7-12 Leinster Square, Bayswater, London W2 Tube Bayswater, Royal Oak, Queensway Bus 7, 23, 27, 70 Tel (020) 7229 9641 Websitewww.astorhostels.com
BUG Review
The Leinster Inn is a miserable place that is in need of a thorough renovation, although it has a good location and basic facilities that include a TV lounge, kitchen, and bar. The kitchen facilities are limited and you need to pay a deposit for pots and pans if you want to cook anything. The standard of accommodation varies from dingy and rundown to passable depending on what room you're staying in.
Price Dorm bed £15-18.50 Single room £35-40 double/twin room £50-58 Prices are in local currency and are inclusive of all taxes.
Reception Open 24 hours
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I've stayed two times. The first time I booked by phone on a weekend and they could only get me in for one night.After getting lost, I arrived and it was pretty busy. The reception is a little worn (sofas repaired by duct tape) but not unpleasant. I went up to my room and thought it was pretty clean but some unbelievable sag in the mattress, though I slept OK. I had to leave the water in the shower running for ages until hot water came out, then it was OK. There are quite a few bathrooms about.Downstairs in reception there's a vending machine selling chocolate and crisps. A coffee machine inside the coin-operated internet room. Also in this room there's a wall covered with leafets and pamphlets about various things of interest to backpackers, hotels, bars, tours. There's some information screen but I didn't know how it works. On top of the computers there's free glossy magazines about London aimed at Aussies, and two more similar (free) magazines in reception.In the pool room there's a coke machine, and a mult-game video thing, poker and connect four, that kind of thing. Not amazing, but fun if you drink enough. In the bar a beer is 2.20 sterling (Dec 03).Next day the breakfast table had cornflakes, rice crispies, milk and no one guarding it. There are bread rolls and butter, jam and free tea coffee and so on. The breakfast room is a TV room for the rest of the day and there's usually someone to talk to.A five minute walk away, Queensway is the street with the underground station in. In it there's a sub post-office, one pound an hour internet (encrypt is a nice place), a Greggs (cheap take out sandwiches), a sit-down kebab place, a Rymans stationary shop. On the corner there's a large shopping centre with five screen cinema, six quid a screening before five pm, a Boots the chemist ect.ect.I paid by credit card both times and was billed correctly.The second time I stayed was a weekday, I had a six bed attached dorm to myself for the price of one bed, and that mattress was comfy. Overall, it's not fantastic value as you can get better facilities for less. But both times I met people, in the TV room and in the dorm people talked to me, so I'd say the atmosphere is good. If it's a weekend in London you usually have to take what you can get anyway.
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8 people found this review helpful
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(Review ID: 2281)
not too bad, November 7, 2003
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Anonymous
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The first night I stayed in the cheaper unrenovated four-bed rooms on the fourth-floor which were okay if a little run down (graffiti on the walls etc). The renovated ones (on the lower floors) are much nicer for a couple of extra quid. The walk from the stairs to the rooms on the 4th floor was unbelievable - I hit my head at least three times in the tiny twisting corridor which had unexpected doors and stairs along the way. One shower had an amazing mouldy smell that filled the entire corridor. Fortunately there are plenty of showers/toilets scattered around the maze-like building, so you just have to find the good ones. I also found an alternative set of stairs to use so I wouldnt have to go past the fetid shower and avoided the long walk and bruised head ;)They have really cool art-work on each of the floors in different themes - I spent an hour just wondering around looking at them all and inspecting the toilets/showers to find the best ones. Pretty cool if you like to explore ;)The next time I stayed there I was in a 10-bed dorm down the bottom near the kitchen. Here you're definately in the thick of all the action so if you want to meet people and not get much sleep then this is the place to hang out. The noise from the bar travels through the ceiling and you can hear pool balls being dropped, chairs moved around etc. The bar is open really late which is cool if you want to meet people and drink. The dorms downstairs are near the street so I was woken a few times by people that need to talk extremely loudly to each other outside (always the italians and americans!). But overall, not too noisy. If you get a room towards the back of the hostel it will be nice and quiet (except for the room-mates, of course). The place is huge so i'm sure there is a room to suit everyone. Good daily and weekly prices. It seemed to be a French Mecca while I was there! ;)It's really not that hard to find, but be aware that Leinster Square covers four streets on the same block . It's on the far-side of the garden area, if that helps.So overall, pretty good for the price...
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(Review ID: 2282)
run-down, cheesy but with good atmosphere, September 23, 2003
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gerrit ter velde
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My room at Leinster Inn was the worst room I have ever seen while travelling the globe, and that means something. Incredibly small with a creaky old bed that was almost breaking in half. The window didn't close well. I could hear the whole hostel running up and down the stairs...I could go on. You don't want to go here if you like just a little bit of comfort. On the other hand the atmoshpere is nice and so is the location, queensway is a fun street and you can walk through hyde park to get in the middle of central london. Leinster inn is of course quite cheap...but maybe not cheap enough...
