Aviemore Bunkhouse

From the moment you arrive at the door of the "Junkhouse" you get a sense of what is to come. The front door code unit is not screwed in right so hard to get the thing open. The floors are made of cornflakes so the slightest movement produces a lot of noise, something the people above us had zero awareness of as they persisted in running around the room wearing what sounded like diving boots. One of the bedside lamp bulbs blew, with 1x double, 1 x bunk beds and 1x single bunk, it was hard to even move around the room if you were not alone. The light in the toilet must be a very early energy saver as it took 20 minutes to get any decent light out of it. The fridge seemed to think it was an accordion as it kept playing various noises and tones. There was also a low but loud noise issuing from somewhere, sounded like a foghorn but this far from the coast, it had to be something else. All in all, not a great stay.

Asked for a twin room but got a pair of bunk beds, with just the two of us in it for the full two days. Excellent ensuite wet room. Kitchen facilities pretty good, although dining area seating was not comfortable. Didn't see any staff other than one person passing us on the way to a staff only room. All done via email including building and door pass codes. Pretty good overall, £140 in total for the two of us and a room to ourselves for two nights. Chuffed.

Room is not worth the price! Yes it is the cheapest in the area but £70 for a bunkbed is not good value for money. The window in our room did not close and the heating did not work. When we alerted the staff they did nothing. The bathroom was dirty and in serious need of an update and the entrance to the bunkhouse smelled like old grease.

Bathroom was filthy. The corridor smelled like grease. The window in our room didn't close and the heating did not work. We text the number provided in the welcome email for help but were directed to uninterested bar staff. It is a bunkhouse so I wasn't expecting luxury but for £70 a night - it was a joke.

So happy I got to stay here. I lucked out because it was the off-season, so I had 6-person room all to myself, but I really loved the location and the kitchen was spacious.

Room was lovely and spacious. Had a double bed and a bunk bed, with a picnic table and plenty of room. Nice big bathroom, too. Towels provided. However, one star docked because the water for the shower was lukewarm and the boiler had to be reset and heat up, which took longer than the time I had (so went out to dinner grubby). And, despite closing the shower door, the room flooded and had to use a towel to stop up. Awesome pub next door, with a good selection of whiskey, whiskey of the month. Situated on a nice quiet road, but close enough to Aviemore to talk advantage.

Location was lovely, right on the river and very close to the town centre. Good self catering, I thought it was a really nice base for the Cairngorms. Check in was a really bad experience, I had to go next door to the pub to be checked in as I never received the email with all the codes on to get me in the bunkhouse. ( I eventually received this email but on my last day, which wasn’t much use). The guy behind the bar was incredibly rude, I also work for a hostel and I could not imagine speaking to a guest in the way he spoke to me. He was rude and patronising, blaming me for not receiving the email which they had not sent me. When he really rudely gave me the codes to access the bunkhouse, the one for my room wouldn’t work. When I went back to ask for his help he told me I was putting it in wrong, and really begrudgingly came to show me how to do it. Turns out he had just given me the wrong code, and barely apologised for making me feel pretty stupid, despite it not being my fault.

Without being a ‘snob’, a bunkouse isn’t usually the type of place we’d stay in with the kids, but after deciding on a last minute trip to Aviemore for the night, there was literally zero availability in the nearby hotels and lodges we’d usually book. That said, after a couple of emails back and forward, we booked a ‘family room’. Everything was clearly explained in an email, and check in was seamless. The room itself was fairly basic as you’d expect, but it was spotless. Our room had a set of bunkbeds, a sofabed and a double bed (with it’s own WC and shower). There was a fridge, kettle (milk & coffee), a dining table and plenty of storage for clothes. It was perfect for what we needed. The beer garden (Old Bridge Inn next door) on the banks of the spey was also absolutely superb. It was a 10/10 experience overall and we’d highly recommend. The next time we’re in Aviemore, this will likely be the first place we check for availabilty! 👍🏼