LSE Rosebery Hall - Campus Accommodation

The location is handy, and the rooms and shared areas were clean enough and as simple as you'd expect from an LSE dorm rented out for summer. My main annoyance was breakfast: you can turn down items on the full English plate, but asking for extra of something you like seems to get an unusually firm “no.” That little rule spoiled breakfast each morning. Still, it’s functional and fine for a short stay if you’re on a tight budget and flexible.

The price is what keeps my London theatre trips affordable, and I love the breakfast buffet. I’ve been returning to this student dorm in summer for decades. The rooms are basic but clean, with no en suite, and there’s a really useful kitchen shared by every couple of rooms. The location is lovely too: buses come every two minutes, and plenty of restaurants, shops, a cinema and a theatre are walkable.

The rooms are the big problem here. In London heat over 30 degrees, mine felt like it was being heated. The windows barely open, there’s no fan or air conditioning, and I couldn’t stay in the room during the day. Lots of people I know, me included, bought desk fans just to sleep. It gets hot if you’re here in summer. The dim lights, thin hard beds, non-drinkable tap water and thin walls don’t help. Shared kitchens are badly equipped, with hardly anything supplied, not even a cutting knife, and utensils had food stuck on them. There are good points: service is good, breakfast is great with lots of options, and the common room and outdoor areas are pleasant. The location is good for getting around with one bus ride and a short walk, though there isn’t much in walking distance beyond Exmouth Markets and Angel. Everything else is good, but the rooms!

The atmosphere felt lonely and alienating, with students seeming cliquey, self-absorbed and not cohesive. The cafeteria staff were unfriendly, and the self-service kitchens stank. Shared showers and toilets offered little privacy and sometimes overflowed with water, urine and fecal matter. Choose somewhere else.