Castle Rock Hostel

Castle Rock Hostel descritpion

In Edinburgh’s Old Town, Castle Rock Hostel is conveniently located an 11-minute walk from Waverley Train Station, and 3 minutes from Grassmarket and Edinburgh Castle. In a 19th-century building decorated with art, it has colorful dormitories and free Wi-Fi access.
The dormitories feature bunk beds with bedside lockers and have use of shared bathroom facilities with showers. There is a cozy lounge with a piano and large sofas by the fireplace, a movie room with big screen and an internet lounge with Wi-Fi.
Breakfast is available at Castle Rock Hostel for a small fee, and there is a kitchen where guests can cook, as well as a large patio. Laundry and luggage storage services are also available.
This hostel is around a 5-minute walk from Princes Street Gardens, The Scottish National Gallery and the National Museum of Scotland. It is also a pick-up point for free walking tours around the city.
Old Town is a great choice for travelers interested in Pubs, History and Architecture.

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Facilities of Castle Rock Hostel

Outdoors ：Terrace

Kitchen ：Shared Kitchen

Pets ：Pets are not allowed.

Activities ：Pool Table

Internet ：Free!WiFi is available in all areas and is free of charge.

Parking ：No parking available.

Services ：24-Hour Front Desk | Tour Desk | Baggage Storage | Lockers | Laundry

Reviews for Castle Rock Hostel

Review 1：Wifi signal is very bad. You can't even open a web page. They don't really change sheets. You will sleep inside a bag. And they only change the bag. I don't understand why this hostel is "No1". One of the worst hostel.

Review 2：Rooms are small and quite cramped, lots of stairs to climb!

Review 3：Fantastic location, right by Edinburgh Castle, also close to Grass market area and Royal Mile.

Review 4：great location and the staff were super helpful. rooms clean and were themed well. had a social event saturday night which was a great way to meet others at the hostel. will definately be back !

Review 5：The mattress on the bed are quiet thin and not too comfortable but as we were walking and visiting all day we still had a good sleep !

Review 6：Great Staff, great location, great facility, and great value for money,

Review 7：This place feels like your classic backpackers, where the staff lives there and it just feels a bit like someone’s home. The place is massive! It’s well located and has everything on hand to hire or borrow. They have things happening every night, so book in early and enjoy!PS. This is part of the MacBackpackers group, they have hotels all around Scotland where you stay if you’re on the tour, or you can stop in stay any other time.Bed – comfortable, beside lamp, rooms are massiveLockers – little ones that come with keys to useBathroom – unisex bathrooms and showers, plenty about to useBreakfast – 3-4 pounds I think, there was cereal, toast, fruit, juices, I had my own so can’t comment Kitchen – really well equipped, huge!! There are technically 2 kitchens side by side, loads of fridges, boxes to keep food in if you’re staying for a while, big tables to sit at and loads of cooking equipmentLounge – This was probably the best part of the hostel, there are 5 lounge areas divided as follows: the movie room (they play movies back to back from 6pm, there are big lounge chairs in here), the main area (this is a double storey section with a mini kitchen hot drinks and a sink, a big table to sit at, a pool table, a lounge area, lots of seats up stairs too, and lots of flyers on this to do. I’d see it a bit like a common room at uni), the posh room (has a piano and real fire in it, it’s quieter then outside), techno room (had 2 computers in there to use, plus epic chairs), finally the chill out room ( you couldn’t take tech gadgets or shoes in here haha, but there were musical instruments)Computer – yes 2 plus printingReception – 24 hours, had everything you could need to hire, plus you could leave any tech gadgets with them and they’d charge them upHeaters – worked wellWifi – pretty godStaff – really friendlyLocation – right in the centre of old town, looks up at the Edinburgh Castle, its perfect!

Review 8：Being an old building there is no elevator so if you have heavy luggage it's a bit of a slog carrying your luggage upstairs

Review 9：Great central location right Beside the castle. Nice big common room easy to meet people or just chill out and relax and play pool

Review 10：The hostel was well located for all that we needed to see. We arrived after midnight, and the staff were very welcoming and helpful. The room was clean, and the roof top view amazing the next morning! All the facilities were clean and well maintained. Loved the quirky Castle decor!

Review 11：It is located right next to the Castle in the middle of old town - perfect. Staff is very friendly and helpful, but when I mean friendly... I mean Netflix-kinda-friendly. For people who have never called Netflix, they are super-friendly! Bed is comfy and you get not one but two pillows. There are plenty of showers and bathroom facilities on each floor. I loved it.

