A Hundred Metres from the Trains and the Trams
Walk out of Haymarket station, cross the road, turn into the first crescent on your left and you are there. That is the entire journey. Rosebery Crescent runs straight off Haymarket Terrace, which means Joivy Haymarket sits about a hundred metres from Edinburgh's second station and the tram stop that runs to the airport in under half an hour. One booking site lists that distance as 950 metres. It is not.
Inside a Category B listed Victorian townhouse are twenty-six rooms that have had real money and taste spent on them: navy feature walls against white cornicing, bay windows onto the tenements opposite, dark wood, brass and yellow accents. There is a shared lounge with a coffee machine guests write about, and small welcome touches that have included a Tunnock's caramel wafer on the bed.
The West End around it is quieter than the Old Town and better connected than almost anywhere: the conference centre is ten minutes on foot, Princes Street fifteen, Murrayfield a mile, and Dean Village and the Water of Leith walkway are ten minutes north.
Nobody Is Going to Meet You
This is the model, and it is the thing to decide about before anything else. There is no reception and no staff on site at any hour. After booking you get an app code and complete a photo-ID verification, then you let yourself in. Support is remote and available around the clock, and guests overwhelmingly report that it works: instructions clear, entry straightforward, questions answered.
The caveats are real though. One guest pointed out that the whole thing runs through your phone, so arriving with a flat battery and no signal leaves you standing on the pavement. Another liked everything but noted there was nobody on site if something had gone wrong, and nothing did. If you want somebody to hand you a key and recommend a restaurant, this is the wrong building.
Two other things follow from the staffless model. There is no luggage storage of any kind, including before check-in, so plan around that or use one of the paid lockers near the station. And the property is adults only: Joivy states that building regulations mean only guests aged 18 and over can stay, which also explains why the family room here is for adults sharing rather than for children.
Small Bathrooms, and Some Rooms Need Attention
The rooms photograph beautifully and most of them deliver. But the reviews are consistent about two things and it would be dishonest to skip them. The bathrooms are small: fine, in one guest's phrasing, for a smaller person and awkward for a bigger one, with a shower that one visitor found slow to drain. And the wear shows in places. One guest listed scuffed walls, chipped furniture and stained lampshades, and made a point of saying it was not the cleaners' fault but a maintenance one.
Other recurring notes: there is no air conditioning, which told during a 26-degree spell; the quilts are winter-weight and too warm for a Scottish summer; one guest in room 25 reported a machine hum at night and another in room 15 a smell from the toilet. Floorboards in some rooms are springy. None of this is unusual in a converted Victorian townhouse, and none of it stopped most guests scoring the stay well.
The counterweight is the location score, which is the highest thing on the card by a distance, and the cleanliness, which reviewers mention constantly. Book it for where it is and for the room design, and go in knowing that the bathroom will be tight.
Why Book Joivy Haymarket?
Twenty-six rooms in a Victorian townhouse a hundred metres from the rail and tram interchange, run without a single member of staff on the premises. That combination is either exactly what you want or exactly what you do not.
It really is opposite the station
Rosebery Crescent runs straight off Haymarket Terrace, so the station and the tram stop are about a hundred metres away, two minutes on foot. Guests say opposite and across the road because that is what it is. One booking site lists it at 950 metres; that figure is wrong and it is worth correcting before you plan your arrival.
The airport in half an hour, without changing
The tram from Haymarket runs to Edinburgh Airport in about twenty-five to thirty minutes, and the Airlink 100 bus does it in twenty-five to thirty-five, around the clock, roughly every ten minutes by day. For a 6am flight that is the difference between a taxi and a lie-in.
Rooms that have had thought put into them
Navy feature walls, restored Victorian cornicing, bay windows looking over West End tenements, yellow accents and dark wood. There is a shared lounge with a proper coffee machine, and guests keep mentioning the welcome touches, which have included a Tunnock's caramel wafer.
Nobody is on site, at all
Check-in is by app code with photo-ID verification and there is 24-hour remote support, but no reception and no staff in the building. Most guests report it working smoothly. Some found it unnerving, and one pointed out you are stuck if you arrive with a flat phone battery and no signal.
