No15 Castle View

Nothing

Hard to get key out of the key safe. Massive amount of stairs to reach top floor. Horrible building and entrance. Horrible bed… only one pillow each with big redundant cushions. A kettle with no plug socket. As basic as it gets.

Room and beds were clean. Water and soft drinks supplied was a nice bonus.

66 steps to climb to get to room on 3rd floor- not specified on booking. Only part of a ceiling in the bathroom. Huge gap exposing the attic space. No heating or hot water control in bedroom-had to go to separate shared kitchen. One of our party was elderly so the stairs were a challenge. This should really be classed as a hostel type accommodation. More information must be given to clarify stair situation . Definitely not suitable for elderly.

The location was very good, it was easy to get the keys and the communication of what to do was very good. The refreshments were a nice touch. Overall, the time we had was lovely, the property is quite dated and does need a little work doing to it but it met our needs during our stay.

The smell in the bathroom was quite strong but I do understand that it must be hard with the drains being that high up. There was no fruit left in the fruit bowl which was a shame as this was specified in the confirmation email that there would be.

Room was fab, modern and clean

Need to tell guests about the room being on the top floor. 3 floors walk up spiral stairs

Location was excellent , key box worked perfectly - nice and clean apartment - water a nice touch

Couldn’t get ordinary tv channels , I think I got Netflix by accident , stairs area needs a bit of decorating

The lockbox was a bit confusing but we eventually figured it out and got our keys, one for the front door, one for the flat, and one for our room. We were assigned Room 2 (out of three possible rooms). Note that the photos you see in the listing are for all three rooms, it isn't clear which is which, and you won't know which room you get assigned until after you book. Still, the photos of our room did match with what we saw in person. There is a shared sitting room and a shared kitchen with a fridge and electric cooker. There is no dishwasher, but if you're used to hand washing then no worries. The boiler is in the kitchen and must be manually set by one of the guests each day to ensure hot water for everyone, as it runs on a timer. Our bed was fairly comfy. Our room's socket outlets worked fine. And the overall location was terrific, though Room 2 appears to be the one room that faces away from Edinburgh Castle. Note that you will need to ascend the stair all the way up to the third floor. If your luggage is of significant weight and you aren't used to lugging it all the way up that high, this may prove quite the challenge. It's a quick walk to Usher Hall to take Lothian buses. Keep in mind that the Bread Street stop does not appear to be operational as advertised by Lothian or on Google Maps, so just walk to where The Hanging Bat is for more Lothian bus options.

Unfortunately, we encountered many unexpected issues during the week. There were only two hangers in the closet. After a phone call explaining the problem, they sent someone out to purchase four or five more hangers for us the next day. That's hardly enough for hanging clothes in a closet though, so we ended up not using the closet as much. The in-room fridge wouldn't keep cold so we couldn't use that. And the remote control wasn't for the TV in the room, so we ended up not using it. The WiFi network was not the same one that was sent over email. Perhaps they didn't update their email template. So if you can't locate it, be sure to look for the notice on the wall by your door. The painting in our room wasn't hung properly so it kept falling off. We stopped trying to hang it back up again. The kitchen was understocked with utensils, though there were previously used wooden utensils (not sanitary for reuse), and it lacked sponges or other cleaners. They were eventually restocked a few days later after we asked about it. There was one wok which we used to cook our breakfasts, but nothing else that we could use. The shower in Room 2 was very slippery, and there wasn't anyplace to put our soaps and toiletries in the shower. The boiler instructions emailed to us were supposed to include a photo showing how to set it, but the photo was missing. We asked about it but never did get a photo. The boiler, fridge, cooker, and toaster also experienced a power outage mid-way through the week. There didn't seem to be a sense of urgency to fix it when we called. We think that there was a third party who was not always on call or available to fix things as promptly. Warning: Be sure that the toaster is connected to the dedicated single socket outlet on the wall next to the fridge. Do not use any other outlet. When we arrived it was already in the dual outlet with the fridge, which is what we think caused the loss of power.

Room was big and full of light. Having a kitchen across the room was helpful.

