Belford Hostel

We booked a private double room and it was lovely! After reading some of the reviews we weren’t sure what to expect but the room was very spacious, clean, had a tv, wardrobe/towels and very warm which was great at night, especially in December. Overall I would really recommend staying there, the communal bathrooms were clean as well and we never had to wait to use them.

We stayed at Belford Hostel in a private room (No. 7), and unfortunately, our experience was disappointing. The room was not clearly cleaned—there were leftovers from past guests behind the nightstand, which was pretty off-putting. The cleanliness overall was poor, with noticeable dust and a general lack of attention to detail. To make matters worse, the hostel's garbage deposit was right outside our door, which added to the unpleasant atmosphere.||The walls in the room were incredibly thin, and we could hear every noise from the hallway and other rooms, making it difficult to sleep peacefully.||Additionally, at check-in, they pushed (and almost insisted) that we pay for a towel, even though there were towels already provided in the room. This felt unnecessary and a bit of a scam.||Overall, we wouldn’t recommend this hostel unless they address these issues with cleanliness, noise levels, and customer service.

I always stay in hostels around this price range in the UK and this has been the best one by far, it's a beautiful building, fun interior. They staff are friendly and helpful (and quite when you are trying to sleep in) the rooms and facilities are clean and beds are comfortable. Feels safe and the area is in the beautiful West End, 1km away from public transport and shops, though it was a joy to walk here and back from the High Street and Castle.

Staying at this hostel, which is set in a former church, was definitely a unique experience. The kitchen is well-equipped, allowing you to cook your own meals and store food in the fridge, which is a great perk, especially for budget travelers. The price is also quite reasonable, making it a decent option for a short stay. However, the rooms do have some drawbacks. They can be quite chilly, even in the summer, so it's a good idea to bring a warm pyjama. The beds are way too small, not for adults, and you can’t sit up without hitting your head, which may be uncomfortable. The toilets are also quite small, which could be an issue if you're planning a longer stay. There’s no proper breakfast offered, so you’ll need to make your own arrangements in the morning. On the plus side, having a locker for your belongings is pretty good. Overall, this hostel offers an affordable stay, but it’s best suited for one or max. two nights rather than an extended visit.

I have to say do ignore the neggy reviews. I really enjoyed my stay at this hostel and all the staff are super friendly. Please be kind and respectful to this lot - they’re such good bunch! And the hostel has a really nice chilled atmosphere, best hostel stay I’ve had so far and I’ve stayed in at least four in Edinburgh alone just sayin’.||~ Rose

Our stay in Belford Hostel was great.The staff was really nice and the rooms which were located in a former church were unique! After a cold windy day out in Scotland, we really enjoyed this accomodation and spent time in the common room which is also very nice and cosy.

Two things need to be remembered - its a very old building, and its a budget hostel. Knowing that, I was pleasantly surprised at my stay. Private room with an old-fashioned key made the history of the place that little bit more real. The staff where friendly and helpful. The only downside is that it is a little out of the way from most tourist attractions - 2-3km walk to most attractions.

I strongly advise against booking this hotel if you value basic customer service and fair treatment. I attempted to make a reservation through Agoda, and the app initially rejected it. Since the booking didn’t go through, I tried again using a different card, and this time it was successful. However, to my surprise, both reservations had actually been processed, leaving me with two bookings instead of one. I have now spent 96 hours trying to resolve this issue, sending emails and making phone calls to both Agoda and the hotel. Neither has offered a solution, and worse yet, Belfors Hostel has refused to allow Agoda to process a refund, despite the fact that the duplicate reservation was due to a system error. A hotel that caters to international travelers should, at the very least, have decent customer service and a willingness to help guests when issues arise. Instead, this place has demonstrated a complete lack of professionalism, zero accountability, and no respect for tourists. If they are this unhelpful before you even arrive, I can only imagine the kind of service you’ll get during your stay. There are plenty of other hotels that will treat you with respect and assist you if any problems occur. This is not one of them. Avoid it.

If you are the target patron (backpackers or schoolchildren in groups of at least 5), this is a great spot to stay. Close to a bus station and walkable to the city center. The breakfast however is not a breakfast. It is toast/cereal/instant coffee. You can bring your own groceries and cook up a storm for your group though! Comfortable beds, reasonably quiet. Towels rent for a pound, and they'll do a load of laundry for you for 7.

It's a shame that our stay here had to be ruined by the unfriendly, unprofessional and frankly plain rude staff. The location and facilities of Belford hostel are great, however the way I have been treated as a paying customer is appalling. I would love to know if the owner is aware that their business is being run into the ground by a bunch of clowns. They get drunk every single night in the common room and scream like toddlers keeping the customers awake at all hours of the night. When entering the common area you are greeted with eye rolls by the majority of the staff. There is never a staff member at reception, the 'back in 5 minutes sign' is their constant excuse, and if you can summon the courage to ring the bell, you're eventually approached by a staff member who looks as though they would rather you just leave (excluding Seamus and Tara). I have never felt like such a burden when simply trying to pay to extend my stay. The way the manager, Tas acts is as if he wants to run the place broke. After years of experience working in the customer service industry, including in hotels, I am embarrassed for this company and feel horrible for the owner. P.s the hallway smells like sewerage.