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Interesting Points About Joivy Haymarket
- Haymarket station is about a hundred metres away, a two-minute walk. Some listings put it at 950 metres, which is simply wrong
- The property is adults only: Joivy states that building regulations mean only guests aged 18 and over may stay
- Four names, one address: The Glenora Guest House until 2019, then My Edinburgh Life, then ALTIDO Haymarket, and Joivy Haymarket since October 2024
- The reservation link still carries the ALTIDO name in its web address, which confuses people who think they are on the wrong listing
- The building belongs to the Category B listed group at 10 to 14 Rosebery Crescent, listed on 10 December 1964
- There is no on-site luggage storage at all, not even before check-in, so plan around it
- The Airlink 100 bus from Haymarket runs 24 hours a day, roughly every ten minutes in the day and half-hourly overnight
Rooms & Accommodation at Joivy Haymarket
Studio
18 m², private kitchenette
Eighteen square metres with its own kitchenette set into a black fitted run, a sofa, and an original tiled fireplace left in place against the white cornicing. Best for anyone staying several nights who wants to make their own breakfast, since the property does not serve one, and for guests who would rather not eat out every meal in a city where that adds up fast.
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Deluxe Double Room
18 m², city view, bay window
Eighteen square metres with the best window in the building: a full Victorian bay with a sofa in it, looking over the tenements of the crescent. Restored cornicing, a round mirror and a dark console finish it. Best for couples who want the nicest room here rather than the cheapest, and it is the one worth paying up for.
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Family Room with Private Bathroom
22 m², the largest room
At twenty-two square metres this is the biggest room in the house, with a double and two singles. Read the name carefully though: the property is adults only for building-regulation reasons, so this is a room for up to four adults sharing rather than for a family with children. Best for groups of friends on a rugby or festival weekend.
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Standard Double Room
15 m², double bed
Fifteen square metres with a black bed frame against a navy wall, a desk with a kettle and a window onto the crescent. This is the workhorse room and the one most guests book. Best for a couple or a solo traveller on a short trip who wants the location and a room that looks like the photographs.
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Small Single Room
Single bed, private bathroom
The cheapest way in: one single bed with its own bathroom. Worth flagging a listing oddity, which is that the small single is shown as larger than the plain single, so neither figure should be taken as gospel. Best for a solo traveller passing through on a train, who wants a private bathroom rather than a hostel dorm and will be out all day.
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Single Room
Compact single, desk and kettle
A compact single with a desk, a kettle, a mirror and fitted white shelving, in the same navy and white scheme as the rest. Best for a business traveller in for a night at the conference centre ten minutes away, or anyone catching an early tram to the airport who wants somewhere neat to work first.
Check PricesIs Joivy Haymarket Right for You?
Best Suited For
- Anyone arriving or leaving by train, given the station is a hundred metres away
- Early flights and late landings, with the tram and the 24-hour Airlink both at the door
- Rugby and concert crowds heading to Murrayfield, one tram stop or a twenty-minute walk
- Independent travellers who would rather use an app than queue at a desk
Worth Considering Alternatives If
- Families with children, because the property is adults only for building-regulation reasons
- Anyone who wants staff on site, a concierge or somebody to hand them a key
- Guests who need a lift, or who cannot manage stairs to an upper floor
- Travellers who need to drop luggage before check-in, because there is none here at all
Amenities and House Rules
In Your Room
- Private bathroom with shower, free toiletries and a hairdryer
- Flat-screen TV
- Kettle
- Desk and seating area
- Wardrobe
- Heating
- Free Wi-Fi
- Not available: Air conditioning
- Iron
Shared Spaces
- Shared lounge with a TV
- Free coffee and tea, with a machine guests rate highly
- Ironing facilities
- Small garden or courtyard
- Welcome touches in the room, which have included a Tunnock's caramel wafer
Getting In
- Self check-in by app code with photo-ID verification
- 24-hour remote support
- Invoice provided
- Not available: Reception
- Not available: Lift
- Not available: Luggage storage
Getting About
- Haymarket rail and tram station about 100 m away, a 2-minute walk
- The tram runs to Edinburgh Airport in about 25 to 30 minutes
- The Airlink 100 bus runs 24 hours, roughly every 10 minutes by day
- Edinburgh Waverley about 2.3 km
- Not available: Parking
House Rules
- Adults only, 18 and over, which Joivy attributes to building regulations
- Not available: Pets
- Non-smoking throughout
- Not available: Cash
- Not available: Restaurant, bar or breakfast
- Not available: Room service
Location and Getting Around
Rosebery Crescent is a curve of listed Victorian townhouses running off Haymarket Terrace in Edinburgh's West End. It is a quieter, more residential part of the city than the Old Town, and it is arguably the best-connected address in Edinburgh that is not actually inside a station.
