkable. Counter seats at a bar or open kitchen are the easiest way to do it, and plenty of restaurants in Marylebone and Soho are built around them. Ask the front desk for places nearby where solo diners are common, and book early evening if you'd rather be home before the late crowd. On the nights you don't fancy going out, the kitchen comes into its own, and a supermarket delivery on the first evening, a bottle of wine in the fridge and a film on the sofa beat room service in a hotel bedroom.

Save the front desk's number in your phone before you go out, and share your location with a friend at home on late nights. On the Tube, keep your phone in a zipped bag, and stand away from the kerb when you check a map in the street. Passport and spare cards go in the apartment safe, so carry only what you need for the day. When you send your dates, it's worth adding a note that you're travelling alone and asking about late arrival, the desk's hours and floor options.