The Times Hostel – Camden Place

I landed in Dublin early in the morning, even though check-​in wasn’t until 1400. I was carrying my whole life on my back, but they were kind enough to let me leave my bag at the front before the check-​in time so I could go exploring without killing myself.
Stayed here for a small fee — must have spent less than $ 40 for two nights. They had a wide variety of amenities for its travelers to take advantage of: TV, computers, kitchen, common room, etc. One major annoyance was that during my stay, their Wi-​Fi was down. Was definitely racking up the dollars on roaming charges back home.
Bunk beds were very clean, and they kept the bathrooms as clean as they possibly could as well (kinda difficult when you’re staying during St. Patrick’s week and you’re sharing a room with nine other young party animals). They also had lockers near and under the beds to store your valuables, but bring your own lock for good measure.
Met some great people staying there. When the time is right, I’m definitely coming back.

Cecil S. covered the highlights of staying at the Times Hostel, and so I’ll just add a few things in addition.
I stayed there in August while apartment-​hunting for the fall. My trip didn’t go as planned; I ended up in Dublin a day later than expected (I sent them an email to let them know, and they were very gracious. I had to pay for that missed night, but I knew that ahead and confirmed in my message that I just wanted to confirm my second night.) When I checked in, I received a warm welcome and some basic help to get me started on a fast race to try to find a place to live.
The room I booked had room for 4 people (mixed), and three of us made it there for the night. The bathroom was en-​suite, and all was clean and cheerful. Well-​laundered, comfortable linens are provided, and you can rent a towel if you don’t bring your own. Downstairs, the (slow but cheap to rent) computers are still there, you can pay for the use of laundry, and you can arrange to use a guitar or leave your luggage for the day. All of this is done through the front desk. The kitchen areas are very open, and when I was there, people used them extensively. People can label and keep food in 2 dedicated refrigerators, and if they have something leftover, there is a spot in one ‘frige for food to be shared/​taken. Need milk for the free coffee/​tea/​hot chocolate (Cadbury’s) available all day? Help yourself-there’s a dedicated spot for that, too.
There’s a nice mix of people who stay at this hostel, which has an arrangement with a local language school. Therefore, some people were staying long-​term and knew a little more about the city, and some people were just passing through. Dinner times and evenings in the lounge/​dining areas were casual and very friendly. Due to my delay in getting to Ireland, I’d picked up a couple of novels (I know, how old-​fashioned!) that I’d read, and so I took advantage of the book swap case to leave a few and take a new one.
It’s touches like the bookcase, the open but tidy atmosphere, and the great staff that make a difference here, I believe. I wouldn’t hesitate to stay here again, and in fact, if my niece visits, I’ll try to convince her to stay here for a night or two just for a good experience.
Getting there from the airport: I took the #16 bus, which stops a block or less from the hostel and at under 3 euro, saves about 20 euro over taking a taxi.

Amazing hostel. When i first arrived, i was a little disappointed how small it was but that turned out to be a positive. the hostel had all the essentials. Friendly, helpful and active staff. Clean and large kitchen. Lots of community seating and right by many good restaurants, bars and clubs! Hostel is perfectly setup so that you want to explore the city. Since there was no tv and the Internet connection was kinda bad, I would just wake up every morning shower (they had suite style bathrooms that were nice), ate an exceptional breakfast for a hostel and leave for the city. In my opinion for travelers that are not in Dublin for longer than a week, this is the place to stay!

If you appreciate great customer service, casual dining/​lounging areas, access to an overwhelming amount of amenities, good management, and a generally good hostel crowd, then clearly this is the place to go.
Seriously, this hostel has all of that, and it’s in a PERFECT location if you’re spending time drinking, sightseeing, or shopping in Dublin. I believe the owner owns 2 other hostels as well, and on their website they advertise a hostel on College Street, but IMO it’s in an area that’s nowhere near as cool as Camden street.
You have a line of chill bars starting from live music at Whalen’s, to sick nightclubs at Temple Bar area or Residence night club, where Arty was doing a show on the same Friday I had to leave. There are plenty of coffee shops, restaurants, diners, fast-​food/​carryout, grocery stores and more. You’re walking distance from the city center, and have easy access to the HopOn/​HopOff public transit buses.
As far as the management goes, they were overly helpful and considerate throughout the entire stay. Easy check-​in, constantly good local advice, fast responses, and there’s a person working the front desk 24 hours a day. If you stay here for 3 – 4 days, you’ll come to know em all by the end of your stay; great people.
*btw you can’t bring late-​night guests back to the hostel after a certain time, so plan accordingly :)
As for the general hostel condition, it was very clean and well-​kept. Maintenance was doing some improvements and miscellaneous stuff like smoke alarms while we were there, but it’s always a good sign to see a consistent maintenance crew doing improvements (except when they wake you up). Even more so, the plumbing and water pressure is perfect, and there was never a shortage of hot water.
They offer free wi-​fi to the residents, and also have 3 – 4 very slowwww desktops hooked up to the internet you can pay a measly fee to utilize. There is also a dryer and washer on-​site, as well as an iron and ironing board to go with it! They have two large refrigerators for residents to use at their leisure (and tags to label your stuff with). There is even a full-​on kitchen with plenty of appliances, spoons, forks, glasses and cooking utensils!
Now if all those amenities weren’t enough, you’ve got a huge dining table large enough to seat a family of 8 (which actually happened one night), plenty of small 2 – 4 person tables to drink/​chill/​eat on, large comfy sofas, and a HUGE painting on the living room walls that were apparently painted by visitors to the hostel. The visitors at this hostel are the perfect diversity for you to meet a variety of different people; and if you’re American you’re bound to run into somebody from California or Minnesota, coasting through.
I’ve pretty much run out of everything I could possibly say about this hostel, so book your stay here (tell them the American sent ya) and be prepared to have a great stay.

Wow! I stayed here on 2 separate occasions on my trip to Ireland this past October. Both rooms were very clean and comfortable. The thing that earned this place the 5 stars was the staff though. Above and beyond in every way. Helped us with recommendation of places to visit or eat at and such, but my sister got sick while we were there and they were VERY accomidating in helping to figure out how to navigate getting health care in a foreign country. A++++ for the Times on Camden!

Yay!
V. clean, well-​maintained hostel in a good location (right along the bus route from the airport). There was free wifi, which was great, and the rooms were nice. The biggest complaint I have was that there were no lockers for us to use so my friend and I had to carry our computers with us, because we weren’t that trusting. There were a few convenience stores nearby to buy water and food (Sainsburys, Spar, etc.) and Temple Bar and Trinity College were just a short walk away.