Both matresses are very bad used and unshaped; my bed had 3 legs and a bucket of paint! as its 4th leg. There was a ton of garbage under the bed (empty bottles and bags of chips) and also dirt on the bathroom floor. Asked Jennifer for solutions and never replied. It's 3 floors up the stairs, it doesn't say so. My mom is 79 and was no fun claiming back to the room every day and bringing luggage.

It was fine situated where we wanted the room had all we needed for a short overnight stay .

The stairs the stairs the stairs not for the faint hearted 60 stairs to the room .

The location was excellent and although the on-street parking is very expensive it was short walk to a much more reasonably priced multi-story. The room was clean and very well presented.

The entrance and stairwell to the apartment building were not aesthetically appealing, but this is communal and the apartment owner probably has limited influence. There was supposed to be free Wi-Fi but the Wi-Fi address provided could not be found when searching with the TV. The TV did not seem to have an aerial and without Wi-Fi nothing could be streamed. We couldn’t get the hot water to work in the shower.

bed was sizeable and comfortable, everything was clean, and was given free refreshments. It was very close to all of the hotspot of the city centre.

bathroom was miniscule and there were random used soap containers as well as an exposed attic. The TV didn't work as batteries in remote control were dead, espresso machine was iffy, and the light switch cover was busted. Felt like a student accommodation and feels more suitable to be used by only one person unless you are very close to the person you're staying with.

The Bed was comfortable..

Trying to get key from holder at main door an ordeal..Over sixty steps on the most horrible dingy staircase ever ..I felt a bit scared on my own when I returned at night..Room wasn't up to Standard for the price..Couldn't open windows..TV works from WiFi you would want to be an IT specialist to work it out..Bathroom was horrible..Overall not good..

Good nights sleep in a comfortable bed. The bathroom was nice and clean with good shower. Great location, quiet area but near to Grassmarket and castle area with lots of bars and restaurants

Having to haul our luggage up 3 flights of stairs to get to the top floor. The room was ok but was small and could do with some tlc, a good clean and refreshed paintwork and it would be a lot better.

The bed was ok.

Not for the faint hearted, spiral concrete staircase to the top floor with luggage 66 steps in total with a landing at the top of each set of 22 steps, the entrance is not very appealing, the only clean part of the building was the room itself.

Overall experience very good.. well arranged and well cleaned.

Great location, property as described. Attentive host with good comms

Locations good. The geyser in kitchen had tripped to not heating water. But the room itself was clean and the little fridge and kettle a good addition.

Bad was bed was rather hard - shower stopped producing hot water - only discovered later and too late as had to leave.

Oh, the facilities were great, super well-designed and divided.

Nothing everything was excelent

There was nothing to like.

The stairwell very steep, wasnt informed so big bags were an effort. If advised we could have made changes to make it easier. Fold out bed was very poor. Location had no suggestions on food places etc. Shared kitchen space was not used as washing left in machine. TV didnt work so absolutely nothing to entertain after long day of travelling.

Access to kitchen and washing machine, good location

Up 3 flights of ugly, dingy stairs, unwelcoming entrance, no staff on site, almost no housekeeping, very basic provisions, no milk for coffee, fruit promised was only a couple of old, bruised apples. Room was large but not very attractive, no block out curtains, uncomfortable bed, rough towels, limited hot water, help with luggage did not come at checkout. Very poor value for money, a rip off! Very disappointed, the worst accommodation and the most expensive in a 6 week trip.

The property had linen hung up all over the kitchen. Dirty mop water in kitchen. You do. It gets a view of the castle. Bed very uncomfortable. Was not told about 3 flights of spiral stairs that you have to carry your bags up until you arrive.

Nothing

We loved the window being able to open as it was hot evening. The bedroom was lovely clean and mini fridge was a nice touch. Tea coffee sugar and some biscuits provided and a hair dryer. Easy access once information given for check in Location was perfect close but away from city

The lack of plugs was an issue - kettle on desk but no socket nearby. TV in room but no Freeview etc so pointless having a TV in room tbh we just used our phones.

