It was only a couple of years ago that we discovered the benefits of serviced apartments as opposed to hotel accommodation in London. Nice though a full English breakfast can be, is it something that you're not prepared to miss in favour of more sumptuous accommodation at a lower price?
The Anvi serviced apartments are ideally placed for a visit to London and I can't recommend them highly enough. Situated in an upmarket residential area, an easy 2 minute stroll from Gloucester Road tube station, you are able to use the Piccadilly Line trains for fast access into the heart of London. A six minute trip gets you to Piccadilly and Covent Garden and the heart of theatreland and 15 minutes to get to Kings Cross and St Pancras railway stations all without having to change tube train. We were amazed at how quiet it was at night compared with more central locations. We weren't troubled by the traffic at all and we live in the most rural of locations, so we notice noise at night.
We booked studio accommodation but were upgraded to a one bedroomed apartment. This consisted of a square entrance hall with 4 rooms off: a kitchen, living/dining room, bedroom and bathroom. I'd read a previous review somewhere that described the decor as 'tired'. I certainly wouldn't say that. It was modern and clean. Yes, the wooden flooring was marked and carried a few stains but only the sort that gives a place character rather than a feel of being unloved.
We had a crafty look at a studio apartment and decided that if we had one in future we wouldn't be disappointed. The room opened directly into the lounge/dining room with the kitchen set off to the side at right angles, so that you couldn't see the piles of washing up! The bathroom was of course separate and the bedroom section was partitioned off from the living area by a wall but no door. Certainly, we would have been comfortable here.
The immediate surrounding area has everything you could want to meet your needs as far as eating is concerned. There are 2 major supermarkets within a 2 minute stroll so you can cater for yourself if you like. We purchased some cereal and milk for breakfast which is what we're used to but then discovered the most amazing French bakery just across the road - probably just as well for our waistlines that we made the discovery that way round!
We could have catered for ourselves for our evening meal but there is such a good range of eateries catering for all pockets literally on the doorstep, there was no need. Everything from steak houses to fish and chip shops, the usual chain restaurants and of course 2 pubs that both offer a good range of home-made meals for under £10 and some lovely cask ales.
The area is great for access to the Natural History, Science and Victoria and Albert Museums ( 10 minute walk max), and for Earls Court and Olympia, an easy 20 - 25 minutes walk.
We used this for a business trip but wouldn't hesitate to use it for a leisure weekend.

We stayed for 3 nights in October and found the accommodation to be all we needed. The room was a reasonable size and was quite modern and well fitted out. Tiny bathroom but we got used to it. Two great flatscreen TVs, a good lounge area and a good kitchenette. Room was also quiet and there was no street noise at all.

We found the staff to be very helpful and accommodating. The receptionist was most helpful and she went out of her way to help me with flight bookings and general information for the area. They were also very happy to mind our luggage on our last day (at no cost), for most of the day, until our evening flight, which we really appreciated.

We had stayed in the Gloucester Road area on a previous trip and liked its convenient location to everything in London. Avni is well stuated, being 100 yards to the tube and surrounded by restaurants, a pub and supermarkets.Everything we needed.

We plan to return to the UK in the next two years and will again spend time in London. We would have no hesitation in staying here again.

We stayed at the Avni Luxury Serviced Apartments during the school half term for 2 nights, Friday and Saturday, Oct 28-29 2011. I had pre-booked and requested a quiet room, as I was travelling with my wife and 2 year old daughter.

We disembarked at South Kensington tube station and walked some 10-15 minutes to the place. For future reference, it is better to get off at Gloucester Road tube station, as it is much closer, just a five minute walk.

We checked in, and they had already pre-assigned our room, which was in the basement floor, B3. Unfortunately there is no lift, and we had to carry our luggage and also our buggy and child down the winding stairs to our room. Hmmmm.

Anyway, once we had entered the room, we were very surprised by the spacious layout - a large deluxe studio with kitchen (with all the necessary accessories, pot, pans, cutlery), living room with sofa, dining table and large flat screen TV on the wall, with a comfy bed.

The bathroom was adequate, but the sink is too small for anything other than washing of hands. For washing of face or shaving - forget it. Also the shower head was not movable, which meant that you had to avoid getting wet to switch it on and wait until it got hot enough to shower under.

During the day, there was a bit of noise from the floor above, which I guessed to be people walking across reception to the lift. There is a ventilation shaft (which you can see in our photos) where we could hear some muffled voices. During the evening and night thought, we didn't hear any further noise, and certainly it did not interrupt our sleep.

As previously stated, the apartments are close to Gloucester Road tube station, and there are plenty of shops, restaurants and takeaways nearby to eat out, to to buy supplies which we did for breakfast.

In summary, we were very happy with our choice, and would certainly come back again in the future. The staff were friendly and accommodating, and despite our initial concerns with our pre-assigned room and access, we had a trouble-free and refreshing stay.

We only stayed one night so didn't get the full benefit of our upgraded appartment, however it was long enough to appreciate it. The rooms were spacious and clean and the reception staff helpful. We had planned a West End visit and it was idealy situated for this. I can imagine that it would make an excellent base for a family visiting London for a week and didn't want to eat out three times a day.