This youth hostel is located around 8/10 mins walking distance from Cambridge railway station. This hotel is best suited for budget travellers. Here you have the option for both dormitories (more cheaper) and double/four person occupancy rooms.

If you compare the price of a descent cambridge hotel with this one then you will find this more than 50% economic.

The hostel also server wonderful complimentary English breakfast as well.

Please do not forget to bring your own towel and any toilataries you may need. Separate bathrooms for opposite sex is also available. Hotel check in time is 2 PM. So plan accordingly.

Having had a previous positive experience with another YHA, I decided to give Cambridge YHA a try. The rate was fairly reasonable and included breakfast.

The hostel is close to the rail station and about a 15 minute walk to the Coach terminus.

On arrival, the reception area is somewhat delapidated and the receptionist seemed more keen to try to sell me meals, drinks and internet than giving salient information about the hostel.

I was given a dorm room on the top floor, the first thing I noticed was a pile of used bedding outside the door - this was still there 24 hours later. On entering the room, clearly it hadn't been cleaned in an age, the bin was overflowing and there was litter all over the place. To be noted this was not removed when I checked out 2 days later.

The shower opposite was passable, however the door didn't lock and I would imagine some people could be offended by this.

There was a self catering kitchen which just about had the basics but wasn't somewhere you would want to linger.

The breakfast was probably the best point, it was a good selection with a bit of everything. I just wish they also paid the same attention to their cleaning standards which quite honestly were bordering on unacceptable.

You have to remember it is a high volume hostel and gets the associated wear and tear but that is no reason not to clean the place and I think they either need more staff or to retrain the ones that they have.

I probably would use YHA again but not YHA Cambridge.

I stayed at the YHA from May 25-27, 2009 and got room #1, bed 4 (bottom bunk). I had really no troubles at all other than finding it ( I walked past it once before noticing the YHA sign). The front desk was always helpful, if a little bit forgetful. I was able to rent a nice big towel for 1 pound and did laundry as well for a couple pounds more. The showers were nice and big enough for me to change in fairly comfortably. Each shower stall had a locking door on the front since they're co-ed showers. The room were okay. They could stand to be updated with new carpeting and more lights but for the amount of time I actually used the room (sleeping and packing), I didn't mind. The only real problem I had were the lack of lockers in the rooms.
The morning breakfasts were standard fare but were always hot and freshly made and if you didn't want to go out at night, there is a large common room with board games and comfy couches and another common room with satelite tv.
At night, there is a bar area in the dining room that you can buy beer at if you don't want to go out. A full kitchen is at the other end of the main floor, along with internet access. The internet was priced outragously high though and I used the internet at a convienience store down the road for 0.90p/hour instead.
I would probably stay here again the next time I visit Cambridge. It's close to the train station, only a 5-10min. walk from the colleges and quiet.

A dormitory literally means a room to sleep in - imagine my surprise when I found I had to share with 5 other men!

When I arrived there was literally no one able or prepared to carry my bags to my room, and can you imagine being given a plastic bag with clean linen in it with which I had quite literally to make my own bed with.

The "hostel" is literally 10 mins walk to the centre of town, when I pointed out how far I had to walk, and that I therefore expected a reduction in my rate, they just plin ignored me.

This was not a 5 star hotel, and could never be described as such, even in South America.