Location

3rd floor flat and couldn’t get the hot water working for a shower in the morning

The location was great.

We had a lovely day in Edinborough but when came to the property found out that there is no hot water and heating working and that wi fi isn't working.Overall very frustrating and disappointed stay!

Nothing.

Castle View is totally wrong - only if you stuck your head out of the ineffective, dirty old sash windows and you risked life and limb to stretch out (could hear every noise in the street during the night of which I did). Absolutely no view of the castle. I have never been as disappointed as when I entered this building to find what is in effect a room in someone's flat - the key box was broken, the 'close' and stairwell were dirty - I was not advised of the 66 stairs we had to climb to the top floor with a case. The 'room' was no better than a student room accommodation - absolutely nothing about this was 'deluxe' - furniture in room was eclectic / decor was basic - didn't even want to use the kitchen facilities with washing draped all over the place! / bathroom was very basic - couldn't even bring ourselves to use the shower. This was for my husband's 60th birthday and we both considered walking out and getting a hotel room - this spoiled the whole trip and I am so very disappointed. I have never stayed in accommodation like it before and hopefully never will again.

The decor was tasteful and the amenities were well considered

It is very much a landlord special, everything seems DIY and done poorly.

Nothing!

From the time you get into the building it stinks, up 70 stairs that weren’t told about , dirty bedding. No tv as promised , just a terrible place. The booking. Com description is all false. Who ever lets this place be rented out has no conscience. Absolute shithole

old building but very comfortable

very clean

It was in a good location.

The room was not what it appeared in pictures or what was advertised. The floors were dirty. There was a bug on the ground and also in the shower. There was no body wash or hand soap and when the owner was told about this, nothing was done. The kitchen was filthy as well. The microwave was dirty and the washing machine was full the entire time. Other guests showed up intoxicated and were yelling at each other loudly, even when asked to be quiet. The owner was told about this but never did anything or responded.

Location was the only good thing

Nothing like the pictures. No hot water despite instructions for the boiler. Check in from 4pm but only received check in details, key codes etc at 8:30pm despite multiple messages- screen shots below. The number provided for assistance was not recognised. Overall, we spent less than 12 hours in the room, couldn’t shower and whole place had an awful smell. Not worth the £200 paid for 1 night.

the bed was comfy

dirty bathroom me and my mom had to go up 3 fights of stairs asked if we could change rooms as my mom is older. they didn't reply. only thing I liked was that the bed was comfy

Location

This place was disgusting and needs to be reported. Firstly the entrance is like you’ve walked in to an abandoned place or worse. Then when entered apartment it was like a sauna. The kitchen was absolutely filthy (especially sink area), washing machine pulled out from wall, bed sheets thrown over clothes horse. Then into the room, there was hairs everywhere including on bedsheets. There is splatters all over the walls, the light switch is broken, very outdated. The bathroom, there a big handprint in the shower and a used razor left in it from previous person staying. This is by far the worse place I have ever stayed. It is nothing like the pictures. It is absolutely vile. Locks on main door very flimsy too and there is a big gap that anyone can break in. I don’t understand how they get away with renting this place. And it was one of the most expensive places we stayed in while travelling all around Scotland (and that includes 4 star hotels we stayed in). Complete rip off and should be shut down. You also do not have a castle view from your room, you have it from the entrance of the main building - out on the street! And 3 flights of stairs to get to the place.

Excellent location. The bedsheets were clean

We had arranged to check in between 2 and 3pm but received no instructions and the phone number provided was not connected. There was no response to repeated messages. We got the email to get in at 3.15. The cleanliness of the flat was poor, the multi-plug and cable were unsafely set up. The television was not connected and when reported was not fixed. The toilet smelled of stale urine. The coffee machine did not have enough coffee for 2 mornings for 2. There was water only for one night. The mass of Fanta on offer was not appealing, there was no fruit as advertised. The washing machine was on the whole time and there were damp sheets blocking the kitchen all weekend. The neighbours said the rental was not legal and it certainly was not an appropriate standard. The stairwell was filthy and dangerous with bikes up it. It was not designed for rental.