Name: Highland Backpackers Inverness Hostel
Address: 24 Rose Street Inverness,Rose Street, Inverness, Inverness, Inverness, IV1 1NQ, United Kingdom
Rating: 6

Smoke-free property

Heating

All Spaces Non-Smoking (public and private)

General

Non-smoking rooms

Room service

Locker

Linens

Rooms

Luggage storage

Services and amenities

Breakfast

Breakfast in the room

Common kitchen

Vending machine

Packed Lunches

Bottled water (at extra charge)

Meals

Wi-Fi

Internet access

Internet

Tour assistance

Tourist services

No parking

Parking

Beach/pool towels

Pool and beach

Fax and copy machine

Business

Kids' TV Networks

Kids

Pets Not Allowed

Pets

Location

At the hostel

Victorian Market

Inverness Visit Scotland Information Centre

Merkinch Local Nature Reserve

University of the Highlands & Islands

Torvean Golf Club

Ness Islands

Inverness Airport

Highland Backpackers Inverness Hostel

Inverness

Don't bother booking, it has closed down without notice, still no sign of a refund yet & no reply to my emails to booking.com.
Very angry !!!  I was forced to book at short notice, a more expensive hostel that was too far to walk to, so had cost of a taxi to pay as well.

Got an email from them the day I was due to arrive, saying it had been closed down, still trying to get a refund.

Literally thirty seconds away from the bus station and a five minute walk to the city center.

Rooms were adequately cleaned. You get a bed, duvet, and a pillow. Rooms had ample heating for the cold weather. Bathrooms and common areas could use a little cleaning.

Staff were very friendly.

You get what you pay for

I put off writing this review because I wanted to forget the experience, but need to share because it can prevent the same or worse happening to others.

On check in, the staff were nice enough and let me know the hours (closed 11 pm - 8 am). I asked for an upgrade to a private room but they said they were just a hostel (think that meant dorms only) - fine. No mention of anyone onsite during the night.

So around 1:30 am a drunk guy gets into the dorm, which isn’t news in a hostel. The whole room does the usual funny “lights out, time to sleep now” routine multiple times in a friendly way, but we do it so much it’s now 2:30 and not funny. He’s also hitting on the girls which is not making anyone more comfortable. He starts throwing food and beer around the room and into people’s things, messing with a girl’s laundry and underwear, etc. - it got weird. He’s yelling in our faces at this point, falling down repeatedly on the beer that now covers the floor, slamming chairs and beds against the wall. So the other girl leaves and it’s me and another guy trying to talk him down (I really didn’t want to leave to have my underwear rifled through honestly). Calming down is not happening, and I know the hostel’s closed, so I threaten to call the cops. Still pretty scary at 3:30 am or so and cops are called.

Cops show up and grab the guy, and hostel staff show up. Definitely wish I’d known they were around before and grateful they’re back, though would’ve been nice to know at check in as it would’ve been worth risking my stuff to get them involved rather than the cops. For whatever reason the hostel staff take the non-drunk guy out of the room also which seems unfair but whatever. They offer me another room, but at this point at 4+ am with my stuff all spread out and a room to myself, I say it’s fine if I can just quickly clean up the sticky floor and food. The hostel staff woman brings me a bucket and offers to clean, but I just do it myself because I want to sleep. Other hostel staff man comes in complaining to me that he’s up in the middle of the night so they can mop my floor, and hostel staff woman and I fill him in and he apologizes. I say it’s fine and as long as I’m assured the door locks, I’ll just call it a night. They assure me, I lock the door, and finally get to sleep alone in the room with 3 hours before I need to be up.

And I wake up to find drunk, dangerous dude sleeping IN THE ROOM WITH ME. I’m obviously panicking, glad he didn’t hurt me, but also wanting to get the F out of there before he wakes up and can hurt me. I get downstairs and ask the same hostel staff woman how in the world he’s in there. She has no clue - they didn’t even know he was back. How does that even happen with security codes to the building in a place where their one job is that they provide a safe bed for the night?! I’m obviously pretty upset with that development, and want to again get the F away from there. I ask for a refund, which at only 15 or so pounds is apparently a very long process as the money has to go through their corporate office, then my tour company, then the company I booked the tour through and etc.

At this point basic service and safety standards are on the floor, so I’m at a loss. The same hostel staff man returns and starts yelling at me - what? He says he doesn’t know what I want (um, keep me safe?), that they re-called the cops on the guy, that they offered me another room (what exactly would that have solved given they don’t have private rooms?), and what would I suggest. I told him I knew little about running a hostel, but maybe functioning locks and changing security codes would help, especially when someone is violent? 

This guy is then shouting that I’m what’s wrong with “people” (guess they get a lot of guests complaining they’re in physical danger?) and he needs to talk to corporate about how to counter my negative review. I wasn’t even thinking about a review, just probably would’ve been fine with a sincere apology, refund, genuine assurance they won’t do this to someone else, and getting out of there quickly. He’s also still yelling about mopping the floor at 4 am — guess he doesn’t remember I did that, not them? Both the hostel staff woman and I are trying to calm him down to no avail. I’m still trying to get over the cliche of a man yelling at me about how being in physical danger is somehow my fault, and I don’t know what happens when drunk guy wakes up because the staff can’t keep me safe, so I leave.

