International Students House

Whilst I had booked last minute, and knew that I was going to be sent from pillar to post, this accommodation was more than dissapointing. For the price paid per night, my money would have been better spent at a budget hotel in London.

Okay, let me outline the pros and cons. On the plus side, the entrance to the Great Portland Street entrance of International Student House is adjacent to the entrance to Great Portland Street tube station. Which is ideal for getting around quickly! As the circle line stops at this station it will take less than 10 minutes to get to either Paddington or King's Cross.

Other advantages are that there seems to be a television in all of the short stay rooms as well as a fridge. There is a Tesco Express literally around the corner which is ideal for quick snacks or beverages. Also, International Student House is catered, and provides meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Whilst a coupon is generally provided for each day's stay, so that breakfast is included in the price, you will have to pay if you wish to eat there for dinner and lunch. The food is not amazing -- I found the breakfast to be particularly poor -- but should suffice. On another note, the Starbucks coffee was amazing!

So, how was I dissapointed? On my first night, I was placed in a room above the club that ISH runs. The walls and floorboards seem to have been very thin, and the thumping bass line literally vibrated through me. Thank goodness it stopped at 11 in the evening, but I found out that this would continue till three in the morning on weekends -- something that I expect many would not want after a long journey.

The next night I was taken to another room, which was looking out over Regent's Park -- which is really glorious. In the sink in the bathroom there was a pile of hair -- indicating that cleaners had not really cleaned the room. Which is totally unacceptable at any kind of accommodation.

I promptly complained, and was informed that a cleaner would clean the skin the next morning. The next morning the water had been turned off for maintenance, and it looked as though the cleaner had left the tap on -- as when I returned to my room in the evening, the room had completely flooded. There were ripples around my feet wherever I stepped. Thank goodness that all of my belongings had been above bed-level!

The security guard then had the cheek to tell me that it had been my fault. He hadn't even allowed me to explain what had happened. I informed him that this was not the time to debate such matters, and that I would prefer to find another room for the evening and converse about this in the morning. I was placed in a dingy room four streets away, and was given a map to find it, at half past twelve in the evening.

After explaining what had happened the day before to the receptionist, they did not claim any blame on myself. But, to my astonishment they placed me back into the room that had flooded the day before the next evening. They had simply dried the carpet and had not treated it in any way! The leads running to the television and lamps felt damp and was clearly a dangerous place to be! The smell of the damp carpet was literally unbearable. This is the standard that one can expect -- if they were willing to send me back into the room without any kind of repair work, then I would advise all to stay clear of this abusrdly terrible place.

I can understand how many other people may have had a pleasant stay, and found the proximity to the Tube station beneficial, but the attitudes of staff at the venue and their lacksidaisical approach to hygeine, safety and manners was beyond belief.

Stay clear of International Students' House.

I've never stayed in a student hostel before. I was attracted to all of the extracurricular activities on offer, as well as the great location. For an extra fee I booked a single room with shared facilities. The room was small, which was expected, and had a mini-fridge, which was a pleasant surprise. The breakfast voucher was sufficient for a light breakfast with coffee or tea, but for a bigger appetite you had to pay extra (though the cost was reasonable).

Those were the good things about ISH. Here are the bad: the bed was awful. A thin, clearly elderly mattress (oddly laminated in plastic) resting on a wire mesh bedframe, one so old it had permanent craters in it. The sheets were thin, and kept coming loose. Every toss and turn was painful, as the springs/wire mesh combo dug into your body (each turn produced squaks and groans from the bed too). If the bed wasn't enough to disturb your sleep, then the noise from the corridor - fire doors slamming shut, toilets flushing etc. - and the construction work outside would.

The next night I put the mattress on the floor, which much improved matters - so at minimum ISH should put a board between the mattress/bedframe if they can't afford to replace either or both. (Of course, I took a sleeping pill the second night and put ear plugs in, which may have played a major role in improving my comfort level).

In the mornings, I had to steel myself to take a shower. I've been in places with shared facilities before, but this was the bottom of the barrel. The area for changing/unchanging was sopping wet, had hair everywhere, and there was only one hook to hang your things up - so if you wanted to keep your new clothes and the towel dry, you had to let your old clothes get wet (plus who knows what else they picked up lying on the floor). Or, you left your new clothes in your room, showered, and then put your old clothes back on.

Also, there was nowhere but the shower floor to put your shampoo/soap. One shower had no instructions on how to turn it on; despite repeated experiments, I failed to figure out how this shower worked. Another shower had cold water, but if you wanted even luke-warm water you could only get a drizzle from the showerhead - and that only if you held it at waistlevel. Forget warm or even hot water on this one!

How students put up with this situation long-term I don't know. At the price ISH charged (30 pounds for ISIC members, 34 for non-members) a few basic improvements would make the place much better, without breaking the budget. Would I visit again - only if there were nothing else available.