Russell Scott Backpackers Hostel - Leeds

Reviews

1. Nicole Peline ★☆☆☆☆

   Booked Russel Scott hotel a private room for 3 and were told there were renovations being done (only a few days before) but that we would be able to stay in their “sister hotel” with an “upgraded” room with breakfast included. We had booked a private room that was decorated and had a double and single bed in it. We were actually moved to a shared dorm room with 3 bunk beds and nothing else in the room but sheer DIRT. Online the booking page says there’s parking available when there was in fact not we were told to park on the street around the corner and pay which was hourly I’m sure you can imagine how much this added up to over 2 days. When we asked the man on the desk he simply replied “I don’t know I don’t drive.” After this palava with parking we were shown to the kitchen where our “complimentary breakfast” would be which was a dirty jar of cornflakes or coco pops and when he went to open the fridge to show us nothing but a pint of milk the fridge handle fell off. With the sheer shock of the state of the place (wires hanging from the ceiling no floor put down jiprock walls etc - pictures attached) we were shown to our room (dorm) luckily no one else was staying there with us however I would have feared my own safety if there was due to the characters who were in the kitchen as we were shown around. We also did not receive a private bathroom and were told to share an upstairs toilet again with strangers whom I can only explain were homeless and on drugs. I went to put my valuables in the 1 and only drawer available and there were dirty used tissues inside of it. The sheets had different staines which I would hate to guess what each could possibly be. There were bed sheets covering the bathroom and a hoarders looking den which I imagine to be the man on front desks place to sleep as he emerged one night buckling his trousers drunk as we were trying to go back to our room asking us if we had money for a deposit. This is the worst experience of my entire life and I cannot imagine a worse place to stay. This is nowhere near what we initially booked and I believe we were completely scammed. I fully believe we were staying in a homeless shelter and should not have even paid for this stay. The place needs an inspection and shut down immediately. If we had prior knowledge we would have either booked elsewhere or not gone to Leeds at all.. we had drove all the way from afar and at that time of night with little to no money we had no choice. If my car was in a proper car park I could have at least slept in that. I would like to not only make a formal complaint but get some reassurance that this place will be inspected asap as it is only a matter of time before someone get hurt, sick or even something worse could occur.

   almost 11 months ago
2. Ella Avni ★☆☆☆☆

   DO NOT STAY Where do I even begin My two friends (male) and I (female) booked a triple room with ensuite for three nights a few months ago, and got hit with an email a few days before our stay saying that there were “major maintenance works” which had impacted the whole building and we would be moved to their other property. As a result of this we changed our booking to just one night, and as we arrived we paid for our stay and were told that check in would be at 5pm and to come back then. We came back at 5 to see the “room in another property” was quite literally a part of an active construction site, with walls still not up, floors exposed concrete and plywood and our room being three beds in a room with no curtains, carpet or anything besides three single beds with dirty and torn sheets which were covered in dust from the construction. The bathrooms were still not complete upstairs- and most definitely not the ensuite room we booked. But it was too late to cancel as we had to leave for an event. The manager showed us the kitchen- where the sink was full of dirty dishes and three couches were piled in covered in dust- opened the fridge to show us a bottle of milk and some cereal and assured us “you wouldn’t get anything like this in another hostel!”. The place being an active construction site was not my main concern though, the manager also lives at the hostel and was quite off putting, attempting to get me to see the room without my friends when we first arrived, and as my friends insisted they came with he abandoned the idea Every room had an (easy to guess) four digit pin that he knew, and to our delight he was sleeping in pretty much a closet at the end of the hallway as we left for our evening. We came back from the event to the building pitch black, scary in itself and even scarier to go upstairs and try to use the bathroom in the middle of the night and see the manager loitering in the showers and not acknowledging us walking past. We went to sleep and slept terribly due to the trucks going in and out and construction ensuing at 6am the next morning, the dust making us cough all night as well as the light coming through the window from having no curtains. I KNOW! We should have found somewhere else to stay as soon as we saw the state of things but honestly- lesson learned for next time. In absolute shock of the unprofessional experience we had as we leave today. I wouldn’t stay there again even if they were paying me.

