2 Cambridge Street (The Dynamite Club)

Edinburgh
Bed & Breakfast
+44 (0)131 478 0005

Per night
£145 - £195
Bedroom

2 rooms

Sleeps

Rooms sleep 2

Children welcome
Pets welcome
Babies welcome

A fin-de-siècle Franco-Scottish décor for this hospitable, entertaining B&B, in the heart of Edinburgh’s cultural quarter

Per night
£145 - £195

Contact the owner directly to check date availability and secure your booking.

What part does Sawday’s play?

£145 - £195 per night

The Experience

A mischievous humour, tinged with historical and cultural references, alerts you to the specialness of this place, a ground-floor B&B in the lee of Edinburgh Castle. Find striking colours, antiques aplenty and a captivating attention to detail. There are interactive art installations that sing and play, a line of old theatre seats up on the wall, photos and ‘objets’ serving startling and original purposes.

The drawing room is yours all day (handy if it’s raining) or you’re welcome to sit in the pretty Zen garden. Breakfast can include Blueberry Rocket, baked grapes, Avocado Bangkok, Chorizo surprise (surprise) and omelette citron-fromage among other delights. Recover slowly with hundreds of books to choose from before you venture out.

Wander the old streets admiring architecture, find fine restaurants, return to a nightcap of Marsala and French sweets.

2 Cambridge Street (The Dynamite Club) - Gallery

We think you'll love

  • Hélène and Erlend with their generosity of spirit and sense of style
  • Being able to walk to everything, including the stations
  • The breakfasts - worth getting up for and will keep you going all day
2 Cambridge Street (The Dynamite Club) - Gallery

You should know

  • No TVs in bedrooms - just lots of lovely books
  • Children accepted but it's not really geared up for them - too many breakable things
  • Parking in the city is expensive, come by train! If you must bring a car there is cheaper parking further out - ask Erlend

Essentials

  • EV charger
  • Swimming pool
  • Hot tub
  • Garden
  • Open fire / woodburner
  • Breakfast included
  • Breakfast available
  • Meals available
  • Vegetarian meals
  • Oven
  • Parking on premises
  • Free parking nearby
  • Accessible by public transport
  • WiFi
  • Television
  • Spa
  • Central heating
  • Limited mobility
  • Wheelchair access
  • Mobile reception
  • Hob
  • Bar
  • Barbecue
  • Licensed premises
  • Paid parking nearby
  • Air conditioning
  • Relaxation areas
  • Washing machine
  • Tennis court
  • Microwave oven
  • No smoking
  • Credit cards
  • Working farm
  • Owner has pets
  • Dishwasher
  • Pets welcome

Family friendly

  • Baby monitor
  • Books and toys
  • Children welcome
  • Babies welcome
  • Stair gates
  • High chair
  • Fire guard
  • Cot available

Nearby

  • Pub/bar within 3 miles
  • Restaurant within 3 miles
  • Shop within 3 miles

Activities

  • Bikes available
  • Food courses
  • Kayaking
  • Other courses
  • Sailing
  • Surfing
  • Wild swimming

Accommodation

Pricing

Nightly price
from £145
2 Doubles
From £145

Information

Booking information

Other details
Singles £90-£110. Please note that bookings for stays after 24 July 2026 will be subject to a 5% local authority levy.
Closed
Christmas.
No smoking
Smoking not permitted anywhere in the property.
Meals
Pubs/restaurants 1-minute walk.

Reviews

The owners are truly original characters and it is they that make the place so special. You are treated as a friend & they let you use their lovely zen-styled garden. There is no traditional check in/out procedures. You just chat to them in the drawing room & they give you tips/advice. They have often chatted to guests till the early hours & one guest came back with the baby that was conceived there!
Inspected Annabel Sawday's Inspector

Heidi, Ellicott City

Our stay at 2 Cambridge Bridge St. with Erland and Helene was delightful. The location was perfect, right next to Edinburgh Castle. The house is decorated with many fascinating objects, and the room for the two of us was very comfortable. You will not get a better breakfast in all of Scotland! They were elegant and delicious. But best of all, the hosts are welcoming, thoughtful, generous, and delightful. We highly recommend staying here for a unique experience.


Roslyn, Saltburn-by-the-Sea

Wow - what a place. Everything about it was unique and wonderful. Erlend and Helene were fabulous hosts and we loved the extra little touches like the copper hot water bottle (it was early December) that was popped in on an evening. In fact we are now the proud owners of a copper hot water bottle. The room was clean and cosy and we loved the fact that there was no TV. Breakfasts were an experience and we both enjoyed something different on each of the three days we were there. I won't spoil the surprise by telling you what we had - but try everything you won't be disappointed.


Margaret, Aberdeen

We had the most wonderful stay at The Dynamite Club with Erland and Helene. We loved our three night stay meeting up with our long term friends from London. It was the perfect location, comfortable bedrooms and spotless ensuite shower rooms. The added bonus was the private lounge, where we enjoyed chatting. Erland and Helene are the perfect hosts. We immediately felt comfortable and at home. They were extremely hospitable, knowledgeable and nothing was too much trouble. The breakfasts are a triumph, everything home made, beautifully prepared, cooked and presented. We can't wait to return.


Susie, London

Erlend and Helene could not have been kinder and more welcoming. We had two wonderful nights at this charming B&B quite unlike anywhere else. Breakfast was sensational and the attention to detail spectacular. My daughter left a ring by her bed and we were called to let us know and arrangements made to collect. We had a beautiful hand written note left on our door asking about breakfast requests when we were back late. If you want a light airy modern B&B this is not for you. If you want charm, quirky, attention to detail, delicious food and endless kindness you won’t find anywhere better.


Location

The neighbourhood

Walk to the base of the Castle Rock, the Traverse and Lyceum theatres, Princes Street and gardens. You're near to great restaurants and museums, the medieval Old Town and the trendy Grassmarket for independent bars and shops. The newly-opened St James Quarter is about a 20-minute walk, Waverley and Haymarket stations, 10 to 15 minutes and the airport express bus stop close by.

Local points of interest from Erlend & Hélène Clouston

  • Princes Street and its bucolic gardens are only a two-minute stroll from this elegant cul-de-sac.
  • Even closer is the atmospheric St Cuthbert's graveyard where the earthly remains of John Napier, the inventor of logarithms, and Thomas de Quincey, author of Confessions of an English Opium-Eater, confront each other.
  • The Grassmarket, Edinburgh's ancient, cobbled, bazaar lies close by too: here supporters of inconvenient faiths met their end and Maggie Dickson (1728) famously did not.
  • Bobby, the world's most famous Skye Terrier, rests in the adjacent Greyfriars Kirkyard, no doubt dreaming of sheep.

Introducing

Erlend & Hélène Clouston

You'll love this fascinating and well-travelled couple. Hélène is French-Armenian, brought up in Argentina and was a French teacher; Erlend, a quietly spoken (but don't be fooled) Shetlander, is a journalist and was the Scottish correspondent for The Guardian for many years. They're interesting and intelligent and know the city backwards so do ask before you head out so you get to see the best.