Book A Bed Hostel — Hotel in London

I wish I had good things to say about this place but other than the 2 staff members being really nice to me and doing their absolute best to solve the issue of the broken window in my room which was letting in cold humid air in December, there is not much else positive to say. The only way I was able to be comfortable temperature-wise in my room is when they brought this industrial heater in the room.

As a young solo female traveller, I warn any other young women thinking of booking this place. I was the only woman and the only one under 30 there. All the other guests were older men staying there long-term and it made me extremely uncomfortable. Honestly, I felt very unsafe. The bathrooms were on another floor and I dreaded going out of my (private! thank god) room to go relieve myself because of the men that were constantly hanging out in the very small hallway. I felt observed. I had my bedroom door locked at all times. The toilets and hallways smelled of vomit and the shower area was humid and musty. Both toilets and showers are cooed. I refused to take a shower because they did not feel nor look clean and again, I felt unsafe. After two nights and a scary episode where someone tried to open my door at night (again, thank god it was locked), I took the decision to end my stay early; 3 nights before my original check-out date. My partner back home helped me book a holiday inn express (much more money than I could afford as a student but I needed to shower, and to feel safe and warm) and I got out of there as fast as I could the next day. It did not turn out to be that fast. Indeed, I, unfortunately, had to wait around downstairs until the owner decided to show up, about 2 hours after the "official" check-in time of 2 pm. He asked why I was checking out so early and I was honest with him. He seemed understanding and apologized for my experience. It would have been nice to get even just a partial refund as an apology/nice gesture but I got no money back.

In all fairness, the pandemic really screwed over the tourism industry and as a hostel, they had to do what they needed to stay afloat so I get that they are accepting people long-term if it guarantees an income. However, in the process, it lost all the spirit of a youth hostel. The owner even shared his sadness to see it so different from pre-pandemic. I write this review in good faith. I do not intend to trash talk the place as it has the potential to be a good hostel, but this was my experience and I wish I had known this...

First, the photos are not updated. The hostel is old, the wooden stairs in the narrow corridors are slanted and creaky. The shower area is too cold, the old window is not fixed properly, and there is no seal. The showers were extremely cold, horrible.||The “best” part was, without a doubt, when one night, at midnight, the receptionist and supposedly the manager/owner, according to her, inspected the clean beds, and CHANGED THE SHEETS ON THE BED, which in this case was above mine, waking me up. According to the receptionist, Michelle, it was standard procedure, which could happen. NO, IT IS NOT STANDARD! THE ONLY REASON THIS HAPPENED WAS THAT SHE, THE RECEPTIONIST HERSELF, MICHELLE, WAS USING THE BED, SHE HAD ALREADY SLEPT THERE OTHER NIGHTS, AND WAS SLEEPING THAT NIGHT. And since there were online reservations later, she was forced to vacate the bed, and with the help of her boss, she changed the sheets. Her belongings remained in the large under the bed during my entire stay. She also said that the same thing had happened to me and my friend, when we arrived in the early hours of the morning. Checking in late is one thing, cleaning the room in the middle of the night because the sweetie was sleeping is another. And please, never use the guests' situation as an excuse for the guest himself! Another detail, the room was only for women, I don't think it's ethical or moral for a man to come in in the middle of the night. When people book this room, they usually want some privacy from the male sex.||||The only one who saved it was Jonny, who works at the hostel, and left the bathroom clean and smelling good the only day...

By how hostel experiences go, it wasn't a truly horrific one, but: the hostel is actually situated in Lewisham (not Greenwich at all as advertised!), which is London's worst borough. Scary at night and ugly as hell during day. Not safe for tourists after dark. only four WC&showers for 12 dorm rooms, and they are all co-ed (the joys of drunk guys puking or masturbating in the stall next to you!) worse, the entrance to some rooms is situated inside the WC or shower space, so if you end up in one of those, you're guaranteed to have a noisy stay the frame of the bunk bed was so shaky that your lower neighbor carefully turning on the side would send the whole structure swaying wildly, enough to make falling asleep pretty hard. Getting on the upper bunk made you think that the whole bed would collapse. (I wish that I had made up that one. Unfortunately, it's true.) no self-catering at all (despite advertising) , expect a single small microwave, and that's it. No fridge, not a single plate for the microwave, no cutlery. You have to eat out or to eat cold or bring your own fork and plate. The only pros were that the water in the showers was really, wonderfully hot and also the free breakfast, if you eat breakfast, I guess. Soft mattresses. Staff seemed helpful. Also, there are two different overground lines and a national rail station close by, as well as a 6am/11pm Tesco Express. In London's super competitive hostel scene, there are way better places to stay and ones that don't lie about their services or location...