In this guide
ExCeL is a single building nearly a kilometre long, with a station at each end: Custom House (Elizabeth line and DLR) by the West Entrance, and Prince Regent (DLR only) by the East Entrance and the ICC conference suites. The two entrances are about 600 metres apart inside, so the first thing to settle is which end your event uses. MCM Comic Con, for one, sends everyone to its queue hall from Custom House. Our ExCeL London guide covers the stations, parking and bag rules; this page covers where to sleep.
💡 The Short Version: For a show at the West Entrance, including MCM Comic Con, stay on Western Gateway: the ibis London ExCeL Docklands is two minutes’ walk from the venue and was £76 on an October Sunday and £185 on an October Saturday. For the East Entrance and the ICC, Aloft London ExCeL is a minute away at about £115, with an indoor pool. One stop from Custom House, Canary Wharf is 3 minutes on the Elizabeth line and Woolwich 4. The cheapest night in our budget hotels guide, £34.99 on an October Sunday, was at Travelodge London Docklands Central, six minutes from Custom House by DLR. After an evening event, the last Elizabeth line train west leaves Custom House at 00:05, or 22:35 on a Sunday. Neither the Elizabeth line nor the DLR runs all night, but the N551 night bus leaves Custom House every half hour.
The bases compared
| Base | Station | Train to ExCeL | Last train back, Mon–Sat | The catch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Western Gateway | Custom House, Royal Victoria | None: walk | — | About 600 m inside the building to the East Entrance and the ICC |
| The east end | Prince Regent | None: walk | — | The same walk the other way for a west-hall show |
| Royal Albert | Royal Albert DLR | DLR, 1 stop to Prince Regent | 01:00 (Sunday 00:10) | One stop further from the Elizabeth line |
| Canning Town and East India | Canning Town, East India | DLR, 4–7 min | 00:33 (Sunday 23:33) | The DLR only runs every ten minutes late at night |
| Canary Wharf | Canary Wharf | Elizabeth line, 3 min | 00:05 (Sunday 22:35) | After that, the DLR to Poplar and a walk |
| Woolwich | Woolwich | Elizabeth line, 4 min | 00:20 (Sunday 23:05) | Only the Elizabeth line runs direct to ExCeL |
| Stratford | Stratford | Jubilee and DLR, 10 min | 00:33 (Sunday 23:33) | A change at Canning Town each way |
| Greenwich Peninsula | North Greenwich | Cable car, or Jubilee and DLR | 00:33 (Sunday 23:33) | The cable car shuts at 21:00 most nights |
| Central London | Liverpool Street, Tottenham Court Road, Paddington | Elizabeth line, 10–23 min | 00:05 (Sunday 22:35) | The early Sunday finish |
Train times and last trains from ExCeL’s stations are from TfL’s Journey Planner and timetables, for October 2026.
West Entrance: Western Gateway and Custom House
The west-end hotels are on Western Gateway, along Royal Victoria Dock between Royal Victoria DLR and ExCeL. Custom House, for the Elizabeth line, is about 200 metres from the West Entrance. This is the end for MCM Comic Con and the west halls.
Prices here follow ExCeL’s calendar, so check what’s on at ExCeL for your dates before you book.
ibis London ExCeL Docklands — two minutes from ExCeL, with dock-view rooms
£76–£185 on our five sampled nights · 9 Western Gateway, E16 1AB · ExCeL 2 min, Custom House 6 min · Hotels.comad
A waterside ibis on Western Gateway, two minutes’ walk from ExCeL. The rooms are doubles and twins with ibis’s own Sweet Bed, a power shower and a 43-inch TV; the Riverside Premium rooms face the dock. It has its own restaurant and bar. Across the five nights our budget hotels guide priced, it was £76 on the October Sunday and £185 on the October Saturday. Parking is £30 for 24 hours.
Novotel London ExCeL — sofa beds for families, three minutes from Custom House
7 Western Gateway, E16 1AA · Royal Victoria DLR 2 min, Custom House 3 min · Hotels.comad
Next to the ibis on Western Gateway. Upper Deck, its restaurant and bar, has a terrace over Royal Victoria Dock, and there’s a gym, 12 meeting rooms and a car park. For a family, book a room with a sofa bed: the Standard and Superior rooms come with a queen bed plus a convertible sofa. Custom House, for the Elizabeth line, is three minutes’ walk.
