The River House Hostel

Jack was a terrific host, always ready to help. We had a lovely, relaxing stay, and the breakfast was tasty and generous. The rooms were clean and comfortable, and there’s a roomy shared sitting room. A TV with all the apps was there if you need it. They could fit us in at short notice over a busy bank holiday weekend, too. Great for families and dogs. Five stars!

The breakfast at the Sweeneys Hotel was good, and the location worked well. But the rooms looked quite different from the pictures online. My single room felt like a storeroom with a bed in it, and the double room mattress was uncomfortable and unsuitable for a hostel.

The location was good, but the room was freezing because the heating didn’t work. There was no hot water in the shower, which was broken beyond repair, and the toilet leaked. We called the host three times before he was available. When he came, he had no shoes on and didn’t really pay attention to us. Zero stars would fit better.

Jack was friendly, chatty, and a brilliant host. There was a Booking.com mix-up and the room had been double-booked, but he went out of his way to find us somewhere. We stayed in the hostel across the road, which felt more like an apartment since we were the only guests. It had a nice double bed, a lovely sitting room with a giant TV and Netflix, and a big shower. Breakfast the next morning was delicious, with a full fry-up. Town was just a five-minute walk away, and Golden Palace was an amazing Chinese takeaway. Couldn’t recommend the stay enough!