We spent 2 nights at Hangout at Mt. Emily in June and had a very nice time. The hostel/hotel is situated on a hill (Mount Emily) that seems to have been the site of an all girls school. The area seems to be up and coming as there are many new condominiums that have recently been developed in the area.

The hostel is conveniently located inbetween Little India and Dhoby Ghaut station. Little india is closer and the path to the station takes you up or down approx 45 steps the walk takes approx 5 to 10 min. The path to Dhoby Ghaut station is not as direct and takes you up or down approx 36 steps and takes approx 10 to 15 min. Shopping malls are located on Orchard and start from Dhoby Ghaut goes up for a few blocks.

Hangout at Mt Emily is a clean hostel, the room we reserved was not available (standard double room with request for window) so they upgraded us to a room for 5. The room was spacious and clean, with towels and water provided. Rooms are cleaned daily.

Other reviewers have commented on the musty smell. I'm sure that all hotels in Singapore have this problem. I was surprised to accidentally take a closer look at the air conditioning unit at a shop and there was a significant amount of black mold surrounding it. Singapore is humid, it looks so clean because they paint the buildings every so often to cover it up. Open a window and leave the AC running and it clears up. It's not a major hang up.

The washrooms were clean, shampoo and soap were provided from dispensers.

The lounge has free internet, coffee, cappucino, mocha choca latte, cafe o lait, tea, vending machines, movies, a quiet reading corner and a pool table ($2 SGD).

The roof top patio has a nice view of the city, there are tables up top and a mist pool. More of an ankle pool if you want to step in it. You can order drinks up there from time to time.

The breakfast buffet is situated in the wild Oats restaurant. It finishes at 9:30 am and offers quite a nice selection of cereals, hot food (eggs, hot dog, veg, beans), toast with peanut butter or jams, juice, coffee (as described above). The offering is simple but there is a lot to go around which is a lot better than most hostels.

Reception is polite and helpful. There was a mixed age group staying at the hotel and the crowd was well behaved.

We had a nice time at Hangout at Mt. Emily and were happy with our choice. We were considering New 7th Storey Hotel (booked up), Fragrance Pearl (stay away, red light district hotel), Hotel 81 (close to Emily, but chose not to, walking around the area from the outside it didn't seem so bad) and a few other hostel/hotels. In the end we made the right choice.

While in Singapore try to grab a bite to eat at the Hawker stands. the food is great, inexpensive and prepared in clean kitchens. If you are brave, try the Durian ice cream. We tried it once and that's the last time we will ever do it again :o)

I only stayed at the Hangout overnight but I wished I stayed longer! The rooms are super clean, the bed was comfortable and the a/c was great (a necessity in a hot city like SG!!). This hotel gave what it promised - no frills, just a low price! Room amenities only included towels, there was no soap/shampoo/toothpaste provided. The hotel is also a fair walk uphill from the MRT, which was a bit of a downside. If you're looking for basic accommodation which is clean and affordable, the Hangout is a definite must-stay!

The common lounge provides several computers with internet access, a pool table, and a tv with a range of dvds. There's also a reading area but don't expect any peace and quiet since it's a fairly open area! I didn't get a chance to explore the roof, which was disappointing. Nor did I get a chance to try the restaurant, although there are vending machines in the common lounge. But the Hangout is just a short walk to Orchard Road and all the great shopping and eating places are easily accessible.

I certainly enjoyed my stay at the Hangout and will definitely be coming back next time I'm in SG!

We stayed here for four nights and it was our introduction to Singapore. The setting was great, very peaceful and away from the bustle of Singapore. The room was little small, with little storage, but it was clean. The staff, breakfast, internet access, other facilities were all excellent. If I had to complain it would only be to say that when we arrived our room had a beautiful view of the gardens, but on the second day our window was covered up as they were decorating. They did apologise for the inconvenience, but we had that window covered for the rest of our stay and didn't really see alot of activity explaining why it should have been covered all that time.

Hangout @ Mt Emily has some strong plus-points: helpful and efficient staff, high standards of cleanliness, free internet and television in the chill out lounge, buffet breakfast and a stunning rooftop terrace. The dorm rooms are well-designed, although some suffer from a smell of damp (not uncommon in air-conditioning crazy Singapore). I'd advise getting one with a window. For dorm travellers, this may be more expensive than some other places but you are paying for the extras above, and I would say that it is worth it. It isn't a party place, although it is friendly - an asset for me. If you are after a budget hotel rather than a meeting-people hostel, you might be better off getting an internet rate at a standard hotel since prices appear to have risen fairly rapidly for doubles (possibly linked with a 2007 Lonely Planet recommendation). But this place is one of the nicest hostels I've stayed in, and judged on these terms, it is excellent.