Palmers Lodge – Hotelling in Splendour

Fancy staying in a millionaire’s house? For £15 a night? It can be done!

Palmers Lodge (map), in Swiss Cottage, was the home of Mr Palmer, of Huntly and Palmer’s biscuits. He was immensely rich and he didn’t spare the expense when he commissioned a new house – wood panelling, stained glass, it was meant to be splendid and show off his wealth. And now it’s a great backpackers’ hostel.

Could this be a swish country house hotel? No, it's Palmers Lodge reception

It offers a huge amount of choice in accommodations from private four-person rooms and mixed dorms with double beds to big single-sex dorm rooms. I was surprised how they’ve managed to pack in the beds while giving everyone enough privacy – each bed has its own light, and curtains to separate your personal space from the rest of the room.

An almost obsessive cleaning schedule keeps the place spick and span; there’s free internet access, free breakfast, and an on-site bar and restaurant. All this, and it’s a couple of minutes walk from the Tube – a great budget option.

But it’s the lounge that is most impressive, and the huge oak staircase that leads from the reception area to the upper floors, and the chandeliers. It’s not often that I stay in a hostel and get the chance to dream that I’m a millionaire – but at Palmers Lodge, I could. Fantastic.