Edinburgh
United Kingdom.
United Kingdom · 7 districts · 3 vibes
8 handpicked hostels in Edinburgh, sorted by traveler rating.
Edinburgh's Old Town is the densest hostel cluster in the UK — every property worth booking is within 5 minutes' walk of the Castle, Royal Mile, Cowgate and Grassmarket. Pod hostels on Parliament Square, atmospheric backpacker classics under the castle rock, 18+ party houses on the Grassmarket, and self-catering options 2 minutes from Waverley Station.
What to do in Edinburgh.
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Best Hostels in Edinburgh
8 handpicked hostels in Edinburgh, sorted by traveler rating.
CODE - The Court, Edinburgh
Pod-style hostel on Parliament Square, literally next to St Giles' Cathedral and 90 seconds' walk from Edinburgh Castle. Converted from a building attached to the Court of Session, with 250-ish pods across four floors plus a vaulted basement bar. The most central address of any hostel in Edinburgh.
Castle Rock Hostel
220-bed backpacker classic run by MacBackpackers, wedged directly under Edinburgh Castle on Johnston Terrace. The kitchen window looks up at the castle wall. Free haggis tasting Mondays, nightly events, shared kitchen, Red Room lounge with a working fireplace. 18+ only.
Princes Street Hostel
130-bed hostel on West Register Street, the first lane off Princes Street. Two minutes' walk to Waverley Station, five minutes to the Royal Mile. Georgian building with a proper shared kitchen, chill-out lounge, and the best transport-hub address in Edinburgh.
Royal Mile Backpackers
38-bed boutique backpacker on 105 High Street — the Royal Mile itself. Small, cosy, family-run hostel tucked above a tartan shop with a beamed-ceiling kitchen, a tiny lounge, and the most authentic Royal Mile address of any small hostel in the city.
Kick Ass Grassmarket
220-bed 18+ party hostel on the Grassmarket corner, at the foot of the steps up to Edinburgh Castle. In-house bar, free breakfast, nightly events, the loudest pub crawl meetup in the city. The hostel that built its reputation on Grassmarket nightlife.
CODE - The Loft, Edinburgh
CODE's original New Town pod property — 150 pods across a converted Rose Street townhouse, off the Rose Street pub lane. Sister to The Court but quieter, with a loft-level lounge and a proper shared kitchen (which The Court doesn't have). Breakfast included.
High Street Hostel
Edinburgh's oldest backpacker hostel, open since 1984 on 8 Blackfriars Street — a half-lane off the Royal Mile. 150-bed 18+ Old Town classic with a shared kitchen, a cobbled back courtyard, and the lowest Old Town dorm rate in the city.
Haystack Hostel
80-bed hostel on West Register Street, sister property to Haggis Hostels and the Princes Street Hostel neighbour. Smaller, quieter, with a well-equipped kitchen and the same 2-minute walk to Waverley. The calm-counterpart to Edinburgh's party hostels.
Hand-picked guides.
Edinburgh's hostel social scene is unusually tight — six independent Old Town houses, all within 5 minutes' walk of each other, all running …
Edinburgh is expensive for food in the Old Town — a Pret sandwich is £5.50, a Wetherspoon pub lunch is £9, a mid-tier restaurant dinner star…
Breakfast-included hostels in Edinburgh are rarer than you'd expect for a Tier 1 European city — most properties expect you to cook your own…