Harlow International Hostel

Very poor
This hostel was not comfortable at all. There are two parts to the building, the main building and an annexe. There is no kitchen in the annexe, you have to go through the garden to get to the kitchen. I was given a room to myself as expected from my booking. The room was in very poor condition, the duvet covers were torn, and all around the door post, and the door itself it was completely black and dirty. It smelled of lack of airing or even damp. Not only that but the room was separated from the rest of the hostel and even from the annexe. There didn't seem to be any other rooms taken there by guests although I heard someone in and out at all times of the day. The shower was working on cold only, and in general the bathrooms there were in an appalling condition and needed a lot of reconstruction work to bring them to an acceptable standard. I eventually left a week earlier than I had intended and was not entitled even to a part refund.

We were really disappointed with this hostel. Firstly, it is not easy to find especially if you arrive at night and you have to walk up through a very dark unsafe-feeling path. The only way we were able to find it was asking the locals. When we asked for towels we were looked at as if it was a huge inconvenience. We were given one small towel between the two of us. When we asked if it were possible to have one each we were looked at as if we were stupid and as if it was a big thing to ask. If you need to get a bus somewhere at a particular time I would recommend that you find the bus stop the night before or with plenty of time — with the extremely vague directions we were given it took 2 or 3 tries before we could actually find it.