The Monks Bunk

I stayed in The Monk's Bunk in January 2011 for a couple of nights. It has a friendly atmosphere and comfortable beds. The rooms also mostly have en-suite bathrooms, which is a bonus. There were big drawers for storage under the beds. The kitchen/ sitting room was nice and had all the mod cons, plus free tea and coffee. There were comfortable sofas and big coffee tables which everyone sat around in the evenings and played drinking games before going out at around 11pm - it was quite a social place.

On the negative side, there were no lockers so you have to hope the other guests are trustworthy souls. Also, it was a little on the cold side during the day, although the guy working on the front desk gave me a little space heater when I said so.

NB. Bring slippers - as with every home in the former Soviet Union, you have to take your shoes off at the front door.

Directions: Directions on website (watch out if you're using Lonely Planet - the map in there puts it in the wrong place)