Review 12：- We couldn't sleep all night with people walking around and slamming doors when going to the common bathroom - No bathroom in the room - Really small bedroom and double bed - No towels in the room (available from the reception though for 20p though) - It is a neat hostel if you are still a student, like to meet new people and fancy a more hipster type accomodation (not really a plus for us though - we just wanted to sleep)

Review 13：- Staff extremely friendly; really super nice people - Location: right below the Castle and above Grassmarket

Review 14：A couple of nights got little sleep due to other resident's snoring, not much you can do about that though!

Review 15：A very positive experience at the hostel. A warm welcome and I always found the staff to be helpful when needed.Can't fault the facilties, you have everything you need, lots of nice little touches along the way. In an excellent location and price wise I can't complain at all. Generally a nice vibe around the place. I'd definitely reccommend to others and would also stay in again for sure!

Review 16：The shower/changing room was a bit tight and not enough storage space for shoes and clothes not to get wet.

Review 17：Great location and very atmospheric interior. Clean. Great that lockers were included. Good value for money.

Review 18：very good atmosphere. this place got "soul" , its alive :) people are friendly and the standard is also good. it got the common area which u can use 24 hrs a day. for me ....a place where u can feel like at home :)

Review 19：This is great, a castle to dream in, tons of character, very colourful, great atmosphere, rooms are themed, great views of Edinburgh, just a few steps from the old town and main attractions, right by Edinburgh castle! There's a large wooden table in the breakfast room where everyone can sit at so it's like being in a big family of knights and princesses ;-) Very clean and friendly. Awesome!

Review 20：No lift, if you carry heavy luggage and being allocated to top floor room, that is really exhausting

Review 21：It takes about 15 mins from railway station to castle rock, but Edinburgh castle is just across the street. Free tea, coffee, chocolate and milk all day, free storage after check out, hot water shower in cold winter, great lounge and kitchen, I only spent 17 pounds per night, what more can I ask for?

Review 22：I liked the style. I liked the people, the many different rooms, the two kitchens, the meditation room and the clean rooms and just had a good feeling!

Review 23：Unfortunately breakfast is 1,50 extra every morning. But this is absolutely acceptable if you think about the low room price.

Review 24：I really liked that every bed had an own plug and light. A big thank you to the blonde short hair girl from the reception!! She helped me with everything I needed and even planed a day trip for me! The living room is really comfortable and youget tea or coffee to any time for free. I really recommend this hostel to anybody who wants to stay in Edinburgh! It was great!

Review 25：The locker under the bunk got some trouble to close up entirely. And there should have been more hangers in the room.

Review 26：There is a big kitchen and a big atmospheric common room with some good music playing from time to time. Good located, just few steps to the castle and it's easy to reach every corners of town. Staffs were so friendly and of good help all the time.

Review 27：Distance to bathroom from room

Review 28：Very friendly hostel, comfortable and welcoming and in great location. Only downside was the bathrooms not functioning on our floor which meant quite a walk in the middle of the night, however I believe this wasn't castle rocks fault.

Review 29：Usual hostel problem of sharing a room with people not coming back until 3am from a night out, and others getting up at 5 for a flight, meaning very little sleep.

Review 30：Really good atmosphere, good music, friendly staff, lovely building in a great location. Each room had a theme so it was easy to find your room without remembering a number.

Review 31：The hostel was cozy and made you feel like you were staying in a medieval castle! The staff are awesome- friendly and knowledgeable. The facilities are well-kept and the rooms come with a locker to leave your belongings in free of any additional cost. Highly recommend staying here!!

Review 32：It wasn't hostel fault. Smells funny in this room. Maybe because person in bed in steps above has funny leg smell so it kills me during stay.

Review 33：Huge and lovely hostel. Especially per beds have pretty name instead of number. They have tea, coffee with milk as free. Many shower booth and bathrooms don't make us in line whenever. 2 plugs, 1 light and 1 strage per person.

Review 34：Haven't a clue

Review 35：This place is just fantastic. Huge rooms 4 m high good air circulation, enough space for everyone. Very clean. Each bed with light and socket to load your so very needed devices. Staff is just great they help you 24h. And hey 9 pounds per night in that city is unbeatable. Cheers!

Review 36：Too late check in time. But I could stay in cozy lounge.(There were extremely comfortable sofas.) The supermarkets were far, so it wasn't easy to prepare my meal. However, eventually there was not so many disappointment points.

Review 37：The best location. Friendly workers. Interesting rooms and interior. Especially there were several lounges so that you can choose depends on your purpose. Calm, lively or well equipped facilities. Moreover, the roof top room has amazing view!! You must enjoy that.