It’s been a couple of weeks, and they haven’t reached out with an apology, refund, or anything.

Basically people like violent drunk guy happen (it’s just a reality at all dorm hostels around the globe), but THE STAFF HERE WILL NOT KEEP YOU SAFE from those people (that’s the part that is not a reality at all hostels). I’ve stayed in hostels all over, and can honestly report I’ve never been put in such a scary situation by hostel staff than in Scotland of all places. So pay the extra pound or two to stay anywhere else - it’s not worth the risk. B&Bs are surprisingly reasonable, as are some small towns slightly farther away especially in the off season.

*MAJOR SAFETY RISK* - read before booking

My sheets weren't washed and it really smelled like my feet in the room... honestly I made a lot of hostels and this one was the worst! I don't understand how you can't change the sheets between two people! That's the minimum! I'm not demanding but frankly it's really disgusting! Apart from the fact that it's not super clean in the shower and the toilet, and it's pretty noisy, after all it's a hostel so it's common! It's the worst hostel experience I've had! to have made one in Ireland especially it has nothing comparable!

Run away run away!

We stayed 2 nights during the busy weekend of the local marathon. Great location! 

Room(4) for us 4 friends was small, but adequate. 

There was a unit to place bags and shoes on, with a hanging rail but no coat hangers.

Room was grubby and battered. Lockers only 2 of which the doors weren't kicked in. 
At least 4 power sockets to charge phones etc, but one was damaged and did not appear safe. We were missing a light bulb which staff did change for us. 

No extra pillow available. Sheets, duvets and pillows were not clean or fresh. When we stripped our beds, as a courtesy to them upon check out, we really wished we hadn't mattresses were disgusting. 
We brought our own towels, but had we hired, I'm not sure to what standard they would have been?

Windows in room and kitchen were not lockable or on safety catches, and we were looking onto a flat roof, so could have easily gained access.

Curtains were 2 strips of opaque fabric on a pole, keeping out no light, and the pole fell down under the slightest provocation.

Kitchen area was really well equipped. Thanks for tea/coffee etc.

Lounge/communal space also really cool with plenty to occupy a traveler. 
Wifi in common areas only. not in rooms.

Bathrooms, 2 showers and 2 small loo rooms per floor. Bathrooms weren't as bleak and dirty as the bedrooms, in my opinion. There are some leftover toiletries in a basket on the window sill, which is handy to know.

Shower was electric and altho the dials were not quite correctly placed, once you got it going it was fine.

In summary they appear to have invested in communal areas a little, but not in the rooms at all. everything was battered and broken. 
Invest in some better fixtures and fittings, a lick of paint, clean uniform bedding, adequate curtains or blinds, secure lockers, and better wifi, and you would have a 110% better traveler experience and could reasonably charge more.

Pros and Cons

I booked this hostel because it was relatively cheap and almost everything else was booked out. My first impression you might get from the first picture. Fortunately, this wasn't the entrance. I know you can't expect much for the price, yet I was quite disappointed with the quality and comfort. Many things are scratched or damaged or just totally ugly. Although you have a little room where you can sit down, this one isn't very appealing either. The rooms aren't in very good quality, but for two days it was okay. The staff (1 man from time to time at the reception) was relatively nice. The toilets and showers are separated from the rooms and are very small. Facts: For people who don't feel comfortable at all, and the hostel's comfort factor is not recommended.

Full wallets, but no comfort

This is one of the worst hostels I've ever stayed in. Everything is dirty and smelly. People sometimes don't flush in the bathroom, they don't clean their dishes properly, leave sanitary wrappings laying around, the bathroom and shower are covered in mold and worst of all is the smell of old blood from the open bins in the first floor. Absolutely disgusting! The beds are also horribly uncomfortable, as I'm writing this, there are several bedsprings pressing in my back. Do yourself a favor and stay somewhere else.

Absolutely disgusting!

Pros: Location was excellent, right next to bus station, staff were helpful, quick check in and out. 

Cons: Advertised WIFI although doesn’t connect in rooms, unwashed bed covers, 2 toilets per floor which were blocked, no working lights in room which we told reception about but was still not fixed, thin mattresses which hurt my hips to lie on, loud squeaky and unstable bed frames, full blast heating in mid August, curtains not covering windows, no lockers, 8am checkout was not early enough for hikers or those catching transport, thin walls so hear everything and toilets flushing, loud pipes.

Save yourself this experience, there's better in town. The hostel was extremely dirty, with an unpleasant smell in all the rooms, most of the showers were not working, the bathrooms were tiny and dirty. Pillows and blankets were very dirty, in fact we were stabbed by bed bugs despite the use of our sheets. To top it all off, the staff were very rude, they even insulted us when we dared to ask for payment receipt.

Highland Backpackers Inverness Hostel

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