I absolutely loved my stay at castle rock. I would absolutely come back every time I visit…read moreEdinburgh. It's close to Waverly station and you can get lots of places from there. The hostel is just in the shadow of Edinburgh castle (I included a photo I took from the sidewalk). Couldn't ask for a better location. The staff was kind and hospitable, and the vibe was very chill. I WILL SAY THIS. the bathrooms are not gendered, so you'll be showering/pooping (in private stalls of course) with both sexes, so if that's not your tea, be aware of that--but it didn't bother me. LOVE LOVE LOVE CASTLE ROCK!!!!!!

The location is amazing, the staff is so helpful and so kind. The rooms are fine, very small. My…read more"roommates" were extraordinarily messy so if I got up during the night I tripped over all their crap. I ended up leaving a couple days early because I hardly slept a wink. The building is old and very creaky with every step someone takes. Doors slam at all hours. I could hear someone snoring so loudly from next door the last two nights. It would be nice if halls lights dimmed at night so that when people come in at 4am it isn't so bright. Take earplugs and an eye mask. I mean, there is nothing staff can do about the many guests always coming through. It's just if you want a good night's sleep I wouldn't stay here. The showers are fine, hot water and mostly clean. There were contacts in one of the showers for four days so I don't know often they are cleaned. But I felt very safe and the location cannot be beat. Lots of great activities offered.

This was one of the better hostels I've stayed in! The rooms were smaller, only 6 beds, and the…read morebeds were more comfortable than many. The downstairs room was fun. I would stay here again.

There were many things we loved about High Street…read more The location is amazing. You truly can't get better. You are right off the Royal Mile, which makes your stay quiet, but close enough to everything you want to see! The building is gorgeous. It is over 400 years old and it is beautiful with stone and rustic lodging. This makes the stay so special. There are many stairs, but you know that before booking. The wifi is great, and everything is clean! You can rent a towel for only 1 pound. The hostel offers events and breakfast, though we didn't get to try either. The staff is very friendly and helpful. The only reason I'm taking off a star is that our room was TINY. There are bigger private rooms, so I'm not sure how we got unlucky and got the small private room. Overall, I would definitely tell people to stay here!

We stopped by the back garden area to sit outside and distance, slightly, from the throngs of…read morepeople. This was a pay at your table and have drinks brought to you. Cool vibe, nice crowd, good drinks including a non alcoholic cider.

Cant think of anything i didnt like, really. My boyfriend and I were in a six person mixed-sex…read moreroom. Most of the bathrooms are also unisex which is fine because the doors are full length. One shower had only a curtain but the rest also had doors. The water was hot and pressure was good. The food was filling and cheap. It was centered right in the middle of town, right by the castle and shops. There is laundry on site but only two washer dryers so gotta get there early. I guess it kinda sucked going up to the top floor because there was no elevator but exercise is always good. In the rooms there were lockers if you brought your own lock but i just left my stuff on the bed and it was fine. On the bottom floor there is a 1£/day luggage storage. We fit all of our bags in one. Though we wasted one pound fiddling with the lock at first haha. The card keys were a bit iffy sometimes is the only thing i found annoying i guess. But i had a somewhat negative idea of what hostels were so this was my first one and it was great!

6 of us stayed here in 3 rooms - the rooms were clean and tidy. Small breakfast worth it but not…read morethe big breakfast. Was a bit noisy due to large group of young people staying -but over all would stay here again- was nice place to simply walk And see the sights

I wish I'd found places like this when I was backpacking this time last year! It offers "5 Star…read moreBudget Accomodation", if that's not a complete contradiction of itself, or in other words it's just a cross between a very upmarket youth hostel and an ok hotel. I even spotted a conference suite when I was here, which surely isn't something that the majority of youth hostel cientele are going to need, and instead of a bar where you can order food they have a Bistro. Is that really necessary?! In fact, it's so ridiculously high-spec as far as youth hostels go that it's hard to find much to criticise about the place. It was really clean, it was modern yet comfortable, the staff were great and it wasn't expensive. So why only 4 stars? I think to call itself "Central" is a little bit of a claim and not really that accurate. Central would be in the Grassmarket in the Old Town, or around Princes Street like most of the other hostels in the city. Not in Leith.