Good Hotel London — a floating hotel for two, with a roof bar
£75–£153 on our five sampled nights · Western Gateway, E16 1FA · Royal Victoria DLR 3 min · Hotels.comad
A former floating platform, refitted and towed across the North Sea, now moored at the west end of the dock with water on three sides. The rooms are Dutch-designed, with walk-in rain showers; the standard Good Room is 13 m², with no television or minibar. Every room sleeps two, so it suits couples and solo travellers, not families. The roof bar looks out over the dock, and the hotel’s surplus profits go to a foundation. It was £75 on the October Sunday and £150 to £153 on three of the five nights.
Sunborn London — a moored superyacht, every room on the water
About £160 · 133 rooms and 5 suites · Royal Victoria Dock, E16 1AA · Custom House · Hotels.comad
A superyacht moored for good in Royal Victoria Dock, two minutes’ walk from ExCeL’s car park. Every room looks out on the river or the dock: a Yacht Classic room is 19 to 23 m², with a king-size bed or twin beds and a shower room, and a Yacht Executive room adds a private balcony or terrace. The Sundown Bar, looking across to Canary Wharf and The O2, is open to non-residents. The yacht has no car park (drivers use ExCeL’s), check-out is 11:00, and at check-in it pre-authorises £100 per person per night on your card for extras, released after you leave.
East Entrance, the ICC and Prince Regent
Prince Regent is about 200 metres from the East Entrance, which is also the way into the ICC’s conference suites. The hotels on Dockside Road, by Royal Albert DLR, are one stop further east; the Travelodge there is under budget chains.
Aloft London ExCeL — a minute from the East Entrance, with a pool
About £115 · Eastern Gateway, E16 1FR · Prince Regent DLR 2 min · Hotels.comad
Marriott’s design brand, at the east end of ExCeL, a minute’s walk from the East Entrance and the ICC. It has an indoor pool, and some rooms sleep three. For a west-hall show it’s a walk of about 600 metres through the building, or one DLR stop from Prince Regent to Custom House.
Premier Inn London Docklands (ExCeL) — family rooms and a 24-hour bar
2 Festoon Way, Royal Victoria Dock, E16 1SJ · Prince Regent DLR 6 min · premierinn.com
Premier Inn’s hotel for ExCeL, with doubles, twins, family and accessible rooms, all air-conditioned. The Premier Plus doubles add a coffee machine, a mini-fridge and faster Wi-Fi. The Social, its restaurant and bar, is open 24 hours, which suits a late finish, and check-in is at a kiosk with the QR code from your booking.
Holiday Inn Express London – ExCeL — breakfast included, family rooms for four
204 rooms · 1018 Dockside Road, E16 2FQ · Royal Albert DLR 200 m · Hotels.comad
Breakfast is included for every guest, a hot buffet, and the restaurant serves a 24-hour menu with tables on a terrace. The family rooms take two adults and two children under 12, on a double bed and a sofa bed. Royal Albert is one DLR stop from Prince Regent and two from Custom House. There’s no pool, and parking is £20 a day.
A train away: Canary Wharf, Woolwich, Stratford and Greenwich
Canary Wharf and Woolwich are one Elizabeth line stop either side of Custom House, three and four minutes away. Stratford and the Greenwich Peninsula take a change.
London Marriott Hotel Canary Wharf — three minutes from the Elizabeth line
About £200 · 22 Hertsmere Road, West India Quay, E14 4ED · Elizabeth line 3 min, then 3 min to Custom House · Hotels.comad
The curved glass tower at the end of West India Quay, with floor-to-ceiling windows over the dock, a 24-hour gym with a sauna, and afternoon tea in G&Tea, its gin bar. The Elizabeth line station, the one that matters for ExCeL, is three minutes’ walk. Guests must be 18 to check in, and there’s no hotel car park. Our Canary Wharf hotel guide has the rest of the estate’s hotels.
Novotel London Canary Wharf — a pool, a rooftop bar and suites for four
£156–£229 on five sampled nights · 40 Marsh Wall, E14 9TP · Elizabeth line 12 min · Hotels.comad
A 39-storey tower across South Dock from the estate, with an indoor pool and gym, and Bōkan, a restaurant, bar and roof terrace on the top three floors, open to non-residents. For a family, the Studio Suite is 40 m² with a king bed and sleeps four. The walk to the Elizabeth line is about 12 minutes, across the dock. Canary Wharf hotels are cheapest on a Sunday night; our Canary Wharf area guide covers where to eat.
