Generator London

I had previously stayed at the Generator Hostel in Stockholm and had a good experience, so I expected a similar standard from the London location. Unfortunately, the experiences were completely different, and this stay was very disappointing. I stayed in a mixed dorm, and sharing the room with men was not an issue at all. The main problem was the layout and facilities. The bathrooms and showers were extremely far away from the room. It took around 3–4 minutes of walking through several corridors to reach them, which is very inconvenient especially if you wake up during the night and simply need to use the toilet. On top of that, the men’s bathroom was completely out of service during my stay, meaning male guests had to go to another floor just to shower. This also meant that an entire additional group of people was using the same bathroom facilities as the people already staying on that floor, which was unfair for everyone affected and made the facilities even more crowded. The biggest issue, however, was the heat. I stayed during the UK heat wave, and the dorm room had no air conditioning. There were four people in an extremely small room with very limited space. The lockers were so close together that two people couldn’t even open them at the same time. Having four people sleeping in such a small room during a heat wave was unbearable. There was one small fan, but it was completely insufficient. It was placed by the window and barely helped anyone, especially those on the bunk beds. Everyone in the room was overheating, sweating, and struggling to sleep. Considering the price of the stay, it is unacceptable to have guests sleeping in those conditions without proper cooling. The hallways were even worse. Because of the many doors and enclosed corridors, the heat felt trapped everywhere. Coming out of the shower, you would immediately start sweating again. It felt like the building was holding onto the heat rather than allowing any airflow. The showers were also a major disappointment. The water temperature could not be adjusted properly, and every shower I tried was extremely cold. It was so cold that I was shaking and my lips turned blue, but at the same time the shower rooms themselves were incredibly hot and uncomfortable. The combination of freezing water and overheated shower areas was very strange and unpleasant. The shower rooms were so warm and humid that it honestly made me question how well they are maintained. The rooms also lacked some basic amenities. There were no USB-C charging ports, which was surprising since the Generator Hostel in Stockholm had them. I even had to buy a new charging cable because of this. There were also no proper mirrors in the rooms and no full-length mirrors anywhere, which was inconvenient. There were some positives. The hostel does have good security measures, with outside visitors needing to show a key card to enter, which made me feel safer. The sink in the room was also useful for small things like washing your face. They also provided cold drinking water in the lobby, which was very appreciated during the heat wave (although I’m not sure if this is something they normally offer or if it was only because of the weather). Overall, this was a very disappointing stay. The combination of unbearable heat, no air conditioning, overcrowded facilities, poor shower conditions, and lack of basic amenities made this experience far below expectations. There are definitely better options available, such as Capsule Hostel, which may be slightly more expensive but offers things like air conditioning, better showers, and a much more comfortable experience. I would not stay here again, and I cannot recommend this hostel especially during warm weather.