83%Skye Backpackers

Didn't like the fact that the rooms had no locks on the doors. Shower on our floor left alot to be desired. Staff very friendly, close to 2 pubs for dinner and drinks.

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by lscuderi – posted on Nov 30, 2008

26

Had a great stay, very homey, comfortable hostel, staff are great. I only wish I could have stayed in the Isle of Skye longer.

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by SandraB123 – posted on Nov 15, 2008

1

No locks on doors! What is this all about? I will never stay there again for that reason.

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by manningdaniel0073004 – posted on Oct 30, 2008

2

Skye Backpackers was my first time staying in a hostel...I was really skeptical about it. Immediately upon arrival, I felt great about the place. The staff is amazing...the place is well-equipped, clean, loads of fun and in a great location (close to bus stop, train and bars!!!). The security is... more Skye Backpackers was my first time staying in a hostel...I was really skeptical about it. Immediately upon arrival, I felt great about the place. The staff is amazing...the place is well-equipped, clean, loads of fun and in a great location (close to bus stop, train and bars!!!). The security is not a problem...go to the place and you'll realize how safe the hostel/Kyleakin is!! Cheers, from Canadaclose

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by katyateixeira256134 – posted on Sep 30, 2008

1

the staff is great and they have all the coffee tea and hot choc you can drink

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by justlooney5952 – posted on Sep 7, 2008

2

Very nice and clean

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by marta813436 – posted on Sep 5, 2008

7

Really good hostel, friendly atmosphere and helpful staff. Right next to 2 pubs. Kitchen and bathrooms etc are all fine, Id definately stay there again if I went back to the Isle of Skye

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by cbladen-4029 – posted on Sep 3, 2008

6

Pretty house in the middle of Kyleakin, there's not a lot of things to do there but the hostel is cosy and warm, the staff is nice. the size of the house unfortunately doesn't enable it to offer many bathrooms (and spacious bathrooms). yet the thing that disturbed me the most was the absence of... more Pretty house in the middle of Kyleakin, there's not a lot of things to do there but the hostel is cosy and warm, the staff is nice. the size of the house unfortunately doesn't enable it to offer many bathrooms (and spacious bathrooms). yet the thing that disturbed me the most was the absence of keys to lock the room (even if the hostel is small and doesn't seem to have theft troubles). check the bus timetables in advance to go to the rest of Skye or to Kyle of Lochalsh !close

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by missclark – posted on Aug 24, 2008

11

the hostel has great character and own atmosphere, you feel like at home. Staff is nice and helpful, but also a bit crazy, so you can surely have fun there. Rooms are not locked but they close the door in the late evening, therefore it is better to keep your precious things with you if you go out.

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by pyzuc – posted on Aug 21, 2008

3

4 of us had a great time there. My husband forgot his mobilephone there, we already checked out and went on tour de Isle, at the end of the day he noticed it was gone, so we phoned his number and a girl from the reception answerd. Realy great staff :)

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by marinas2175 – posted on Aug 18, 2008

4

No keys in the rooms! Why?

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by vivianrossi1674 – posted on Aug 16, 2008

4

When I first arrived the whole of the staff was relaxing out in the garden with barbecues and guitars. I knew from this point the hostel would be excellent in every way. I will say this, when you first find out there are no locks on the doors you feel a bit uneasy about the security. But after... more When I first arrived the whole of the staff was relaxing out in the garden with barbecues and guitars. I knew from this point the hostel would be excellent in every way. I will say this, when you first find out there are no locks on the doors you feel a bit uneasy about the security. But after spending some time around the village and meeting the locals, you realize there are no need for locks, because no one locks their door in the village. I will definitely come back to this place!close

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by simon270 – posted on Aug 5, 2008

8

Wow! What a wonderful hostel, one of the best I've ever stayed in. The staff are so friendly and helpful, the location is amazing and I just loved the Isle of Skye. Hopefully I'll be able to visit again one day!

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by markusvw – posted on Jul 29, 2008

6

Great hostel in the middle of some pretty spectacular scenery! Loved the cosy fire, the staff were great, and the hostel cat is cool!

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by chelsea6624 – posted on Jul 29, 2008

8

Loked really untidy on the outside as the lodge is 2 old houses knocked through and the gardens were over grown, but not too bad inside and cheap :)

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by the1truescott – posted on Jul 15, 2008

1

Great clean hostel with hot showers and good kitchen facilities. Good location for seeing around Skye.

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by bindyi077459 – posted on Jul 15, 2008

13

No keys on the door but I had no problems during two days and half in the hostel. Great staff really cool. Highly recommended.