Haymarket rail and tram station is about a hundred metres away, a two-minute walk. From there the tram reaches Edinburgh Airport in twenty-five to thirty minutes and the Airlink 100 bus does the same run around the clock. Waverley is 2.3 kilometres east, and the West Maitland Street bus stops are five minutes on foot.
Walking distances from the door: the conference centre eight to ten minutes, Princes Street fifteen, Dean Village and the Water of Leith ten to twelve, the Scottish National Gallery twenty, Edinburgh Castle twenty to twenty-five and the Grassmarket about twenty. Murrayfield Stadium, the largest stadium in Scotland at 67,144 seats, is a mile away, which is one tram stop or a twenty-minute walk.
- Haymarket station, rail and tram: About 100 m, a 2-minute walk
- West Maitland Street bus stops: About a 5-minute walk
- Edinburgh International Conference Centre: About half a mile, an 8 to 10 minute walk
- Princes Street: About 0.7 miles, a 15-minute walk
- Dean Village: About 0.7 miles north, a 10 to 12 minute walk
- Murrayfield Stadium: About a mile, a 20-minute walk or one tram stop
- Scottish National Gallery: About 1.2 miles, a 20-minute walk
- Edinburgh Castle: About 1.2 km, a 20 to 25 minute walk
- The Grassmarket: About a mile, a 20-minute walk
- Edinburgh Waverley station: About 2.3 km
Getting to Key Locations
Photo: Mike Shaw, CC BY-SA 4.0
Dean Village
12 min walk
A 12-minute walk north drops you into the old milling hamlet on the Water of Leith, where the river falls over the Miller Row weir below tall stone mill buildings and the whole thing looks nothing like a capital city. The walkway runs from here right through to Leith, and it is the best hour in Edinburgh that costs nothing.
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Photo: Iain Lees, CC BY-SA 2.0
Murrayfield Stadium
20 min walk
A 20-minute walk west, or a single tram stop, brings you to Scotland's national rugby ground: 67,144 seats, the largest stadium in the country and the fifth largest in the UK, and one of its biggest concert venues. On a Six Nations Saturday this address is worth several times what you paid for it, because you walk home rather than fight for a tram.
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Photo: Enchufla Con Clave, CC BY-SA 4.0
Edinburgh Castle
25 min walk
A 25-minute walk east along the West End takes you up to the castle rock, where the Crown Jewels and the Stone of Destiny sit behind the Half Moon Battery. From this side of town you approach along Princes Street with the gardens below you, which is a considerably better arrival than coming up the Royal Mile with the crowds.
View on MapHow to Get to Joivy Haymarket
- From Edinburgh Airport: Take the tram towards the city centre or the Airlink 100 bus, and get off at Haymarket, twenty-five to thirty minutes either way. Cross to Haymarket Terrace, take the first crescent on your left, and the building is a two-minute walk. The airport tram single is £7.90 in 2026, frozen for the year, and the Airlink adult single is £6.00.
- From Edinburgh Waverley: Take any westbound train one stop to Haymarket, or the tram, or walk the 2.3 kilometres in about half an hour along Princes Street. From Haymarket it is two minutes.
- Arriving late: The Airlink 100 runs 24 hours, roughly every ten minutes by day and about every half hour overnight, so a very late landing is not a problem. Because check-in is by app code with no reception, arrival time genuinely does not matter, provided your phone is charged and you have completed the ID verification.