Review 38：clean excellent location fair price i lived in 10 bed mix dorm, quite a big room. with a large locker for each and a individual light for each bed Just next to the castle condition good.

Review 39：Plenty of stairs to climb after a long day of site seeing :)

Review 40：Very informative and helpful staff, with plenty of information provided about local events and attractions

Review 41：the upper bed without protector, it's a little bit scary. And sometimes the shower is not cleaning enough.

Review 42：Everything is good. Cheap, good location

Review 43：The cleaning of the bedrooms should be better, The space on the shower area is a little "claustrophobic".

Review 44：I liked mostly the attendants and cordiality. I think that is impossible to get closer to the castle than this hostel is located! The bedrooms are ok

Review 45：being 59 & female I couldn't understand why I had to sleep on the top bunk when a lot of the men slept on the bottom ones. climbing the ladder was like climbing Everest. fortunately I'm still able to do so.

Review 46：location very good & it was handy to be able to leave my luggage both on arrival & departure. the place is spotlessly clean.

Review 47：Beds are small with hard matress and only 1 small pillow - to be expected for great price though.

Review 48：Perfect location.beautiful building with funky decor. Friendly fun staff.clean toilets. Great public rooms!!

Review 49：Someone was smoking in a room near us: came into our open window. Someone else was banging a door about every 15 seconds. I couldn't get back into my PJs to go down to report...didn't feel good. Didn't care for coed restrooms, but then I'm kinda uncool that way. Breakfast was not available til 7:30 with no alternative but to provide for ourselves.

Review 50：The kitchen /lounge is a great place to meet folks. The mattresses were comfortable. The paintings added class and interest. The doors had a character or movie which made your roomeasier to find. Neat suggestions of what to do in the area were posted.

Review 51：Rooms were too crowded, mixed sex, too many people in one room, top beds were too dangerous to climbe, toilets were too far from rooms, especially if you must go at night, too far

Review 52：Breakfast

Review 53：Far from the station. No lift! The stair of the upper bed is too tall; sometimes you don't know if your foot is stepped the last stage.

Review 54：Roommate, decoration of the hostel

Review 55：Bed was hard as a rock. My bed was right next to the door and it slams quite hard.. also there was staff folding laundry in the hall watching a tv show and it echoed all the way down the hall

Review 56：Very central and close to the old town. Good selection of pubs nearby

Review 57：No elevators. Bathrooms are outside from a room.

Review 58：Really really kind staffs! The hostel is decorated by themes. My room was Beatles! And nice location although Edinburgh is a small city.

Review 59：The breakfast charged for £1.5, but only one bread, a cup of juice and a cup of Cereal with milk, if you want more, pay more... But the milk, coffee, tea are free! So nice! The weather is still very cold in Edinburg in late July. The room is very big, so it is too cold to sleep in the night...

Review 60：Amazing location!(It's just near the Edinburg Castle but because it is on the top of the hill, I need to push my heavy suitcase to the top from railway station... That is tough...) Amazing design and decorations inside! The hostel itself like a fantastic castle! Amazing and helpful staff! Amazing place to meet new friends! Wifi is easy to connect and smooth! Hot water! Comfortable bed! Although many people in one room, the space is wide so easy to sleep.

Review 61：I can imagine that if you have the room next to the bathroom your stay would be horrible.. I feel like we were lucky with our room.

Review 62：I love the location, the staff at the front desk were very nice. The view from our room was amazing. Our beds were clean, that is the most important.

Review 63：-not for older or weaker people because theres quite a bit of stairs to climb

Review 64：-Nice and friendly staff -Clean for a hostel -Great view of Edinburgh -Accessible to most tourist attractions -a good stay if you are on a budget

Review 65：Non.

Review 66：The staff and the facilities were awesome. Worth every penny spent here! Definitely suitable for backpackers. And the securities were very strict that made us feel safe.

Review 67：The only thing that I can think of to say is the journey from the room I was in to the bathrooms/showers especially as I hadn't thought to bring flip flops I didn't really like the idea of walking across the place bare footed after a shower where everyone passes with their shoes etc. on a stone floor

Review 68：The location is great it was really easy to find as it's right behind the castle. the hostel is a lot bigger than I expected and the lounging areas are great and the staff are all very helpful. Plus you get a 20% discount on food and drink on a pub in town when staying here :)

Review 69：Very friendly and accommodating staff, clean rooms, and free tea/coffee. It was such a fun and inviting atmosphere, and the hostel also had a number of great lounges for visitors. Best hostel I've been to.

Review 70：Nothing

Review 71：The view our the front door was killer. The location was fabulous! The staff was super friendly and helpful. The bathrooms and showers were clean. Plenty of hot water and rooms were great. The beds aren't really comfy but I haven't slept in a bunk bed that was. Great experience! Highly recommend!

