While on a two week trip to Europe, my plan was to have a semi-break in the middle by renting an apartment. This would give us the opportunity to have a couple of home cooked meals, as well as getting a chance to do some laundry.
I had read pretty good reviews about the Staycity Apartments on hotels.com and Trip Advisor, but the recurring theme seemed to be the hard to find location and to a lesser extent the staff.
The only thing I knew was to take the airport shuttle and get off at Haymarket Station. From there, it would be a scavenger hunt, because according to most of the reviews, Staycity was located in a residential neighborhood and most locals did not even know of its existence.
While on the shuttle bus, one thing was crystal clear. They were doing major construction in Edinburgh, so a tough challenge got even worse.
After getting off of the shuttle bus, we took a couple minutes to try and get our bearings. Of course, never being in the city before we had no idea where we were. Fortunately, we ran into a couple of locals who were very helpful in pointing us in the right direction. Despite us having a small map, they were not exactly sure where the apartment was. They looked on their GPS on their cell phone and then had a pretty good idea of where the apartment was located.
The walk to the apartment is very long and uphill, so if you have a lot of luggage be prepared for a long and strenuous trek. After having some familiarity with the place, it might be easier to take the regular bus since it drops you off much closer to the apartment with no hills.
Staycity now has a sign in front of the apartments, something that seems to have been missing in many of the reviews I read.
Check-in was efficient. We arrived a little early, so the apartment was not ready. There are storage lockers where you can put your luggage so you have time to explore the city a little if you do arrive early.
The one bedroom, one bathroom apartment has laminate flooring. As you enter the apartment, the bathroom is to the left. Straight and to the right is the living room and kitchen. There is also a small dining table. The kitchen includes appliances, such as a stove, oven, microwave, refrigerator, dish washer and washing machine/dryer. The bad thing about the washing machine/dryer is that is a combination unit. Although it washes clothes nicely, the dryer function is just horrible. It is basically a hot spin cycle. It would take several hours to dry clothes, if lucky.
The bedroom is on the smaller side, with a small closet. The king bed is comfortable, but outlets are severely lacking throughout the apartment.
The bathroom is large with a huge shower. There is plenty of counter space and a medicine cabinet.
If your goal is to be close to the city center, Staycity is probably not for you, as it is a good 15-20 minute walk or bus ride to the city center. If you are looking for a well kept place, with a lot of space, then Staycity is for you. I would also recommend Staycity for those with large families or groups as it becomes more cost efficient
11 Brandfield Street
Haymarket
Edinburgh, EH3 8AS
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