You know what caught me off guard about this place? It’s actually tucked away on Old Castle Street in a way that makes you feel like you’ve discovered something the tourist crowds haven’t found yet. I mean, you’re literally a three-minute walk from Liverpool Street station – and I’m talking about the kind of walk where you’re not dodging suitcase wheels and stressed commuters the whole way.
The apartment itself has this clean, minimalist vibe that honestly works really well for the space. Two proper bedrooms, which is rare around here without paying through the nose, and the living area doesn’t feel cramped like so many London rentals do. The kitchen’s got everything you’d actually use (not just a kettle and hopes), though I’ll be real with you – the coffee situation could be better. What I loved was how quiet it gets at night, especially considering you’re in Zone 1. Old Castle Street doesn’t get the through-traffic that nearby Commercial Street deals with, so you can actually sleep with the windows cracked open in summer.
The Gold Stays management thing works pretty smoothly – they text you the entry codes and you’re sorted, no awkward lobby hovering or hunting down keys. Location-wise, you’re in this sweet spot where Shoreditch creativity meets City practicality. Brick Lane’s curry houses are a five-minute wander south, and if you head north toward Shoreditch High Street, you’ll hit some genuinely good coffee spots that aren’t just Instagram bait. The Sunday markets at Spitalfields are right there too, which is brilliant if you’re into that sort of browsing-and-people-watching morning. Honestly, the transport links are what really sell it – you’ve got the Central, Circle, Hammersmith & City, and Metropolitan lines all at Liverpool Street, plus the Overground if you need to get to East London’s trendier bits. That 7.7 rating feels about right to me; it’s solid without being flashy, comfortable without trying too hard to impress. The kind of place where you settle in by day two and start planning your next London trip before you’ve even checked out.