Review 72：U have to carry ur own big luggage and climb up a lot of stairs......be prepared!!!! Otherwise it's really good enough for the price in Edinburgh!

Review 73：The room is nice and the kitchen is huge and has anything u may need. Good location for those who want to explore the old town on feet.

Review 74：This was one of our favourite hostels on the trip. What a location! The decoration was fun, the people were nice, the common rooms were fantastic. We were sad it was booked up on our way back through Edinburgh at the end of our trip. Great place though! It'd be my first choice when I go back!

Review 75：Not being able to cancel our second night thru booking. Com and so losing our money!

Review 76：The location, the building the decor, the great staff! I love the available tea and coffee and even milk!!!

Review 77：Castle Rock hostel was everything we hoped for and more...super clean and in a great location. We met so many people from all over the world and made great friends from the hostel. We would go back in a heartbeat. Definitely worth the stay.

Review 78：Have to either leave a ten pound note or a piece of ID to get keys to room.

Review 79：The hostel was in a great location, looking up at Edinburgh Castle. Right in the middle of Old Town and within walking distance to many of the cool sites of the city. Hostel was huge lots of bathrooms and the whole this was very clean. Had a nice kitchen.

Review 80：Few people smoking outside the hostel at night. Mix dorm. The toilet is very dirty with no toilet paper!!!

Review 81：Great location where you can see the castle from the hostel.

Review 82：Everything is so well thought in this place to satisfy true needs of a backpacker, and at the same time so reasonably priced! The owners must have been experienced backpacker themselves. I m glad there are still such places around.

Review 83：The only downside we've experienced was the incredibly small size of the private twin room, and the (dis)comfort of the bed. Neither one, however, spoiled our beautiful time in Edinburgh or at Castle Rock!

Review 84：#1.You can't beat the location. #2. Very friendly and helpful staff. #3. Clean facilities with very frequent maintenance. #4. Fantastic atmosphere within (there were no crazy/wild/drunk/obnoxious guests).

Review 85：have to rent towels. I had looked up reviews, and no one ever mentioned that!

Review 86：We loved the location! We had a private room, right next to the bathroom.

Review 87：Extremely helpfull staff, clean, warm (at least my room located on the top floor), with many places where you can rest, read, play the piano, ir have social gathering. I am very satisfy with my stay.

Review 88：Nothing.

Review 89：Very helpful friendly staff. We didn't have breakfast in the hostel so can't comment on the food but the room was clean and comfortable.

Review 90：Although it's a dorm, but the room is very big even though 14 ppl in the room. Highly recommend to everyone who wanna save money on the trip. The hostel is located at a very good location which just 5min walk from castle, and down the road is Royal mile where you can find a lot restaurant and bar, until the end of Royal Mile will be Arthur Seat... Everything is just perfect!

Review 91：Sorry nothing to complain about.

Review 92：The People there are so nice and helpful and the hostel looks like a castle from the inside. It's right next to the City Center and just a few minutes walk to the old City of Edinburgh.

Review 93：The staff there was excellent and ready to meet any accommodation I required! Truly an awesome experience for me and the friend I was staying with! The breakfast was good and there was plenty of information on what to do in the area! Definitely would stay here again!

Review 94：- Very noisy at 1-3 AM (when people come back for nights out) - Walls are quite thin

Review 95：- Price was good for a triple room - Toilets were clean and showers were quite modern - Lots of activities available

Review 96：Wi-fi was very poor in rooms

Review 97：The hostel locates just few steps from the castel and it provides you with more facilities than other hostels, like clean towels and hairdryers in bathroms, plugs by each bed, free lockers and luggage storage.

Review 98：Our bed was a little bit hard and our room was on the top floor with no lift.

Review 99：The hostel was next to the castle and within walking distance to everything including the train. The environment at the hostel was conducive to meeting other travelers and learning their stories.

Review 100：The 4 bed dorm had a nice view but was a bit small. The spacious common rooms made up for that. On two days the water pressure was too low to shower on the top floor and you had to use the showers in the lower floors.

Review 101：Perfect location and great common rooms and big, well equiped kitchen! Breakfast (juice, cereal, bread roll) was also a fair deal for 1.5 pounds. Lockers under the beds in the 4 bed room.

Review 102：3 things -the sheet cover and comforter is not sure if its always changed or clean. -the staff is not that much of informative -fully booked for 4 persons

Review 103：I like the wifi and location wise.

Review 104：Nothing to declare.

