Generator London
37 Tavistock Place Russell Square, London WC1H 9SE England
Enter dates to see prices
Full view
View all photos (936)936
360
Panoramas (21) 
Room & Suite (211)
View prices for your travel dates
About
#173 of 2,258 Specialty lodging in London
Location
4.4
Cleanliness
3.7
Service
3.8
Value
3.7
Generator London was the very first Generator and you’ll find it in the area of Russell Square in the heart of the West End. It’s the ideal spot to enjoy London from, everything you need to see is minutes away by tube. You’ll never run out of things to do in the UK’s capital. You just have to decide where to start and we can help you with that. When you have seen and done it all for the day head back to Generator and unwind. It’s a destination in its own right and a great place to socialise and reflect on your experiences of the day. Head to the bar and chill out areas to get yourself a well deserved drink or two. It’s lively, friendly and un-missable. We’ve also got great beds for sleepy heads and of course you’ll be enjoying London life in the most authentic surroundings. Choose from a great selection of rooms, from Dorms, to Quads, to Private rooms with innovative mod cons. Fast and free Wi-Fi is all yours too. To get the most out of your stay visit the travel shop and our city experts will help you devise an itinerary that will take you to all the hidden treasures this dynamic city has to offer. You’ll have to stay longer to fit it all in but you’ll not need convincing of that. We’ll see you there soon.
Read more
Suggest edits to improve what we show.Improve this listing
Property amenities
Free internet
Bar / lounge
Game room
Billiards
24-hour security
Baggage storage
24-hour front desk
Express check-in / check-out
Wifi
Coffee shop
Restaurant
Breakfast available
Vending machine
Evening entertainment
Karaoke
Board games / puzzles
Nightclub / DJ
Non-smoking hotel
Shared bathroom
Shared lounge / TV area
Laundry service
Self-serve laundry
Show more
Room features
Safe
Room types
Non-smoking rooms
Good to know
HOTEL CLASS
HOTEL STYLE
Trendy
Modern
Languages Spoken
English, Spanish
Location
100Great for walkers
Grade: 100 out of 100
160Restaurantswithin 0.3 miles
60Attractionswithin 0.3 miles
37 Tavistock Place Russell Square, London WC1H 9SE England
Getting there
Russell SquareUnderground5 min
King's Cross St. PancrasUnderground8 min
Rental CarsSee rental cars from $25/day
See what other travelers are saying
- BackPacker7594432 contributionsBudget Funky HostelThis budget friendly, funky hostel reminded me of the student union at your university days together with all the practicalities of a good nights sleep. Helpful staff, buzzing at breakfast with the hot and cold buffet. Lots to do with the pool table, football table whilst around the hustle of the bar. Head up the funk floors to your rooms to find your bunks with sink, make your bed and nestle in for a good night sleep. I believe some rooms have en-suite or you can use the shared facilities which was clean to refresh for another day sightseeing whilst starting off in a great location at ‘The Generator’.Hi, thank you for your time in leaving us such a fantastic review. We are so delighted that you loved your stay with us so much and found us to be a funky place to stay. Just the vibe we are going for. We are thrilled with how much you enjoyed interactions with our staff, our amazing breakfast and entertainment facilities. We would love to have you back with us any time in future. Look forward to seeing you soon. Thank you and take care. AqibWritten August 8, 2022This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.Date of stay: August 2022Written August 8, 2022
- GiuliettaP22Buenos Aires, Argentina472 contributionsVery good - averageI stayed 4 nights at Generator London and I quite enjoy my stay there. However, I expect that they can put more emphasis on the cleaning Next time regarding my room was very dirty. They only cleaned one time but the cleaning was very poor, they even didnt remove the stains from the floor had (it was sticky) and they were even there on my first night. The lockers were you store your luggage were full of dust as well. As it is a very big hostel, they need to put more attention in cleaning more times because the ladies shared bathroom was not that clean neither. The drain on the showers were full of hair. Also, I would say that the staff was ok but they could have been more friendly and nicer, something one expects when stays at a hostel instead of a hotel. Anyway the hostel is ok, with very convenient and accesible location, close to the main train station and full of restaurants and bar surrounding the building.Hi there, Thank you for sharing your comments with us. It is great to see that you enjoyed your time here but I am sorry that the cleanness did not meet your expectations. Our housekeeping team does work hard to make sure everything is looking it's best, I will however pass this on to them to make sure it will improve in the future. If cleanliness is ever an issue, please don't hesitate to tell the staff as we will do our best to assist in situations like this. Glad you’re as happy with our location as we are – we always make sure that we’re in the right place at the right time. We wish you safe travels and hope to see you again. Kind regards, Generator TeamWritten September 24, 2020This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.Date of stay: September 2020Written September 24, 2020
- Jenny Jones5 contributionsMixed BagPros: Excellent location and very clean and guest service was acceptable. Cons: If you take the 12 bed mixed dorm it may be on the basement floor right underneath the dance floor! Check before booking. If you don’t mind heavy music, vibration and people dancing above your head at 1am it’s the dorm for you. Otherwise, try another option. Showers and toilets with rooms are kept very clean, but I noticed a few of the female showers on the basement floor had either malfunctioning or non-existent locks. Bunk beds could do with privacy curtains and individual lights so others aren’t kept awake or woken up by the main lights being switched on and off.Hi Jenny, thank you for your review and feedback ,it is appreciated. We are pleased you enjoyed our location and cleanliness as well as our customer service. We are sorry about the issues you came across during your stay, we will look into your feedback and try to make the necessary improvements to be better in future. Thank youWritten May 17, 2022This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.Date of stay: May 2022Written May 15, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