I think the most important thing when it comes to staying in a hostel is a clean room and a working…read moreshower. Glasgow Youth Hostel has both. The staff was very friendly and welcoming. This made checking in an easy and stress free exerience. They also had a locked room where we could store our cycles indoors which helped us a lot. My only complaint was that the wifi cost 1 pound for an hour and most every other hostel we have stayed at had free wifi.

This has to be the nicest hostel I have ever stayed in. I am blown away by it!…read more The rooms are tidy, linen is provided, there is a Wi-Fi lounge and a tv room, there are toilets a plenty, self catering fully stocked kitchen, laundry, and more! They are environmentally conscious and offer power saving outlets, recycling, compost, and etc. The staff is friendly and very helpful. The other people in the hostel were quiet, tidy, and nice. We greatly enjoyed our stay here. Definitely worth the extra money to stay in a hostel this nice!

Perfect location, right off the Royal Mile! The rooms had lockers (so bring a lock if you're not…read moresure who will be in your room), and our room had a bathroom and shower. The shower was kind of gross, so definitely bring flip flops. The beds had privacy curtains, which is big, because a lot of hostels don't. The breakfast is very average, but the bar is fun and has great options! I will definitely stay here again when I come bacK to Edinburgh.

Imagine this: You're a 30-something year-old solo traveler who's going on his European backpacking…read moretrip, and that trip is going to be well over three months long. You happen upon Safestay, the first of many hostels you plan to stay at, and you're a bit worried how it's the whole trip is going to shake down. Well, that poor sap was me. However, Safestay Edinburgh easily had one of the best on-site bars of any of the hostels I stayed at. The beer taps were cold, clean and delicious, the staff were attentive and polite, and their Monday night sing-a-long turned out to be one of the most happening spots throughout the entire city. The hostel itself was great, and it's conveniently located between the central part of the city, nightlife area and Holywood Park, a must-do attraction for any nature lover in Edinburgh.

The best hostel I have ever stayed in! Beds are so comfy, nice noise isolation, close to the city…read morecentre but in a quiet street, and the staff is amazing! If you forgot anything, they got you covered: toothbrush, shower gel, charger, towels... the service is amazing!

Over the weekend in Edinburgh, I stayed over at a rather fancy looking hostel, solely so I can…read morepretend that I'm living the life of luxury *twirls curly moustache* The Baxter is a really nice hostel located smack in the middle of the city centre, just behind the Apple Store on Princes St. Based on location, it's pretty damn perfect! The hostel itself is smaller than I expected. Those wide angle shots on Hostelworld could easily fool you! But regardless it was a pretty nice and comfy place, with shiny equipment and deco in the kitchen, which I loved! They have the best stove and ovens. Best you utilise it for dinner when you're there!! The dorms have nice comfy beds, with plug points and reading lamps at every bedside, though I wish they had brighter lighting because it was like a cave! The bathrooms were clean but could use a bit more TLC because the soap dispenser kept leaking and the showers sometimes drain slowly lol (these are the only things I have to complain about really) They make free breakfast for you everyday which is a life saver for those on a budget, and they have really fast free wifi!!! Yipeeee!!! Their staff members are available 24hours a day so feel free to ask for any help or just have a chat with them when you're feeling bored lol I like The Baxter! Would def recommend anyone to stay here if they wanna visit Edinburgh!