Review 105：The hostel was very clean, and they also have a great staff, very friendly, who helped everytime I needed something. The showers were great, the whole hostel had a heating system so you won't feel cold at all during winter. And the location is, perhaps, the best thing about it! Just a few meters from the castle!

Review 106：When I arrived toilets were a bit dirty BUT, its not just the hostel problem, but some people are terrible! A girl washed her shoes at the toilet and where we brush are teeth and so on...and at the end she didn't clean it up!

Review 107：Location Context: music in common area, cinema, kitchen, positive vibes

Review 108：Beds, stoves , freaking cold place , I will paid for this hostel in this conditions like 8 pounds , I paid more than that but I stayed already , so nothing I can do

Review 109：The bed it's foam , it's not a mattress ., covered with linen of course , rooms too cold , cold all night , staff friendly and nice , bed terrible , everything it's next to everything , stove are too slow , if you want to boiled an egg will take 4 hours , and potatoes don't imagine , bad stoves

Review 110：The lights in the room are not bright enough.

Review 111：The toilets and shower rooms are always clean. The room for 14 people is very big, so it's very confortable.

Review 112：The wifi in my room was terrible and I had to go into the hallway or the lounge area to use it. The bathrooms weren't very clean, but I guess that's what happens when you share. My shower overflowed once because the water had some difficulty getting drained.

Review 113：The rooms and beds were comfortable. The staff is very helpful at giving directions or advice on where to go.

Review 114：Bed is pretty small but overall it doesn't matter.

Review 115：24hrs staff on desk, overall clean, common area is roomy and well decorated, and what's more chatting room, internet room, music room are separated so good for everyone.

Review 116：I didnt like the paper thin mattress. The vomit in the sink. No brown bread for breakfast. Having my head right by the door where 10 ppl came in and out of all night.

Review 117：i loved the large spaces in the building and room. The staff were very helpful but no scots which is a shame when you are a visitor. And santa came for every visitor which was lovely. Having movies playing. Just having somewhere warm to come back to in the evening.

Review 118：Bad food service on Christmas lunch Some traveller in accomodation behaved Shockley in midnight(maybe after drink) Hope hotel can make rule to avoid 2 people sleep in one bed situation happen again

Review 119：Good location,proper price,nice reception

Review 120：The bed was awful and put me in terrible pain. I struggled to sleep despite being exhausted from walking all over the Edinburgh Old Town.

Review 121：Cheap laundry service, the location is hard to beat & the staff were helpful

Review 122：The place gives a really good vibe and it feels like a big house rather than labeling it as a hostel. Really enjoyed my one night stay and thumbs up to the facilities in this accomodation!

Review 123：.........

Review 124：Love the theme of the hostel and each windy staircase leads to something new love the different lounges and cool balcony in the common room. The fact that you have wifi all over the hostel is cool too

Review 125：The lockers were a bit small for a "backpackers" hostel.

Review 126：This hostel was extremely close to the castle, just a block away from St. Giles, maybe a 5 minute walk from the train station and basically every major attraction. Towel hire was cheap, only 20p. Locker included with bed so no need to bring a lock.

Review 127：The bedding seemed had not been changed. We did not complain however, because we did not want to bother the staff.

Review 128：I liked location, friendly staff and friendly atmosphere, there are all necessary conveniences, clean bathrooms, cheap breakfast, lots of common areas

Review 129：The bed was so uncomfortable :(

Review 130：The location was great lovely view of the castle and not even minutes away from the mile. The staff were really helpful and very accommodating. There were lockers in the room which was very helpful. Toiletries were cheap which was handy as we travelled hand luggage only so we're unable to bring our own. Free tea and coffee (and fresh milk!!!) Lovely gesture! Spacious lounge areas and was pretty quiet at night which was very nice! 24hours reception :) recommended completely

Review 131：There were a lot of boys in edinburgh only for drinking. The hostel is good but is impossible to sleep because these people got in the rooms where other people were sleeping making a lot of noises, talking at the top of their voices and joking as they were in their houses. I reserved three nights in this hostel but after two nights i went away. I think the staff should be more careful about the noises in the dormitory. After all the hostel has three lounges, if you are drunk and you want to keep partying you can stay there. When you choose an hostel you give up to most of the confort, but you know that you have a place where you can sleep. I would not suggest the place... unless your only interest in edinburgh is get drunk

Review 132：The location, the building, the rooms and the bathrooms are good

The Fine Print

Please note that if you want to book for 6 or more people you need to contact the hostel directly. If you book for a group of this size your reservation may be cancelled.Guests must be over the age of 18.Guests are required to show a photo ID and credit card upon check-in. Please note that all Special Requests are subject to availability and additional charges may apply.