- By car: There is no parking at the property and Rosebery Crescent is permit-controlled. The nearest practical option is the Distillery Lane car park about a minute from the station, open around the clock, from roughly £2.20 an hour or around £25 to £30 for a pre-booked multi-day stay. Given the tram and the trains, leaving the car at home is the better plan.
Edinburgh from the West End
The West End is where Edinburgh gets on with its life. Haymarket is a working interchange rather than a tourist gateway, the crescents around it are residential, and the pubs on Dalry Road and William Street are the sort locals use. You are fifteen minutes from Princes Street and twenty-five from the castle, but you sleep away from the noise.
Three dates fill this address. August brings the Fringe, the International Festival and the Tattoo, and the city sells out. Hogmanay does the same at the end of December. And Six Nations weekends in February and March fill Murrayfield, a mile away, which is when being on this side of town stops being a convenience and starts being a strategy.
For the rest of the year the West End is one of the better-value parts of Edinburgh to sleep in, with the Water of Leith walkway on your doorstep, Dean Village ten minutes north, and the tram to the airport making an early flight almost pleasant.
Watch: Three Days in Edinburgh
A three-day run through the city you would be a tram ride from, taking in Stockbridge, Calton Hill and where to eat well without paying festival prices.
Is Joivy Haymarket worth it?
If you are arriving by train or flying early, yes. A well-designed room in a listed townhouse a hundred metres from the rail and tram interchange, the airport half an hour away and Murrayfield one stop. What you give up is any human contact: no reception, no staff, no luggage room, and a check-in that lives on your phone. Charge it, pack light for the stairs, and it is a very good night in Edinburgh.
What Guests Say About Joivy Haymarket
Scores and review counts are aggregated from verified guest bookings on major travel platforms.
Very good
Across nearly three thousand reviews the shape is consistent. Location is far and away the strongest thing, followed by cleanliness and comfort, and the room design gets mentioned more than you would expect at this price. The lowest score is for staff, which is worth reading carefully: there are no staff on site, so what is being rated is a remote model rather than rude people. The recurring complaints are small bathrooms, tired fittings in some rooms and the absence of air conditioning in summer.
Said everything ran smoothly online with clear instructions, in a big comfortable room with a cosy shared space, and loved being across from the station with good, less crowded local places to eat nearby. Her only reservation was that nobody would be on site if something went wrong, and nothing did.
Gabriela
Called it basic but comfortable: a comfy bed, and free coffee and fruit in the shared areas she had not expected. The bathroom was tiny but worked, with better toiletries than she anticipated, and being right across from Haymarket station was the highlight. The room felt tired, with wobbly furniture and peeling paint, and she flagged that a check-in run entirely through your phone leaves you stuck if you arrive with a flat battery or no signal.
2026-08-18Liked the location and how quiet it was. Her one complaint was the bathroom, which she found fine for a smaller person and not suitable for a bigger one.
2026-08-16Stayed in room 25 and found it noisy overnight, describing it as a machine sound.
2026-08-08Found it spotless and full of daylight thanks to a large window, and loved that the welcome gift was a Tunnock's caramel wafer, which she said made the place feel homely.
2026-08-03Found the app-guided check-in clearly explained, the beds comfortable and the coffee machine in the shared lounge excellent, in a clean and central spot that felt safe. The downsides were no fan or air conditioning during a twenty-six degree spell, and some springy floorboards.
2026-08-02Rated the location. The only thing she would change is the quilt, which she found far too warm for summer.
2026-07-30Said everything ran smoothly online with clear instructions, in a big comfortable room with a cosy shared space, and loved being across from the station with good, less crowded local places to eat nearby. Her only reservation was that nobody would be on site if something went wrong, and nothing did.
2026-07-27Found it extremely easy to reach, literally opposite the train station. What let it down was a bad smell from the toilet in room 15.
2026-07-27Called the location fantastic and handy for transport connections, but said the room needed care: carpets and woodwork wanting a thorough clean, walls chipped and scuffed, furniture shabby and the bedside lampshades stained. She was clear she did not blame the cleaners and thought the owners should be checking more often.
2026-07-23Found it close to everything, neat and clean, with a spacious living area and everything she needed. The bathroom was on the small side but manageable, and the shower drained poorly.