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by sophieregnaut2317 – posted on Jul 14, 2008

2

brilliant hostel, just wish I could have stayed longer. Staff really friendly and a great atmosphere. Love the artwork

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by tommietucker1528 – posted on Jul 4, 2008

1

very nice and tidy, had a comfortable stay there

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by fionang19861291 – posted on Jun 13, 2008

3

The crew at Skye Backies totally rock!!! The Isle of Skye is the most beautiful place in the world, this hostel is good to see it from and very very very hard to leave (again).. we will be back

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by jezzaw – posted on Jun 12, 2008

2

The poor security rating is purely due to the individual dorms not being locked. There was good management of who got through the front door but once in nothing was lockable. I appreciate the difficulties of keeping track of keys etc but not even being able to lock dorm doors from the inside... more The poor security rating is purely due to the individual dorms not being locked. There was good management of who got through the front door but once in nothing was lockable. I appreciate the difficulties of keeping track of keys etc but not even being able to lock dorm doors from the inside isn't ideal. Otherwise it's a great place.close

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by claremck404 – posted on May 21, 2008

1

Great hostel run by great people, very clean, warm & welcoming. Its like home away from home with excellent kitchen facilities (even free coffee, hot choc, tea/milk), cosy lounge, fire, boardgames, books and plenty of info on the surrounding area/island of things to see and do/walks to take... more Great hostel run by great people, very clean, warm & welcoming. Its like home away from home with excellent kitchen facilities (even free coffee, hot choc, tea/milk), cosy lounge, fire, boardgames, books and plenty of info on the surrounding area/island of things to see and do/walks to take etc. There is continental breakfast for the bargain price of £1.90 which is excellent value. Would recommend this hostel to others as its a great place to stay, would go back if we ever visit Skye again. Fantastic hospitality, thank you for such a great stay!close

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by Cw4721 – posted on Mar 25, 2008

8

The only thing that was not really good about this one is that the infamous skye tour does not go out everyday. Do try to call and know the dates in advance. It can be tricky to get around this wild part of Europe if you are not driving or if you are not in a tour. The staff is amazingly helpful... more The only thing that was not really good about this one is that the infamous skye tour does not go out everyday. Do try to call and know the dates in advance. It can be tricky to get around this wild part of Europe if you are not driving or if you are not in a tour. The staff is amazingly helpful and fun. The ausie in the front desk is super-excellent. She is so cool!close

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by muxaxo – posted on Apr 7, 2007

8

this hostel was disappointing. it was noisy, stingy, chilly and lacking in security. the staff and companions seemed to follow their own agenda of booze and rock. it reminded me of "Wombats" in Vienna which emphasised loud music and beer drinking. both of these hostels gave me pains... more this hostel was disappointing. it was noisy, stingy, chilly and lacking in security. the staff and companions seemed to follow their own agenda of booze and rock. it reminded me of "Wombats" in Vienna which emphasised loud music and beer drinking. both of these hostels gave me pains in the ear with constant bombardment with drumming music. i got my first blast from the self appointed mobile disco man in Invernesss driving round blasting everying in the city with his quad in-car system. then i got another two hours of it from Rapson's coaches which had the radio on all the way from Inverness to Skye. When i got to Skye b/packers there was a system beside the desk in reception drumming out the rock. then I went to the kitchen and the computer there had speakers connected and the staff and friends gathered round to play videos. when they were playing cards on the dining area tables they still used the computer to play their music lists. when the computer was silent there was the obligatory kitchen ghetto blaster to blast out the rock/disco. i found a dimly room empty room, the 'lounge' and though i'd have a refuge there but soon found there were speakers there with wires going through a hole in the wall to the reception hi fi and the empty room was being rocked with rock. the room was too dimly lit to read in - because they were 'conserving energy' and it was miserable sitting there every evening and being unable to read because of the dim lighting. it was cold and wet outside. security was very poor. there were no lockers in the rooms and no keys to the dorm rooms. so one was on edge all the time because outsiders dropped in to use the internet and would have been able to access the dorms. i bring two cameras with me and worried about the open doors all the time as i saw people come and go. it was one of the worst hostels i've been in for disruption from alcohol use. second only to Glencree in Wicklow. the staff and friends talked about 'going to the pub' at around 11 pm when other were thinking of going to bed. there was a notice on the lounge wall about retiring at 11 pm but they went out and came back boozed and woke me up night after night. the first night with guffawing and shrieking in the early hours that sounded like thunder cracks. the second night by someone comeing into my dorm - i was there on my own that night - and asking for 'a light'. and the third night by noise that rocked the house like a storm, but i looked out and everything was calm and i stuffed more wax into my ears and pressed it in hard and still could feel the vibrations coming up through the pillow from downstairs. the roof was leaking and rainwater came through the ceiling at the entrance to the lounge. the showers were difficult as the slightest adjustment altered the water between scalding and freezing. it was chilly most of the time. I wanted to reading the lounge but could because of the dim light. i couldn't accept that they were conserving energy as they blasted umpteen watts of music into empty rooms and to people who didn't want it and deprived me of the ability to sit and read in a quiet room in the evenings. i felt that they took money from the paying guest but used it to pursue their own agenda of boozing and blasting making it impossible for the paying guest to enjoy anything. I had pains in my ears after three days and had to stuff them with wax so couldn't talk to anyone. I sought refuge on evening in the Scottish Radio Gaelic language programme but after only about six words of scottish Gaelic they dished up T. Rex; like the Irish language revivalist broadcasters they play host to the detritus of the rock world and i thought, as far as i was concerned they could stick their language revival, so should the Irish Gaelgoiri for the same reason. Once the nerve in my ear is activated and starts its painful throbbing from irritation i feel exasperated and suicidal and i did at Skye. they are surprised when the teens take to snorting and mainlining H. but what could they expect when they bombard them with the evil detritus of the the rock/rap world. I came away hating scotland and swearing never to go back there again. it was the most miserable week of my life but not as terrifying as Glencree where there was serious drunken vandalism with a person kicking someone kit around the dorm til he became exhaused. the staff were friendly and chatty but too narrowmined to see beyond their own agenda of booze/rock to realise how miserable it made paying guests. The coach drivers who play drumming music - most do in Bus Eireann in Ireland - always seem to career along and not seem to be in full control. There was hardly one minute during the whole week when somebody didn't feel the had the god given right to blast my eardrums with drumming, dum, dum, dum, dum, dum, dum endlessly, idiotically...close

