The Generator is a fairly decent place as far as hostels go. As far as I know it is one of the two largest hostels in London along with Piccadilly Backpackers over by Piccadilly Square. There are over 800 beds located on multiple floors and they have all different accomodation configurations. Like most hostels they have your typical shared rooms available but also offer a selection of private singles, doubles, triples and so on. We got a private triple room just for the peace of mind it provides with the added security for 75 pounds per night which essentially ended up being approximately $50-55 USD per night per person. Considering how pricey London is, this was not a bad deal at all. The room is simple and actually had two sets of bunk beds in it so we had an extra bed on which to store a bunch of our stuff. The room also had a private sink which was a nice added bonus.

The hostel itself is located on Tavistock Place proximate to the King's Cross/St. Pancras Tube station which is one of the main transportation hubs in the city. It is also close the the Russell Square stop on the blue line which goes all the way to Heathrow Airport. We were unaware of this when we arrived and it would have saved us a lot of hassle. Despite being such a large hostel the place was VERY difficult to find. Tavistock Place is not a well known street and hard to find on most maps. In addition, to get to the hostel off Tavistock you have to walk under a small brick tunnel that goes off the side of the street. Once you get through the tunnel you will be in a small courtyard and see the staircase into the hostel off to your right. I don't know if it's because most people staying in hostels don't usually take cabs or what the deal was but no cab throughout our whole stay ever dropped us off in the right spot or knew where the place was when we were trying to get home. We got completely lost at least three or four times. Considering it is such a large hostel you'd think cab drivers would know where it is but none of them did, nor could any of them find Tavistock Place. Often they would dump us out at Tavistock Square which is sort of nearby but very hard to locate the hostel from at night if you don't have a map (or even if you do). The cabs would literlly drop us off like three or four blocks away and it would be SO HARD to find little Tavistock Place. We even had a crew of firemen pull out a detailed map from their truck and they couldn't find it. (Good thing there was no emergency at the hostel because even the ambulance driver couldn't find the damn street even though we were only four blocks away)

The hostel itself has a fair number of amenities. Bathrooms on each floor are communal but you are allowed unlimited hot water and they were never crowded despite the place being so large. There is a 24 hour internet cafe downstairs that is reasonably priced. There is a restaurant that serves meals (we never ate there as we preferred to get out and experience the city) and a bar that has game and theme nights most days of the week. Although the drinks in the bar are probably some of the cheapest in town we never set foot in the place becuase the whole room was blanketed in a choking clowd of cigarette smoke. The internet cafe was very smoky too. There is also a little store that sells toiletries and other essentials. If you want a pretty good, reasonably priced sandwich go right on Tavistock Place and take your first left. It will be on your right a few doors down opposite a small bookstore. Good paninis.

This place has no frills but considering hotel rooms in London start at about $300 a night this was a pretty good deal.

The London Generator is situated in Compton Place, via an archway at 37 Tavistock Place, Bloomsbury. It is just a five-minute walk from Russell Square tube station and was to be my base for three nights.

Having checked in, I arrived at room 219 and entered via the magnetic strip key card. I had opted for a single room, rather than share a dormitory with anything up to a dozen other people. For this, I paid £35 per night, an absolute bargain for this or any other area of central London.

The room was certainly spartan with a double bunk, a wash-basin, two plastic chairs, and a small table, plus a large window with an uninspiring view of the fire escape. But I suppose you get what you pay for, and with a trip to Greece looming, the budget was a bit tight.

The rate does include breakfast, this is a self-service affair on the ground floor and is essentially cereals and/or toast, but you can eat as much as you like.

The Generator features a late-night bar, open until 2am, a restaurant, and a nightclub. I was certainly 20 years older than the average guest here, which didn’t bother me but might be off-putting to some. Contrary to some reports I’d heard, the place is well run, with a minimum of noise at night. It is situated in a residential area, and the staff try to ensure that any racket is quickly silenced.

There are male and female showers and toilets on each floor. These are, again, a bit cell-block-like but nevertheless were clean and tidy, and there were ample facilities for all, without any waiting around. Towels are provided, but these have to last you for your stay.

The reception service is woefully slow. I came back on Friday evening to find my card wouldn’t open my door. The queue for reception was four deep, and I waited almost 30 minutes for them to reactivate the door card.

There are security staff on the front door and you might be asked to show your card upon entering. The front doors are locked after 11pm and you will then have to enter via a first floor door accessed via part of the fire escape. It was rather warm in room 219, but I was fortunate enough to have an extractor fan that kept it cool at night.

The Generator essentially caters for the 16-30 backpacking age group for whom budget is everything. They no doubt view staying here as a bit of fun. It was okay, but I would seriously consider whether or not to stay here again.

The Generator is wonderful and huge hostel in a pretty good location. It is located within walking distance of The British Museum and about two to three blocks from a tube stop. As with most places, you get a simple breakfast including toast, cereal, juice, and coffee. They do offer more options, like eggs and bacon, but they cost extra.

There is a bar in the building that can get a bit rowdy at times. The best thing about the bar is that the prices are much lower than any of the other bars I went to. The decor is somewhat futuristic, with lots of blue neon and metal everywhere.

The rooms are basic in all senses of the word. There is one small sink in each room and a locker for each bed. The beds are metal bunk beds, but they can be different, depending on which type of arrangement you choose (1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, or 12+). There are shared bathrooms/showers, like in most hostels in London, but these could have been in better shape.

London is such an expensive city, I will always stay here to save the money, but hostels are not for everyone. If you want to be pampered and have all the luxuries of home, do not stay here. If you want an inexpensive and fun place to stay that is within walking distance of major sites, this is the place to be.

The Generator can be big and scary. It's a huge building, and most of the rooms seem to be 8-14 people in a room. It's also fairly noisy at any hour of the day, just because there are so many people around.

The perks: You get a locker, the bathrooms are clean, and there's a free drink in the bar with your stay. The bar located in the hostel is reasonably priced and open late. The staff has a wealth of travel information, from brochures to their own recommendations.

The downfalls: It's always buzzing with activity. The rooms have a lot of guests in each of them, so it is hard to find a quiet place.

If you've ever wanted to relive your dorm years at college, then you definitely want to stay at The Generator. Everyone else will probably want to stay away. This enormous hostel has hundreds of mostly American students, and the people who live in the area are constantly complaining about the noise from this place every night. The Generator has its own bar that is open very late, and it seems that a lot of under-21s from the States are so enamored with this that they neglect to leave the hostel to see anything else in London. Still, the location and the prices are good, and it is very popular among teens.