On the downside, though, my room was very small and simple. For $25 for a single, not much more can be expected, but the real drawback is that the paper-thin walls allow you to hear all the other guests coming and going through the night. As with any hostel, you pay for what you get, but if you really need a good night's sleep, you might want to look elsewhere.

They’re almost always full. And if you do show up, you should turn up by 9am, because check out time is 10am. And here I was at Europe’s largest hostel at four in the afternoon. They didn’t have a bed in their cheapest dorms (which is what I did want) but they did have one in an 8-bed dorm, which cost me 15E. Not bad. I dumped my luggage and decided to take a look around.

The facilities are excellent. Clean rooms, carpeted hallways, super-clean showers and bathrooms. There is actually floor-space between the bunks so that you don’t have to hop around on your toes! The bar and lounge area are comfortable and welcoming. There’s a garden and a glass-covered conservatory.

There’s no curfew and access to rooms is by magnetic card. No matter what time you walk in (or out) you’ll always find someone at the reception to help you with loose change, pub/club directions, or lost access cards.

It's a ten minute walk from the Grand Place, and about three minutes away from the nearest tube. There's an internet kiosk in the hostel, but there is also a bigger and cheaper internet cafe arond the corner. If you walk down the street where the hostel is, there is a great pub at a corner on the left hand side.

Very nice indeed, and a good bargain for 15E.