It's a converted church to hostel. The interior has been sadly has sadly been stripped to the shell of all the original, leaving only the stain glass and stone walls, it serves as a basic hostel with synthetic interior, simply a place to shower and sleep

Ludicrously beautiful to look at, the Belford Hostel is transformed from a 19th Century church, giving it a unique feel as far as hostels go. That is pretty much the only advantage really. The hostel is good, but nothing spectacular, and the problem is that it is quite far out from the city centre (about a 20 minute walk to Princes Street). The rooms are affordable, with summer prices going from £18/£20 for a dorm (of 4-10 people), a twin room £55, a doubly ensuite £65 and a triple ensuite £82. Not massively cheap I know, but Edinburgh's not a cheap city. Check in is at 1pm and check out at 10am so that's all pretty standard, and you can get a continental breakfast for £2.50. The staff are friendly, and it is a good hostel, but as a backpacker, you want to be in the city centre and this is just a little too far out

I stayed here one night and had to pay £25 due to the rugby taking place the following day and all the hostels were exploiting the situation for that reason, so I payed up because I was working on the Saturday and needed accommodation. Overall I would avoid this hostel because the showers and the shower room are like something from an old rugby pavilion. It's hard to say they were dirty because they were so old and flaky that you couldn't tell if they were dirty or simply old. Access to them also requires going through a labyrinth of corridors and stairs. I should imagine when the hostel was full it would be fairly unpleasant. The toilets are also at the front reception, at the opposite end of the building from the showers. That said, for some reason I had the best night sleep here I've had in any hostel. The mattresses suited me, nice and firm, plus the ventilation on the ceilings of the pre-fab interior allowed for lots of cold air to flow in and to be honest, I like to sleep in a cold room. I find hot rooms dry me out. The big open plan kitchen didn't suit me too much either because I don't like being observed while I'm cooking, at least not by a mass of people. Cleanliness could have been more thorough as I found a lot of dust around tables and seating. Distance from the city centre wasn't too bad for me as I walk long distances and access with a car was easy. In conclusion I would say there are better hostels but for £10 per night it's not too bad value. The main thing that lets the hostel down are the showers.

It is a old church converted to a hostel. It is very easy to find from Haymarket train station but it was hard to believe the hostel is at the church. It worths what it pays for as the bathroom and kitchen are very nice. But the only thing I don't like is the room ventilation.

No no no no no. I love backpacking. I love staying in hostels. I've stayed in many, from Quebec City to Saint Petersburg. This is not a good hostel. It is uncomfortable. It's basically a bunch of plywood box rooms set up inside an old church. The outside of the rooms are covered in a huge, weird mural depicting things like beggars, serial killers and teddy bears hanging themselves (no, I'm not kidding). I stayed in a 10-person dorm which was very crowded, even by hostel standards. Ventilation isn't great and you easily find yourself either freezing or sweltering. It is dirty. Most of the facilities are located on the basement floor, and to get to them you have to walk through reception and past the common area. The bathrooms are vile and the showers are not much better. They stink to high heaven, there is a lot of mold and I doubt the place has had a thorough cleaning in the past decade. Don't even think about using the refrigerators in the common area. The staff claims they clean them out once a week. This is not true. It is sketchy. Although the neighborhood is safe, this is a cheap hostel and some of the folks staying there were definitely transients. A security system exists but it isn't much. You have to enter a code to enter after certain hours, but the code is simple and only changes once per week or so. Even then, staff rarely seem to ask questions about visitors and will buzz people in if they see them standing at the door. It is inconvenient. Now, I like walking so I didn't mind that it was a bit removed from the city centre, but this is not a centrally located hostel by any means. The nearest shops of any kind are a few blocks away. It's about 15 minutes from the end of Princes St, 20 minutes from the Royal Mile, and 30-45 minutes from the university. This can mean a long trip home after a night of pub-crawling. Short story: Avoid. I stayed here because I wanted to check out the Fringe and it was the only option available. If you have any other options, take them. You'll be glad you did.

The hostel is basically a converted church, so the walls in the rooms don't actually have ceilings- apart from the actual very high up church ceiling. This is a little bizarre because it means that if the people in your neighbouring rooms so desired they could climb over the wall. It is very cheap, laid back and simple though. And the staff are friendly too.

If you want something as cheap as chips, friendly and no hassle this is your place. Stags welcome says it all i suppose

Canceling my booking.... The manager (Sherlyn Scott) was beyond rude when dealing with her on the phone. I had to call a number of times in order for them to rectify the booking that was made, and found her attitude disgraceful... customer service gets a big fat zero!!! I called a number of other hostels in the area, they all were perfectly delightful to deal with.