If the thought of spending the night in a hostel fills you with panic  then I’m totally with you. Or at least I was until I was invited to check out Clink78 in London’s Kings Cross area last week. It all worked out in my favour really as I had a train to catch from Euston the following day so it was just a short walk in the morning rather than having to take several tubes to get there.

Clink78 is located in a beautiful old courthouse and retains many of the original features like the courtrooms which have been converted into a TV room and internet lounge where they have PCs that you can use of a fee and plenty of sockets for you to work away on your own laptop using the free wifi!

The main draw of hostels is of course the social aspect and the ability to meet up with fellow travelers and make friends so it’s great that  there is also the Clashbar in the basement. (Fun fact, The Clash went on trial at this very courthouse in 1978 for shooting a pigeon!) Sadly I wasn’t feeling 100% on the night of my stay so I gave this a miss.

One of the quirkier draws of the hostel is that you can even spend the night in one of the old cells in the basement! Sadly I wasn’t staying in one of these as I requested a room with a private bathroom (the joys of IBD) but my room was pretty funky. Small but functional with a double bed, side table and plenty of sockets.

The bathroom was again, as expected, small but perfect for my needs. Most importantly it, my room and every part of the hostel I visited was very, very clean. I was really impressed to see that they had even included some themed miniature toiletries which of course have gone straight into my collection.

The window was open when I arrived and it was a tad noisy but most of the sound was blocked out once I closed it and I settled in to read my book. I definitely expected a hostel to be a lot noisier than it was due to the number of people staying in the building but I was able to get a good nights sleep.

Breakfast is also included for everyone staying and includes unlimited tea, coffee, hot chocolate, fresh juice, cereals and toast with various toppings like jam or butter. It might not seem like much but it’s definitely enough to get you set up for a days sightseeing in the capital (or in my case a two hour train journey!)

Check out was at 10am the following day which is early but to be expected and there is plenty to do in the area. I popped in to check out the Wellcome Collection for the first time but you can also check out platform 9 3/4 at Kings Cross or the British Library nearby.

Clink hostels have two locations in London and a third in Amsterdam. Prices at Clink78 start at £13 for a bunk in a shared dorm and from £40 for a private room so it’s great for those on a budget. One point; make sure that you have photo ID with you to check in – I wasn’t aware I needed as it wasn’t mentioned anywhere in the e-mail confirmation so check-in was a little bit awkward but we got there in the end!

Rooms: 3/5
Service: 4/5
Value: 4/5

Overall: 3.6/5