Premier Inn London Woolwich (Royal Arsenal) — four minutes from Custom House, free children’s breakfasts
91 Beresford Street, SE18 6BG · Woolwich (Elizabeth line) 7 min, then 4 min to Custom House · premierinn.com
Woolwich is the Elizabeth line’s next stop east from Custom House, four minutes away, and the hotel is seven minutes’ walk from the station. Up to two children eat breakfast free for each adult who orders one. The hotel has no car park of its own: the nearest is Powis Street car park (SE18 6JL), 7 to 10 minutes’ walk, which charges £3.10 an hour from 08:00 to 18:30 Monday to Saturday and nothing overnight or on Sundays. The last train back from Custom House is 00:20, or 23:05 on a Sunday.
Moxy London Stratford — a queen double from £99 on a Sunday
£99–£199 on our five sampled nights · 86 Great Eastern Road, E15 1GR · Stratford 3 min · Hotels.comad
Marriott’s Moxy brand, three minutes’ walk from Stratford station. The cheapest room on all five of our nights was a double with one queen bed: £99 on the October Sunday, £143 to £199 on the Saturdays. To ExCeL it’s the Jubilee to Canning Town and the DLR on, about ten minutes on the trains with a change. Our Stratford area guide covers the neighbourhood.
Premier Inn London Stratford — family rooms inside Westfield
£71–£203 on our five sampled nights · 9 International Square, E20 1EE · Stratford 6 min · premierinn.com
Inside the Westfield Stratford City development, with family rooms in which two children under 16 stay free, and The Social, its restaurant and bar, open 24 hours. It was £71 on the October Sunday and £186 and £203 on the October and December Saturdays. There’s no hotel parking; Westfield’s car park charges £25 for 24 hours.
Holiday Inn Express London – Greenwich — breakfast included, and the cable car by day
About £95 · Bugsby’s Way, Greenwich Peninsula · North Greenwich 15 min · Hotels.comad
On the peninsula south of The O2, with breakfast included, family rooms and parking at £35 a day. By day, the cable car crosses from the peninsula to the Royal Docks, a short walk from ExCeL’s west end, in about ten minutes. It closes at 21:00 most nights, 22:00 on Friday and 23:00 on Saturday, so after an evening event it’s the DLR to Canning Town, one Jubilee stop to North Greenwich and the walk. It suits a trip that includes a show at The O2: our O2 hotel guide compares the peninsula with the other bases, and our Greenwich hotel guide covers the town and the Cutty Sark side.
For the centre of town, the Elizabeth line runs direct from Custom House to Liverpool Street in 10 minutes, Tottenham Court Road in 17 and Paddington in 23. Our guides to the City of London, Bloomsbury and Paddington cover hotels near those stations. The catch is Sunday, when the last train west leaves Custom House at 22:35.
Budget chains
Travelodge London Docklands Central — £34.99 on a Sunday, and no change to ExCeL
£34.99–£111.99 on our five sampled nights · 1 Oregano Drive, E14 2AE · East India DLR 6 min, then 6 min to Custom House · travelodge.co.uk
A new-build tower by East India, and the cheapest hotel in our budget guide: £34.99 on the October Sunday, £81.99 to £111.99 on the Saturdays. East India is three DLR stops west of Custom House on the line through ExCeL, so there’s no change. Parking is £13 for 24 hours.
Travelodge London ExCeL — £12 parking, one stop from Prince Regent
1016 Dockside Road, E16 2FQ · Royal Albert DLR 3 min · Hotels.comad
On Dockside Road by Royal Albert, one DLR stop from Prince Regent. Every double has a king-size bed, there are family rooms, and the Bar Café serves an unlimited breakfast (07:00 to 10:00 on weekdays, to 11:00 at weekends) at which up to two children eat for £1 each per paying adult. Parking is £12 for 24 hours. Wi-Fi is free for only 30 minutes a day; a full 24 hours costs £3.50, which matters if you’re working the show.
ibis London Canning Town — opposite the station, for ExCeL and The O2
£84–£168 on our five sampled nights · 8 Silvertown Way, E16 1ED · Canning Town, then DLR 4 min to Custom House · Hotels.comad
196 air-conditioned rooms opposite Canning Town station, with a café-bar, Chill #08. Canning Town is two DLR stops from Custom House and a Jubilee line interchange, so it also works for The O2, one stop away. It was £84 on the February Wednesday and £153 and £168 on the October and December Saturdays. If you miss the last DLR, the N551 night bus runs from Custom House to Canning Town bus station.
