Lse Rosebery Hall

We left after one night because the conditions were too bad to endure. The hotel claims a two-star rating, but even half a star would be generous. It feels more like a self-storage warehouse than somewhere to stay, with basement-like guest rooms stacked across several floors. Extra beds have been crammed in to make more money, leaving no room to move. The beds sag and are deeply uncomfortable, and the desks are there in name only, not practical to use. The toilets and showers are shared, with no real privacy. Bedding and towels are threadbare and long past their useful life. There are no comforts or amenities, and the corridors smell stale from the so-called self-service kitchen. Breakfast was no better. When guests asked for three sausages, the kitchen staff smirked and said two were enough. They told people asking for two slices of bread that one would suffice. The food was as cheap as possible, and the service felt condescending and controlling. It was less like a meal and more like being humiliated. Many guests seemed to be students and academics, people who should be treated with respect, but they were herded through the experience like livestock.

For a tight budget, it could work if you’re flexible. This is an LSE dorm that’s rented out in the summer, so it’s simple, functional, and clean enough for a short stay. The rooms and shared facilities were as expected, and the location was convenient. The full English breakfast had one annoying rule: staff seemed unusually quick to refuse extra portions. You could leave off things you didn’t want, but couldn’t ask for more of what you did. It seems like a small thing, but it spoiled breakfast every morning.

I had a single room, clean and tidy, and it had what I needed. There’s no air conditioning anywhere in the property, but I was fine because the weather was pretty chilly on the late-August day I stayed. On my floor, only one bathroom and shower stall were working; the others were broken. The kitchen had a stove, fridge, and detergent, but no cooking utensils, so bring your own. Laundry costs about 3 quid per wash and another 2.5 per dry. The food was so-so. The pantry staff looked tired, and some were selectively rude to people. Breakfast gets busy, and there’s a long queue for the coffee machine. Most of the guests were tourists who spoke about 5 percent English. It’s below average in cost and fairly central. The garden and some common areas are nice too. You get a private room to sleep in, rather than sharing a hostel dorm.

The room was dark and hot, with a hole in the ceiling. Street noise and people shouting woke us at 7 each morning, and the thin walls meant we could hear what was happening next door. Our windows didn’t open, and although it was a handicap room, there was no other room available. It was unpleasant, nothing like the pictures, and even those prices are too high for this place. I won’t return. The breakfast was okay, and so was the location. That’s all. My friend and I had booked weeks ahead. When we arrived, they said the dates were wrong but that they’d give us a room anyway. The room was already in use, with bags all over it. At reception, they said they’d let the cleaning ladies rest there and would clean it for us. We waited. The staff clearly had the reservation mixed up and didn’t know what was happening. The people there were rude.