Apex Grassmarket Hotel - Edinburgh

S G.

Staying at the Apex Grassmarket Hotel was an absolute dream, and our deluxe castle view room was the highlight. The room was spacious, beautifully decorated, and the view of Edinburgh Castle was simply breathtaking—it felt like we had our own private viewing deck!

While the hotel doesn't have air conditioning, they were quick to provide us with a fan upon request, which kept the room comfortable. The staff was incredibly friendly and helpful throughout our stay, offering great local tips and making us feel completely at home.

The location is perfect, right in the vibrant Grassmarket area with countless pubs, restaurants, and shops just steps away. Despite being in such a lively area, our room was surprisingly quiet, and the bed was so comfortable we slept soundly every night.

The cleanliness was impeccable, and all the amenities were top-notch. From start to finish, our experience at the Apex Grassmarket Hotel was flawless. We can't recommend it enough and are already looking forward to our next visit!

Gina L.

My family of four stayed at the Apex Grassmarket for a couple of days recently, and had an exceptional experience. The location of the hotel is excellent (just a 5 minute walk to Edinburgh Castle and the Royal Mile), the rooms comfortable, the breakfast delicious, and the service was fantastic. We had a beautiful view of the castle from our room. It was unseasonably warm during the couple days that we were in Edinburgh, and the hotel thoughtfully provided fans for our room.

I'd like to especially thank Alasdair Campbell at the front desk who went above and beyond. He was so friendly and helpful during our stay! My children were enamored by the rubber duckies that are iconic to the hotel, and he personally delivered them to our room (and explained where we might find a few more just down the street). My kids loved this! Additionally, I very absentmindedly forgot our passports in the safe the day we left, and he promptly reassured me via email that they were found, secured, and would be delivered to our next hotel. Such a relief!

Thank you again for a fabulous stay!

Juliet W.

Overall a great stay. The staff was so, so kind and helpful and were always willing to offer recommendations and assistance when necessary. However, there was no air conditioning which meant we had to sleep with the windows open. This would’ve been fine if not for the workers coming in and out of the hotel with crates at 6 am. It was incredibly noisy, and woke us all up. It went on for at least an hour, so it was impossible for us to go back to sleep. I understand there’s not much the hotel can do about this, but it’s something to consider if you get a back room.

Jason L.

Warm welcome as Anna and Alastair’s checked us in, offered dining recommendations, and helped us set up transportation to St. Andrews.

Location was great as it has a wonderful view of Edinburgh castle and is within walking distance to many attractions.

However, this is not a 4 star hotel as it seems it has been some time since this hotel has been updated. The seating in the lobby area is stained and worn off. While in our room the curtain were difficult to open/close, the shower leaked, and the bathroom door was tired.

Overall we enjoyed our stay due to the pleasant staff and location but we felt the hotel could be better maintained/refreshed.

Sam H. (.

The hotel was nice enough. The room, despite being a "superior" (or something similar) wasn't really - quite limited space, fairly basic fixtures & fittings, a very limp shower, small bath etc. Nothing major, just not superior/premium as advertised.

Staff were friendly, welcoming and helpful. The place was clean and tidy.

The price that we paid was quite reasonable for central Edinburgh. We didn't opt for breakfast (£17.50/19.50pp depending on whether you pre-booked) - we had excellent breakfasts elsewhere for about £14pp.

Transport links are good. Well located for visiting the city. A nice view of the castle.

Pool is tiny, so fine for going for a dip, but no good for actually swimming in.

Not one to avoid necessarily, but I'm sure there's better options available.

Aislinn S.

This hotel is in a lovely area and the staff was great. Easy check in and Angelo at the bar was phenomenal! However, the rooms are falling apart and the "spa" was quite bleh. We had a room with a balcony and the view was superb. But the rooms and hallways were soooo dated. The electrical key card holder fell out of the wall every time we used it, there were stains on the carpet, stains on the curtains, the towel hanger was falling out of the wall, the hallway had stained drop tile ceilings, etc. Just felt very dated. We only stayed for a night and it was nice, but small updates to the rooms would go a long long way.

William W.

*Rooms : The room was nice , decent amenities although there is no air conditioning. It got up to 80° fahrenheit on one day and the room was very stuffy, even with the window open, but they do provide a fan and it helped some.
*Location: It's in a great place with easy walks to the Royal Mile and pick up locations for bus tours
*Breakfast: It's decent, just wish the would include the hot bar for guests instead of just the menu
*Staff: For the most part, the regular staff was friendly and helpful. The management not so much and found that out after a situation we encountered. We asked about laundry and we was told they had a service. Just bring down out laundry in the bag and have the card filled out which we did. We left some specific instructions about some of out items and when we received the items back, the service did not follow the instructions we asked for. We also was given the bill and was astonished at how expensive it was. We could buy a washing machine for what they charged us .. literally. Went back to the desk to speak with them about the items that were messed up and was told they would investigate. They did refund us some of the charge but told us we would have to deal with the company that they hire for these jobs. The laundry company disputed our claims (basically called is liars) and the hotel seems to be backing them so be wary. The name of the laundry service is New Whites in Edinburgh

John M.

Bed is the most uncomfortable bed I've ever slept on and they use pillows that are awful for anyone with allergies.

I requested hypoallergenic pillows and waited for over 2 hours (didn't arrive before midnight). I wouldn't recommend this hotel and I don't plan to go back. After more than 2 hours, I was brought the wrong pillows and had to wait an additional 30 minutes for the correct hypoallergenic pillows.

We stayed 2 nights and will leave without any nights of quality sleep after this experience.

The location is in a great place in the heart of Edinburgh but the service and room quality were both horrendous.