4174Reviews131Q+A100Room tips
Reviews
Traveler rating
- 1,106
- 1,480
- 741
- 395
- 452
Traveler safety
Time of year
Traveler type
Language
More
Selected filters
- Filter
- English
Popular mentions
Sort by:
Most Recent
Came to the shuffleboard bar for a work social and we had an amazing time. Izzy, Beth and Aedan were the best hosts and looked after us all night. The food and vibes were great and after shuffleboard we went to the back room for karaoke. Would definitely recommend. We’ll be back soon!
Read more
Date of stay: September 2023Trip type: Traveled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
Response from Reception Team, Guest Services / Front Office at Generator London
Thank you so much for your kind review! It's really nice to see that you had such a great experience at our property! Generator London
Read more
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
friendly treatment for customers, very helpful in finding solutions. A big good breakfast with a good variety of different things as option even vegetarians downside is to get the hotdrinks at the bar
Read more
Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: September 2023
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
Response from Reception Team, Guest Services / Front Office at Generator London
Thanks a lot for taking the time to share your review and feedback! We hope to see you again in the future. Generator London
Read more
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
I believe there is a hygiene problem because despite my best efforts I ended up with an eye infection after using the communal bathrooms. Rhe room was very dark and noise travelled very easily through the ceiling leading to the late night bar so we had very little rest.
Read more
Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: September 2023
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
Response from Reception Team, Guest Services / Front Office at Generator London
Responded 6 days ago
I'm sorry to hear about your experience with us. Please be sure that we are taking your complaint very seriously, we will do our best to rectify the situation and ensure that it will not happen again. Your feedback is extremely valuable to us as it helps us improve our standards everyday. Generator London
Read more
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
When we arrived only one of the beds was made ready and the other one still had dirty linens on, a wet towel in the bed an old water bottle on the side and old vapes under the pillow. Furthermore it smelled like dirty feet all over the place and the small windows didn't open very much so you could not get fresh air
Read more
Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: September 2023
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
Response from Reception Team, Guest Services / Front Office at Generator London
Responded 1 week ago
Thank you for taking the time to give us feedback on your stay. We always try our best to provide the best experience. It looks like we have failed on this occasion. We would love for you to give us another chance next time. Your comments have been shared with the team to learn and assess what we can do to prevent this from happening in the future. Generator London
Read more
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
It was good, but I would like to see tea and coffee making facilities as well as a quieter reception area. The music is too loud at all hours of the day. There are a lot of easily excited young people around who seem to be without mummy and daddy. But I assume that is the general branding
Read more
Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: September 2023Trip type: Traveled on business
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
Response from Reception Team, Guest Services / Front Office at Generator London
Responded 1 week ago
Thanks a lot for taking the time to share your review and feedback! We hope to see you again in the future. Generator London
Read more
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Pretty decent facilities, except for no ac, if it was not for ridiculously lame customer service if you stay long enough. As a matter of fact, their reviews response is a copy paste and my check-in info was this is your room and bed number. If the labor shortage made the London news especially in hospitality, they meant it. Expect contradicting information on both hostel policies and procedures depending on who you are talking to. Nobody in this team is on the same page about anything. Every shift, a different story. Shared dormitories with no rules at all. Ridiculous way of handling complaints. Ridiculous internal and external communication leading to further conflict. Ridiculous booking conditions for long stays. Lack of transparency. I even got insulted by another guest at reception while the staff comforted her on my face. A disgrace ended up in my stay plan voluntarily cut in an stressful half, and a fully detailed formal complaint to general management.…
Read more
Date of stay: September 2023Trip type: Traveled on business
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
Response from Reception Team, Guest Services / Front Office at Generator London
Responded 1 week ago
Hi Cristina, I'm sorry to hear about your experience with us. Please be sure that we are taking your complaint very seriously and we will try to improve some of the point you have mention. We also would like to point out that due to your unacceptable behaviour towards our team and other guests you have been blacklisted and will not be accepted anymore in our property. Generator London
Read more
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
I stayed at The Generator London last weekend—great location and ambiance. Easily accessible...but maybe they can make a ramp or something so that heavy suitcases can be wheeled up and down - just a suggestion! The only fly in the ointment was that the bed was unmade and the sheets all over the place. The room was stuffy and very, very hot. Maybe the aircon was not working ... and there was just a tiny table fan trying its best to circulate the air. on the flip side, the staff were helpful, friendly and well.... overall it was a good stay.
