The Hostelz.com Review
Sleep Well Hostel is in an excellent location within walking distance from one of the three major train stations in Brussels, and also close to all the main attractions in the city. You definitely don't need to take the trams or buses at all.
The hostel itself is quite inexpensive, and comes with a nice breakfast of cereal and bread with jams, coffee, and juice. The staff at the front desk are very friendly as well, and willing to give directions to anything in the area. They even have free maps.
The rooms are cozy -- definitely not too cramped though, or loud. The rooms have six or eight people in them, but singles, doubles, and quads are also available. There are seperate showers and toilets, which are also seperated by gender. Everything was clean and working well, but you cannot adjust the shower temperature.
The only drawback is the lock-out, which is from 11 am - 3 pm. That can be an annoyance in a city like Amsterdam if you want to sleep in after a late night out.
The hostel itself is quite inexpensive, and comes with a nice breakfast of cereal and bread with jams, coffee, and juice. The staff at the front desk are very friendly as well, and willing to give directions to anything in the area. They even have free maps.
The rooms are cozy -- definitely not too cramped though, or loud. The rooms have six or eight people in them, but singles, doubles, and quads are also available. There are seperate showers and toilets, which are also seperated by gender. Everything was clean and working well, but you cannot adjust the shower temperature.
The only drawback is the lock-out, which is from 11 am - 3 pm. That can be an annoyance in a city like Amsterdam if you want to sleep in after a late night out.
— Exclusive Hostelz.com Review
August 2004
Their Description
Sleep Well Youth Hotel Details
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Sleep Well Youth Hotel Reviews on Other WebsitesHostelz.com Guest Reviews
Alright. I didn't mind this hostel at first, it's not a bad hostel, there are however some major flaws which smaller, stand alone hostels deal with so easily it sort of puts Sleep Well to shame. Firstly, it seems like they reserve almost everything for people who have paid to become hostel members, including the elevator, (you aren't allowed to go down 5 floors in an elevator), which i couldn't believe at first. There aren't any lockers or proper storage facilities. I couldn't even fit my backpack in the drawer under my bunk bed. Reception only ever had one person on and she was so busy most of the time she couldn't actually help you for fear of the queue getting any longer. Reception didn't have any padlocks left to rent, or even buy and was quite blunt about it so I couldn't use the drawer under my bunk for valuables on the first night anyway. The showers only have one push button, which you have to keep pressing and which also only flows hot water: (anyone who likes to take a cold shower to calm a raging hangover, too bad.) Despite being divided into separate male and female rooms, the cubicle doors also have no locks on them. Breakfast is extremely early, so you have to choose between breakfast and another few hour's sleep after a night out. Its also full of 14-17 year old school children who knock on your door just to say 'hi' then walk away. — o'd , Ireland (2011-06-21) Basic chain accommodation It's a chain accommodation so you expect a certain standard, it's clean, the common room isn't the best and you have to bring you own padlocks to lock things away securely in your room. Apart from that it is a decent place to sleep, don't use the laundry room there, it leaks everywhere and the dryer just doesn't work. Oh and the location is pretty good, 5-10mins from North Station. — Chris , Scotland (2010-08-08) Decent place to stay Sleep Well was my first hostel experience so I didn't have high expectations. I was pleasantly surprised with my accommodation. It was very clean and quiet. The staff was very nice and quite helpful. They even supply free maps. It's in a great location for the train station (Gare du Nord) and metro, as well as only a ten-minute walk to Grand Place. They have two computers/TV/lounge area, which was also pretty quiet. I didn't see many people around while I was there so if you expect a lot of socializing, this may not be the place for you. I'm twenty-eight, was traveling alone, and really just wanted a cheap alternative to a hotel so I opted for a single room. It was more spacious than I expected with a desk and shelving unit as well as a toilet and sink right in the room. That was a plus for me. On the down side, the water in the communal showers was burning hot. I could have sworn I had third degree burns on my head and down my back! I took a shower mid-day when I arrived so thankfully I was the only one in there. I switched to two other showers to see if it would help but it didn't so I went back to my room and finish washing my hair in the sink! I stayed in June -- there was no air conditioning and the windows barely cracked open. Thankfully it wasn't overly hot that day. The bed was a little hard and the pillow was quite lumpy so I had to use my little travel pillow. The lift up was quite slow and unfortunately the descending lift was broken. The locked luggage room was one flight below where the staff were and only had open cubicles. There was no way to secure or lock my belongings