   1 year ago
3. Irene Santos ★★☆☆☆

   Very creepy place, staff seemed to be like under drugs influence, super nasty facilities. We booked a room for three that looked ok in the pictures, we ended up having a dorm for our selfs. The worst was the smell of dirty carpet. It really felt like we were on a rehab facility. The hostel is in a dodgy street. The main concern was the lack of cleaning all over the hostel. We didn’t even dare to use the kitchen. On the positive side the place was quiet.

   1 year ago

1. Milka Stosic ★★★★★

   Location of the hostel is good , walking distance to the city centre, 14 min walk to the Triniti shopping centre. Hostel is in quiet neighbourhood, 5 min away from supermarkets and Fast food , restaurants. What I like the most in this hostel is very polite receptionists , and peace and quiet . Even is hostel full , still people respect other people, no noise at all .Even we have a room next to the common area, there is no noise. Kitchen was clean, toilets as well. Breakfast is free, toast bread, lots of jam, honey, chocolate cream, cereals, tea coffee and milk. And they restock all the time.I recommended this hostel and I will back again.

   1 year ago
2. Hristina H ★☆☆☆☆

   By far the most unhygienic and uncomfortable hostel I have ever stepped foot in. I had to leave within an hour of my stay and find another bed for the night. I arrived in the evening, knowing I would only have one night in Leeds, but I didn’t expect it to be that bad. After paying the fee, I was shown to a room for six, where there was only a very tight space between the beds to pass through, no safe place for personal belongings, and a very bright lamp on the ceiling that seemed to never turn off. The worst part was the smell—a very strong, pungent odor of mold, or perhaps something even more sinister, which explained the sticky stains on the carpet. One of the two very tiny communal areas was a makeshift sleeping spot with a dirty set of sheets, and the other, on the second floor, was a corridor with two awkward tables. This was next to the kitchen, which was also quite dirty and unsettling. Overall, I felt uncomfortable, as there was nowhere to sit or stand. I definitely wouldn’t have felt comfortable sleeping in the room with the overwhelming stench... so I left. No refund was offered. I don’t recommend it!

   1 year ago
3. Alex Connan ★★☆☆☆

   fine for a hostel and good location, breakfast supplied which is nice although owner sleeps in the guests rooms which is odd - was off with me for taking his bed??

   almost 3 years ago

1. Charlotte McManus ★☆☆☆☆

   I stayed at this hostel for one night but wished it was one minute. As I entered the building, a wave of uncleanliness, dirt and B.O. filled my nostrils. To begin with the whole place was just generally dirty; the window in our room did not shut and in minus temperatures was not pleasant nor appropriate. There was blood outside the backdoor, which may I add was how we had to access the hostel. The beds were creaky and the blanket inadequate, the toilets didn't flush on either floor although the one staff member I encountered was friendly, I felt unsafe due to the fact that the lock on my door could be opened by him at anytime...

   almost 3 years ago
2. Kasia ★☆☆☆☆

   We came here despite the negative reviews and we urge anyone reading this, do not repeat our mistake. Please pay a bit more and go somewhere clean and safe! The owner is really creepy and likes to make weird jokes to female travellers (i.e., handing you something and then taking it away, I also saw him say "goodnight, see you in a minute ;)" to woman who was clearly going to sleep in a single room - I think he thought it was a good joke, but she looked really creeped out). Every time we came in or went out, he appeared out of nowhere, asking where we were going, what we were doing etc. He also slept on the couch right outside the female dorm, and you had to go past him to go to the toilet at night. The hostel was really dirty - not as in untidy, it was just years' worth of dirt everywhere, and loads of mold (the carpets and the shower room were particularly bad, see pictures below). There is some breakfast food available, but honestly, we were scared to eat it since everything was so unsanitary.

   almost 3 years ago
3. Kevin Read ★★★★☆

   First of all, I think you can ignore all of the one star reviews. This place is not a five star property, but either is it one star. Overall, it's fine for the price that you pay. Great that they give you unlimited 24 hour access to tea, coffee, toast, jam, honey, cereal. WiFi works but it was quite slow during my stay. Bring your own towel of you want to have a shower. Yes, there is some hallway noise, but we still slept fine overall. We thought that Angela was quite fine. She's straightforward, which some people might take as rude, but she's actually really nice. We would stay again.

   almost 3 years ago

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