Read more
Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: September 2023Trip type: Traveled on business
Rooms
Cleanliness
Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
Response from Reception Team, Guest Services / Front Office at Generator London
Responded 1 week ago
Thank you for sharing your comments with us, Globulus. I will make sure that your comments are being passed on to the relevant teams. Generator London
Read more
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Noisy and sweltering rooms, if you want sleep then dont choose here. No ventilation in rooms and temperatures reaching 35C even at 3am. The bar in the property plays music too loud until the early hours, the noise can be heard on the 4th floor. This hostel is great if u only want to take drugs and drink, but if you want sleep then give it a miss.
Read more
Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: September 2023
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
Response from Reception Team, Guest Services / Front Office at Generator London
Responded 2 weeks ago
Thank you for taking the time to share your experience about your recent stay at our property. This certainly isn't the level of service we wish to provide to our guests here at Generator London. We would love for you to give us another chance next time. Generator London
Read more
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
The bed and sheets were really dirty / the personal change the sheets without any problem, but... The Public toilets were awful. 4WC in this secton (3 floor, poppins Male) and all of them were dirty, pls review thw cleaning process. The price was good, considering London.
Read more
Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: September 2023
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
Response from the generator, Other at Generator London
Responded 2 weeks ago
I was really disappointed to hear about your experience with us. Our housekeeping team does work hard to keep everything looking at its best for guests. Our policy is to monitor the rooms and clean any rubbish. If you require extra cleaning, you can always mention this to our team at reception. We would love for you to give us another chance next time. Generator London
Read more
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
One of the worst hostel I've been. The 4 beds room is so tiny that none of the occupants can move. The entire place reeks because the windows are all very small and mostly shut close. The bathrooms are too few and the showers are always swampy. The worst are the common areas. There is always a very loud and obnoxious music, from 7AM to 3PM - no chance whatsoever to chat, read, study, or do anything else than to drink and consume the overpriced food served at the hostel bars. The place would have space to accomodate for different kind of consumers, but every inch of the common areas is filled with shuffleboard tables that no-one ever uses. The wall art is cringey, literally at the same level of live-laugh-love. The WiFi is capped at 5Mbit/s, Internet speed of circa 2006, not enough to have a stable Zoom call, slower than my mobile. The front desk staff is antagonistic and not into interacting with guests, the bar staff is ok. This place is not an hostel, but rather an expensive London club for teenagers, which incidentally has some beds where to crash.…
Read more
Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: September 2023
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
Response from the generator, Other at Generator London
Responded 2 weeks ago
Thank you for your review. We are currently in the process of refurbishing our rooms and common areas, next time you're in the city we would love it if you came back and let us know what you think. Generator London
Read more
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Not the right property for you?
There are more places to choose from in the London area.
PRICE RANGE
$32 - $148 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
ALSO KNOWN AS
generator hostel london hotel london
LOCATION
United KingdomEnglandLondonBloomsbury / Euston / Kings Cross /St Pancras
NUMBER OF ROOMS
215
Is This Your Tripadvisor Listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim Your ListingGENERATOR LONDON $28 ($̶1̶3̶4̶) - Updated 2023 Prices & Hostel Reviews - England
Frequently Asked Questions about Generator London
Which popular attractions are close to Generator London?
Nearby attractions include Faulty Towers the Dining Experience (0.3 miles), British Library (0.3 miles), and The Foundling Museum (0.2 miles).
What are some of the property amenities at Generator London?
Some of the more popular amenities offered include an on-site restaurant, a lounge, and laundry service.
What food & drink options are available at Generator London?
Guests can enjoy an on-site restaurant, a lounge, and breakfast during their stay.
What are some restaurants close to Generator London?
Conveniently located restaurants include Choppaluna, Cappadocia Cafe & Bistro, and Magenta.
Are any cleaning services offered at Generator London?
Yes, laundry service and self serve laundry are offered to guests.
Which languages are spoken by the staff at Generator London?
The staff speaks multiple languages, including English and Spanish.
Are there any historical sites close to Generator London?
Many travelers enjoy visiting Houses of Parliament (1.9 miles), Churchill War Rooms (1.7 miles), and Tower of London (2.4 miles).