Give Danusha a raise!!! (Forgive me if I'm spelling her name wrong)…read more This is one of the two locations they have It's very self sufficient, they do not have a full time staff on site though their response time through email is exemplary though if you message through the app they have you download (Goki) you won't get a response. If you would like more of an independent stay, meaning you stick with yourself or your group, this would be a good choice. The kitchen is self-service and full of everything needed (except your own food). There seems to be an unspoken rule to be quiet and not interact down there, more like study hall than a hang out space. No breakfast on site but next door is a Wetherspoon's location with cheap breakfast and unlimited coffee/hot drinks for £1.45. The Hub for Premier Inn is very close with £5 continental breakfast (all you can eat and drink). The location is in the center of what you'd want to do, go over to Calton Hill/Holyrood/Royal Mile, Old Town and the Castle, up and over to Dean's Village or the Botanical Gardens. They have a full-time housekeeper, Danusha, who comes every five days a week which I thought was simply amazing and wonderful. The showers were nice and hot, if not a bit soft. I stayed for two weeks and showered different times in the day and with another occupied stall and I never had to deal with cold or lukewarm water. Since it is more of a self-sufficient stay, people were more prone to clean up after themselves in public spaces (at least on my floor). On Danusha's off days there was a man who came in place of her. I first met him when I went downstairs one morning to ask about laundry. Later on that same morning he came to do the chores but did not knock or announce himself and I only knew he was on my level because my door unlocked and opened he just said "housekeeping" with my door open already and he came into my room, walked right in without asking if it was alright and let the door close with him and myself in the room alone. I'm sorry but I'm from America and this is not a normal or safe situation for me. From then on I try to get out of my room before housekeeping comes. Laundry is a strange deal, there's not a convenient time to do it and there aren't specific hours posted but housekeeping does laundry until about 4/5pm. Once I asked the part-time housekeeper about laundry and where it was and it seemed as if I wasn't allowed to know about the laundry nor do it, though while emailing I was given a code and told it was free on-site. Then that same instance he told me in a very...blunt way that he needs to use the laundry and I could use it in the afternoon when he was done. I understand they need to work alongside the guests, but he was not welcoming or kind at all. What's difficult is there's no sign up, no timetable, and to do one load it takes upwards of 3+ hours because it doesn't dry the clothes the entire way. Also be aware that these walls and floors are very thin, even through earplugs you can hear and feel the vibrations. Hopefully when you stay there are considerate people! They have quiet hours 11pm-8am though no one to enforce those hours. I tried to get in touch with them through the app and never heard back from them. If you want a clean and independent stay, this is your place! If you want more interaction with other travelers, maybe the other location is better!

I stayed 3 nights here while on vacation in Edinburgh. I really enjoyed it. It was very inexpensive…read moreand a unique experience. My friend and I each had our own "box", it reminded me of the places they have in Japan. There were 4 pods in the room, two lowers with two on top of the lower ones. Inside your pod it is pretty simple. You have a two USB slots, a power outlet, and reading light, a hat hook and a shelf. Bedding was included and the mattress was fine. You basically set yourself up inside and it's very private. You pull your curtain shut and it's lights out. Free WIFI was great and I used it a lot, especially when I was alone in my pod before falling asleep. The bathrooms are shared. Up to 8 people on each floor share the bathroom but it was always clean and open for use. It has a private toilet stall and two private showers with attached changing areas just outside the actual shower. I was always comfortable using these facilities. In the morning they put out free coffee, juice and cereal but there are many cafes around if you want something more. The location was excellent, too. About a block around the corner from the Princes Street stop on the tram, which goes straight to the airport. I highly recommend this place. No real negatives about it. A top-notch hostel for sure.

Formerly The Links and now The Black Ivy Hotel, this spot is a must visit while you are in…read moreEdinburgh. I cannot speak to the hotel itself but I can say the restaurant/lounge there is amazing. It is gorgeously decorated with the mixed vibes of a speakeasy and a botanical garden. We came here with friends. We were a little early so we enjoyed some drinks at the bar - I got a half pint of Guinness and a shot (that's name I have forgotten but is a mix of kahlua and baileys). Then we had dinner with our group. We were told we only had 2 hours for the table but stayed for longer, so take with that information what you will. My partner and I both got the steak pie and fries. I am not a huge fan of the steak fries that they have in the UK but these were nice and crispy. I had never had a steak pie before but this dish was absolutely delicious! Like a chicken pot pie but with pot roast instead of chicken. I was a bit of a lush at this dinner, so our bill was hefty from the drinks but the price felt very reasonable for the quality of food and surroundings.

One of the best hotels we had when we visited Edinburgh, Scotland. The hotel was hidden with a nice…read morefield around outside and village all around with castles. The lobby and hallways are very small. When we entered our room it was very nice. The bathroom was nice as well too. We dined at the bar too and food was good. I got the fish and chips and it was pretty good, it had good crisp, fresh, and tasty. I tried their pigs in a blanket and it was good too.