2026-07-21Good to Know Before You Book
Nobody is on site, so charge your phone
Check-in is by app code with photo-ID verification and support is remote around the clock. Guests report it working well, but the whole system runs through your phone, so arriving with a dead battery and no signal is a genuine problem. Complete the ID verification before you travel.
Adults only, for building-regulation reasons
Joivy states that only guests aged 18 and over may stay at this property, which it attributes to building regulations. That is worth knowing because the room list includes a family room: it sleeps four adults, not a family with children. If you are travelling with under-18s, this is not the right booking.
No luggage storage, at all
There is none, including before check-in. If you arrive on an early train, use one of the paid locker services near Haymarket rather than turning up hoping. This catches people out more than anything else about the staffless model.
The station is 100 metres away, not 950
One booking site lists Haymarket station at 950 metres. Rosebery Crescent runs straight off Haymarket Terrace, so the true distance is around a hundred metres and a two-minute walk. Plan your arrival on the real figure, particularly if you are carrying bags up to an upper floor.
Cancellation terms depend on the rate
Cancellation and prepayment conditions vary by the rate you choose, and a refundable deposit may be pre-authorised on your card. The terms that apply show before you confirm, so check them against your dates, especially in August and at Hogmanay.
Call Joivy Haymarket
This is Joivy's central guest line for Scotland rather than a desk in the building, since there is no reception here. Use it to ask about a ground-floor room, the child policy or anything the app has not answered.
+44 131 510 8567Photos of Joivy Haymarket
Frequently Asked Questions
It is at 13 Rosebery Crescent in the West End, and the crescent runs straight off Haymarket Terrace. Haymarket rail and tram station is about a hundred metres away, a two-minute walk, which is why guests describe it as opposite. One booking site lists 950 metres; that figure is wrong.
You receive an access code through the app after completing a photo-ID verification, then you let yourself in. There is no reception and nobody on site at any hour, but remote support runs around the clock. Guests overwhelmingly report the process being smooth. Charge your phone before you travel, because the whole system depends on it.
Not at the property, and Rosebery Crescent is permit-controlled. The nearest practical option is the Distillery Lane car park, about a minute from Haymarket station and open around the clock, from roughly £2.20 an hour or around £25 to £30 for a pre-booked multi-day stay. There is some free but scarce street parking on Murrayfield Avenue.
The property does not serve breakfast. What it does have is a shared lounge with free coffee and tea and a machine guests rate highly, and the studio room has its own kitchenette with a fridge and microwave. There are cafés within a couple of minutes around Haymarket.
Yes, all of them. The building traded as The Glenora Guest House until 2019, then as My Edinburgh Life, then as ALTIDO Haymarket, and has been Joivy Haymarket since October 2024, when the ALTIDO brand was retired across the group. The reservation link still carries the ALTIDO name in its web address, which is why people think they have landed on the wrong listing.
No. Joivy states that building regulations mean only guests aged 18 and over may stay here, and the minimum check-in age is 18. This matters because the room list includes a family room with a double and two singles: that room sleeps four adults sharing, not a family with children. If you are travelling with under-18s, book elsewhere.
Take the tram towards the city and get off at Haymarket, about twenty-five to thirty minutes, with a 2026 airport single at £7.90. Or take the Airlink 100 bus, twenty-five to thirty-five minutes, adult single £6.00, which runs 24 hours a day and roughly every ten minutes during the day. Either way it is a two-minute walk from Haymarket.
There is no lift, and upper floors are reached by stairs only. Ground-floor rooms exist but are subject to availability. Step-free entry and accessible bathrooms are not documented, so if you need either, contact Joivy directly before booking rather than relying on the listing.
No, pets are not allowed, and the property is non-smoking throughout. Payment is by card only: American Express, Visa, Mastercard and Maestro, with no cash accepted.
No. There is no luggage storage of any kind at the property, including before check-in and after check-out, which follows from there being no staff on site. Use one of the paid locker services near Haymarket station instead.
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Ready to Step Off the Train?
Twenty-six designed rooms a hundred metres from Haymarket rail and tram, with the airport half an hour away and Murrayfield one stop. Charge your phone and check the dates.
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