Good - great value at the Saver rate of £29 per room if you book at least 21 days in advance. Five minutes walk from Haymarket rail station and 2 minutes from bus stop, a ten minute walk from Princes Street.

Bad – very difficult to find parking nearby as it’s mainly residents parking bays. The large bedrooms and bathrooms may be rather chilly in Winter.

Rating out of 10 – 9 (at £29 Saver rate)

I stayed on a night at the Edinburgh Haymarket Travelodge on Sunday 31 August 2008. I booked online on the 13 August at the Saver rate of £29, non refundable and payable up front. This rate was for a family room which could sleep up to 2 adults and 2 kids.

I was allocated a room on the lower ground floor facing the back of the hotel. I was happy with the location of my room as it was very quiet. There are major diversions in Haymarket at present due to the construction of the new Edinburgh tram lines and the traffic currently passes in front to the hotel. My room was very spacious and did look pretty spartan with the basic furniture. As it’s an older building the rooms are of varying sizes and layouts. I’m not convinced that the small electric heater would suffice during a cold spell, especially as there is no heating in the bathroom.

It was impossible to find a metered parking place close to the hotel as the vast majority of parking is set aside for residents. I drove down the main road toward Murrayfield and turned first left into Stanhope Place where there are several metered parking spaces at a charge of 70 pence per hour charged from 8.30 until 17.30. It took around 10 minutes to walk back to the hotel from here. However unless your hotel offers free on site parking, parking is always going to be a issue with a city centre hotel in Edinburgh.

This Travelodge does offer a cooked breakfast. If you book online in advance the price is £6.75, otherwise it’s £7.50. Kids eat free with paying adults, so it’s a good deal for a family if 4 can have breakfast for £13.50. You can also book a two course dinner online in advance for £8.

In summary if you want to stay in central Edinburgh at a very low price, the Edinburgh Haymarket is a good bet if you book in advance outside peak season. Travelodge have 2 other hotels in the city centre Edinburgh Central, just off the Royal Mile and Edinburgh West End close to the Gallery of Modern Art and the Water of Leith Walkway.

Click here for the lowest prices on Edinburgh hotels