Getting back after an evening event
The Elizabeth line and the DLR both stop overnight, every night of the week, and the cable car closes before most evening events end.
| From ExCeL | To | Mon–Sat | Sunday |
|---|---|---|---|
| Custom House, Elizabeth line west | Canary Wharf, Liverpool Street, Tottenham Court Road, Paddington | 00:05 | 22:35 |
| Custom House, Elizabeth line east | Woolwich | 00:20 | 23:05 |
| Custom House or Prince Regent, DLR west | Canning Town, East India, Poplar | 00:33 | 23:33 |
| Prince Regent, DLR east | Royal Albert | 01:00 | 00:10 |
| Night bus N551, from Custom House | Canning Town, Poplar, Aldgate, Bank, Trafalgar Square | Every 30 min, about 23:36 to 06:07 | Every 30 min |
From TfL’s Journey Planner and bus timetables, checked 29 September 2026 for October dates. Engineering works change these, so check your own date.
- Sunday is the trap. The last Elizabeth line train west leaves Custom House at 22:35, an hour and a half before the weekday one.
- After the last Elizabeth line train, the DLR to Poplar runs until 00:33, and Canary Wharf’s hotels are a walk from there.
- On Friday and Saturday nights the Jubilee runs all night from Canning Town, to Stratford one way and Canary Wharf, London Bridge and Westminster the other. The N551 gets you to Canning Town once the DLR has stopped.
- Leaving from the east end, Prince Regent’s DLR takes you one stop to Custom House for the Elizabeth line.
Before you book
- Find your entrance first. The event’s own page or your ticket names the hall or entrance; the West Entrance is by Custom House, the East Entrance and the ICC by Prince Regent.
- Your bags. ExCeL’s cloakrooms store nothing overnight, and whether there is one at all is up to your event’s organiser. If you check out on the last morning, leave the case at the hotel.
- Driving. ExCeL’s own car park is £27.50 a day booked ahead. Guest parking is £12 for 24 hours at Travelodge London ExCeL and £20 a day at the Holiday Inn Express.
For the rest of the trip, our guide to the best areas to stay in London sorts the city by what the trip is for, and the MCM Comic Con guide covers tickets, queues and cosplay rules. Flying from London City Airport, near ExCeL’s east end? Our City Airport guide has the routes.
Sampled prices are the cheapest double for two on five nights between October 2026 and April 2027, taxes included, from our budget hotels and Canary Wharf guides; “about” prices are typical nightly rates, checked September 2026. Hotel facts are from each operator’s own site, September 2026.
Common questions
What is the closest hotel to ExCeL London?
At the east end, Aloft London ExCeL, a minute's walk from the East Entrance and the ICC. At the west end, ibis London ExCeL Docklands, which ibis puts two minutes' walk from the venue, and the Novotel London ExCeL next to it on Western Gateway. The two ends are about 600 metres apart inside the building, so pick the hotel by the entrance your event uses.
Where should I stay for MCM Comic Con at ExCeL?
On the west side. MCM sends everyone to its queue hall on the north lorryway from Custom House station, so the Western Gateway hotels (the ibis, Novotel, Good Hotel and Sunborn) are the shortest walk. One Elizabeth line stop away, Canary Wharf is three minutes from Custom House; Woolwich is four minutes the other way.
How late do trains run from ExCeL?
Monday to Saturday, the last Elizabeth line train west from Custom House, to Canary Wharf, Liverpool Street and Tottenham Court Road, leaves at 00:05, and the last DLR towards Canning Town at 00:33. On a Sunday they leave at 22:35 and 23:33. Neither line runs all night, but the N551 night bus leaves Custom House every half hour for Canning Town, Bank and Trafalgar Square.
Is it better to stay in central London for ExCeL?
Only if you want the evenings in town, and not on a Sunday. The Elizabeth line reaches Custom House in 10 minutes from Liverpool Street, 17 from Tottenham Court Road and 23 from Paddington, but the last train back west leaves Custom House at 22:35 on a Sunday. Canary Wharf and Woolwich, one stop either side, keep the journey to three or four minutes.
Which ExCeL hotels are good for families?
Holiday Inn Express London – ExCeL has family rooms for two adults and two children under 12, with breakfast included. Premier Inn London Docklands (ExCeL) and Travelodge London ExCeL both have family rooms, and at the Travelodge up to two children eat breakfast for £1 each per paying adult. Good Hotel London is the one to avoid with children: every room sleeps two.