as to prevent someone from just walking off with them. That was probably the part I was the least pleased with. The free breakfast wasn't anything fancy (bread, butter, jam, nutella, cheese spread, and cereal) but it was definitely better than nothing. Overall, I'd have to say it wasn't a bad stay. I'd recommend Sleep Well to any single traveler not looking for a party hostel. Just beware of the burning showers! — Tennille , USA (2008-08-08) Not great All you need to know about a hostel is "they charge for Wi-Fi," always a major indicator of soullessness. — Jeff , USA (2008-01-19) Stayed here in October 2006. I came in late in the day, around 6.30pm, and was lucky to get in an upgraded room for an affordable price, which was what they had left. It was a 3-bed room that had a bathroom in it, and I paid 25 euro/night. The room was great -- very clean, comfortable bed, the bathrooms were clean, and it had a TV. I shared it with 1 girl. However, I was kept up all night by very loud guys banging on doors and screaming at each other -- earplugs would not help. It went on continuously until after 3am. So I actually did not "sleep well." The common area was big and invited some socializing, there are 3 internet computers that work and are cheap to use, the front desk staff speak English and were friendly. It's conveniently located near the North train station and the de Bouchere metro stop. I definitely preferred this hostel to others, and recommend it for a Brussels stay, even though I experienced noisy fellow guests. — LL (2006-11-07) Here's why we stayed here -- the hostel around the corner was too rude to even talk to us. So we were thankful after a long wait in line at reception -- which is common, to have somewhere to stay. The hostel is not perfect but it is better than no bed. The rooms are key carded, so it is high security from the word go, in the lifts. The rooms are very bare, no expense has been added to make them lively, but that are sufficient. Linen is included, and the first nights price is 4E more to cover the sheets, and then cheaper for the following four nights. Yes they offer breakfast, and no, prima donnas and mummy's boys, it is not five courses complete with skim milk and bacon. But it cuts it, and it beats buying it. Strict rations on spreads, one strawberry jam, one rose hip jam, one nutella equivalent and a butter. There are also cornflakes, bread and cold toast, and a coffee/hot chocolate machine. They also do lunch and dinner, ask about it, for 7.5E it isn't so bad, soup, meal, dessert (like a small biscuit) and water. Cheap enough and easy. The showers are infuriating. I have lived with push button showers for 6 months, but these last ONLY when you press them in, and they shoot to the moon and everywhere in between, but hey, it's only one a day! Generally, it's good enough. Only one washer and dryer, which makes lines lengthy at times. There is a free luggage room. Internet time is purchased at 1.5E for half hour or 2.5E for an hour. I would recommend it, easy to get to, and near to anything you'd want. — Snosie (2006-06-25) I stayed here last summer, the location was excellent. however the rest was not so good, the staff was extremely rude, when I found my bedsheets all messed up and dirty and requested them to change they almost yelled at me as if I stayed there without paying money. Also there seemed to be an orgy going on in the room I booked, so be careful to knock before entering. — damla (2006-06-16) Hostel was ok, but overpriced for what you got! Hallways make a lot of noise, making other people very loud. Showers were very bad. The one thing it had going for it was the location -- nice and close to the City centre. — Sally (2006-04-24) Exceptionally clean and comfortable. Perfect location to see the sights and to the rail station to get out of Brussels. We found it, uh, less than exciting to stay more than one night but enjoyable to see the sights. Watch out for those restaurateurs on the Rue des Bouchers — they are all seeking hungry customers and can be quite persistent. — Dr. Donna, Canada (2005-09-20) Excellent hostel! It looks pretty new. Very clean and safe. Rates were good and it's within walking distance to two train stations. I slept well both nights I was there. — Anonymous (2005-06-02) The staff were cold and unfriendly...brrrrrr!! — Mike Hall (2005-04-21) I stayed there both in August 2002 and in 2004. The staff I met were kind and helpful. The building looks anonymous and cold. Breakfast was quite poor. The only really, really bad thing was that the water in the showers was definitely too, too hot and you cannot regulate it! I decided to leave one day early because of this. — Anonymous (2005-01-25) This hostel is very nice. We had a wonderful time there; the staff are so friendly. The breakfast was EXCELLENT - a real English treat! I would recommend this place to anyone! — Anonymous (2005-01-20) I had the best time ever here! THANKS to the Sleep Well staff. They have all the information you need. — Mendy (2004-12-09) We stayed at Sleep Well last week with a school group. Everything was perfect! They are very strict about check-in/check-out time though, and there is a lockout between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. The girl with black hair was very nice to us. The rooms were clean and secure. The breakfast was poor, but that's ok. I will definitely go BACK! — Andy (2004-12-07)