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(Review ID: 2283)
Not perfect but you'll have a great time, June 25, 2003
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Andrew
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I stayed here last year, and some of the reports here have surprised me. It is by no means the cleanest hostel in the world. It is pretty old and a bit dingy, but it is passable. Anyhow, I don't rate my hostels on how clean they are, it is about the people and whether or not you have good laugh. And for that, the Leinster Inn was great. The staff were all very cool, and the best is that it has a bar which is open until 3am and 5am weekends. Now for London that is absolute gold! Pints are cheap, and everyone there is in the same boat as you so it is as good a way as any to meet people.Don't come here with high expectations, especially if you're a fussy bugger. But you can rely on having a good time.
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(Review ID: 2284)
It really depends which room you get, May 20, 2003
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musicdisciple
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I've stayed here 3 times. Once was a horrible, dingy, 10 person room in the basement. It was loud and smokey. The other times I got smaller rooms upstairs. They were both pretty nice and I made a few friends. It's a bit annoying that if you want to do any cooking you have to go to the main desk and put a deposit on pots and pans. There's a decent grocery store just behind the hostel so it's too bad cooking isn't more convenient.
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(Review ID: 2285)
Excellent group accommodation, May 1, 2003
Reviewer:
Group leader
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I stayed at the Leinster Inn with a school party. The parents found a website before we left giving impressions of the Leinster Inn which were far from reassuring. It was therefore with some trepidation that I set off for London.However I wish to tell how satisfied I was with the hostel, from the point of view of the friendly welcome and efficient service, the cleanliness of the roooms and showers, and the quiet that reign at night. I also appreciated the fact that they did everything to satisfy the requests I made for accommodating my group.The major downside, I feel, is the fact that the kitchen is so small when catering for school parties like mine.I will not hesitate to recommend the hostel to other school parties, especially as it is very well situated in London.
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(Review ID: 2286)
Friendly people, good accommodation!, April 30, 2003
Reviewer:
Michelle
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I was reading the previous reviews and I cannot understand how people staying on the same dates can have such different opinions from mine. I found the location wonderful, in a nice residential area but a short ride from anywhere, the rooms were basic but clean (cosy duvets), the breakfast was free and I met the nicest people. I have been travelling for the past year and stayed in hostels from Germany to Egypt, and I certainly rate the Leinster Inn among the top ones! I am coming back to London and I will book back at the Leinster without thinking it twice.
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(Review ID: 2287)
Vulger and Disgusting, April 29, 2003
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2 Guys Here
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The place is simply a dump. Carpets torn, washrooms filthy, mouldy smells everywhere. In Canada this place would be condemned!!!. People party ALL night - so don't count on ANY sleep!! Don't worry about guest stealing from you - the staff do (like underwear!!). Lumpy mattresses, flat pillows. Pass this horror hostel up!
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(Review ID: 2288)
don't even think about going there, April 24, 2003
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Anonymous
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I stayed at the Leinster Inn for 3 nights in Ferb 2003. I also stayed at 2 other places in London(International Student House and The Generator) and I can certainly recommend them.First of all, I got instructions on how to get there from the tube station. And the letter ended with "it sounds like a long and complicated walk but it isn't". Ok, it was a nice and easy walk from the tube station - if you're Marion Jones and are currently training for the Olympics!!!!!! And especially NOT when you're carrying all your worldly posessions on your back!The place was small, cramped, noisy with total lack of security and the beds were lumpy. And there are no ladders or steps to climb if you have the upper bunk. And the staff are always busy reading magazines or making personal phone calls. I can't believe how some people actually give this place more than 2 stars and I wonder if they got this place confused with some other place like the Leinster Hotel?
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(Review ID: 2289)
Good value for group travellers!, March 28, 2003
Reviewer:
Anders Brekke
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We visited The Leinster Inn for a week in february. We where 50 students and teachers, and we all got rooms with 2, 6 and 8 beds. All in all I consider the place as good value for money, the location in London (near the tubes and Queensway) was really convenient. The only thing that makes me pull off the fith star, is that the showers took ages to get hot, and the place looked a bit worn. Some of the other guests did`nt seem to understand that noise is noisy at 3 o`clock in the morning... But, as a youth hostel and a fifth of the price you cant expect hotel-standard. It was cleaned every day, and the bar on the ground floor was a nice place to pick up a Corona after a busy day in town. Basic breakfast with breadrolls, jam and cereals. Go for it!