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by poppyhostel – posted on Mar 7, 2007

25

Average. Some staff were nice, others down-right rude. A nice lounge for meeting people. They shifted me around each day I stayed (I had to change beds) which is a bit annoying when you've booked ahead. Good kitchen and free internet.

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by Kyle8253 – posted on Aug 29, 2006

7

I stayed there only 2 nights and I had to change room. this is unacceptable! and the staff did not even excuse for that...

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by sandrine9299 – posted on Aug 14, 2006

3

Staff was very good, helped to change later bookings and find replacement hostels due to inadvertant injury. Godd location for us as we had a car and could drive all around. Good area for walking to nearby sights as well. Would come back again

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by jrh8641 – posted on Aug 9, 2006

9

Solid hostel.

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by zgmos – posted on May 29, 2006

18

I had an absolute blast here but would like to see better showers and more of them.

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by Janet4756 – posted on Apr 26, 2006

29

Not the best base to explore the isle of skye, but nice enough. Good for one day, sociable place.

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by elwal – posted on Mar 21, 2005

5

I loved it! See you soon again

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by sophiasc – posted on Nov 5, 2004

1

This hostel was amazing. The staff are really great and friendly. Staying here felt like i was part of a large family. Excellent place!!

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by littlej9409 – posted on Oct 7, 2004

2

I had a great time there. The staff was friendly, but not always at the desk. the room was fine but hadn't been sanitized for a while. It smelled like body odor, but then again that might have had something to do with the other 7 guys in the room. The kitchen and lounge could have been much...

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by jonathan3293 – posted on Aug 18, 2004

3

Hi This was my first time in a hostel and I'm not really a hostel type person, however I was pleasantly surprised by this hostel. The hostel was clean and comfortable, very laid back and the staff were very friendly and welcoming. The views were lovely and I found it a very relaxing place. The... more Hi This was my first time in a hostel and I'm not really a hostel type person, however I was pleasantly surprised by this hostel. The hostel was clean and comfortable, very laid back and the staff were very friendly and welcoming. The views were lovely and I found it a very relaxing place. The only thing I think the hostel could do with is hooks in the bathrooms, with so many people sharing, it would have been good to have somewhere to hang things to stop clean clothes having to sit on the (wet) floor whilst showering! It was a lovely hostel and I will definately reccomend it, and am even inspired to try hosteling again! thanks Niciclose

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by nicigree – posted on Jul 27, 2004

1

very poor security. Maybe not such an issue on Skye but wouldn't stay there again.

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by travelli6980 – posted on Jul 19, 2004

11

-

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by opruss – posted on Jun 28, 2004

13

I've spent there the best time of all my journey. Wonderful location, nice people, nice staff....amazing!

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by agneseal – posted on Jun 28, 2004

14

I really didn't like not having locks on the door!!

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by whiteken – posted on Jun 11, 2004

10