
I really like John Bell House. The location is perfect, and the team put on lots of students evets. And the wifi is also quickly. The staff are really nice and helpful. Laura is super warm, nice and awesome.
Belfast Hall Rankings
123 York Street | #1 |
LIV Student Belfast | #2 |
Swanston House | #3 |
Great Patrick Street | #4 |
John Bell House | #5 |
Aster House | #6 |
Little Patrick Street | #7 |
Dalriada Student Village | #8 |
Elms BT9 | #9 |
*Minimum 10 reviews required to be ranked.
StudentCrowd University Rankings
See full league table...
I really like John Bell House. The location is perfect, and the team put on lots of students evets. And the wifi is also quickly. The staff are really nice and helpful. Laura is super warm, nice and awesome.
John Bell House Information
Telephone | 028 9590 1683 |
Postcode | BT1 6DJ |
Features | 12-minute walk from Ulster University, large communal area, outdoor space, study area & 24/7 staff on-site. |
Top tip | Beat rising energy costs with all bills included, all year long at Student Roost. Enjoy peace of mind with no caps or hidden costs, so you can focus on a great student experience. |
John Bell House Biography
John Bell House combines original features with contemporary design and offers a variety of studios and en-suite rooms in Belfast. The accommodation is just a short walk from Belfast city centre so you’ll have plenty of amenities close by. It’s also only a 12-minute walk to Ulster University and conveniently located for students at Queen’s University Belfast with buses running to the university every 8-minutes.
Residents at John Bell House can enjoy great facilities such as a spacious communal area, a quiet study space, a large outdoor courtyard and secure onsite bike storage. The team at this accommodation always make sure you have something to look forward to with an exciting social calendar throughout the whole year!
Students at John Bell House have a choice of five types of en-suite rooms and five studios, each suitable for different budgets and preferences - either way, you won’t pay any rent until you get your student loan. En-suite rooms come with a small double bed, dedicated study space and a private bathroom. The shared apartments have a communal kitchen and living area with up to ten other people including friends if you book as a group of mates. Studios are ideal for people looking for more privacy, offering a self-contained kitchen and living space.
Book your room at John Bell House here.
Q&A

Hi, thanks for getting in contact. The Studio rooms come with an undercounter fridge freezer, a combination microwave and oven, a 2 ring hob and a kettle. There is no crockery, cutlery, glassware or cooking utensils supplied unfortuanetly. The Studios also do not come with a TV provided, for a TV you would need to supply your own TV. I hope this helps.

Good morning, if you contact the John Bell House Reception Team by either emailing: john.bell.house@studentroost.co.uk or by phoning the Reception Team on 07469852575 we can assist you with getting a cleaner sorted for your room.
Ask a new question about John Bell House
Read John Bell House Reviews
A historical building located in the centre of the city, easy to access bus and train, wide room and friendly staffs, for example the nighttime stuff Laura helped me a lot.
Loved my stay at John bell house! Super cosy flat and with lovely staff during the day and night it made me feel close to home. Always had someone to talk to and would often go to reception to talk to Laura on night shift who'd always have a good story to tell!
I love John Bell House because of its great location, excellent property service and the fact that many of my friends have chosen here. JBH's service team is also very kind and responsible. Mr. Noel, Ms. Laura and Ms. Niamh did leave a very good impression on me.
Laura is amazing! She's so helpful and kind; Laura's always available and makes me feel welcomed in JBH, she makes me feel like im at home😄
Had the best year at John Bell house, I loved the organised events and the front of house staff were always chirpy and friendly, especially Niamh! Can’t wait to stay again
Enjoyed my stay at John bell , very social and friendly environment, looking forward to returning next.
Had a great year staying in John Bell accommodation. Shout out to Niamh at the desk, as she was always very helpful with any issues I had and has a fantastic positive bubbly attitude.
Had a brilliant time living at John Bell, the staff were excellent especially Niamh always a smiling face at the desk.
Stunning uni accommodation! The friendly staff especially Niamh has made it that bit better!
I really like John Bell House. The location is perfect, and the team put on lots of students evets. And the wifi is also quickly. The staff are really nice and helpful. Laura is super warm, nice and awesome.
Great experience with staff at John Bell House, Laura helped me through every step of the move-in process and went above and beyond expectations.
Convenient place for students and in the city center. And close to the university and shopping centers. And the workers in this place are wonderful, especially the lady (Laura) who works at night. Very helpful
Brilliant location for trains, buses, shops, uni and clubs. Everything is in walking distance and there's no need for taxis. Loads of events on, free breakfasts and coffees a few times and this is a great way to meet new people in this building. The staff who are also brilliant especially Laura, I've had pizza with her a few times, she's so lovely and is always willing to help, her big smile and energy always lightened me up even when I wasn't having the greatest day.
All the friends here are very friendly. During my year of studying in Beifa, JBH is like my home. Miss Laura at the reception desk is very friendly and enthusiastic to me, who is far from home. I really like everything here and would recommend anyone who comes to study in Belfast!
Would highly recommend staying here!
stay here for my Masters. It is well located, just in the city centre and 30 minutes walk to QUB. Transportation is convenient basically can go anywhere just from the bus stops in front of the home. A lot of social events are held including one during the Easter. Regular cleaning is carried out but I think the accommodation would benefit from taking measures to discipline residents because many times it is obvious the residents don't care about the living environment (this includes teaching some irresponsible guys to do waste sorting and recycling). Staff here are super nice. My special appreciation goes for Laura who's the warmest and most helpful one among all. She's the first person I met when I came here and the first participant of my study in my psychology path. She is supportive and there's nothing more comforting than hearing her say "do you want to come down to talk" during stressing times.
John bell was really good, the receptionist, Laura is really nice and welcoming. I recommend other people to go for John Bell
I've enjoyed my time spent at John Bell House. Any problems I've had or any worries, Laura who works on reception is always there to help! Many of times I've either locked myself out of my room or lost my key card, Laura has helped me no matter if she was busy or finishing her shift. She's a gem and always so friendly! Laura's made staying at John Bell House a much better place and it wouldn't be the same if she wasn't there
I’ve been to other accommodations but nothing can compare to John Bell and student roost in general with their support for students and its a lovely place to visit once with so many historical details everywhere and an amazing grand hall which mostly they have their event going on there. Excellent staffs in general with amazing hospitality especially Laura with a great smile and a lovely soul. (Bless her) when I was at my lowest, needed someone to talk to, she made my nights 10x better:).
I enjoyed my stay! The reception is 24/7 available. The staffs are kind and ready to help, especially Laura !! Great location as well, where it is located at the heart of Belfast.
John Bell house is a very nice and comfortable place to stay. The staff put on a few social events within the building every month which are a lot of fun and help you to get to know other people living there. Through them I met another person on my course who was living in John Bell house. Sone of the social events were the free pizza nights which were great because we got a free dinner! Also, the Warhammer day where a group of us residents all went to the Warhammer shop together to paint minis. A few of these social events took place in the Grand Hall which is a very nice space for sitting watching TV and relaxing in, for playing pool or table tennis or for hanging out with friends or for playing board games. I had lots of good experiences with the staff. Laura who works was very helpful and friendly! I enjoyed chatting with her. Harley was also very helpful. Only issue was they took a while to install a railing for coat hangers in my wardrobe. But it was done eventually.
All the staff are lovely, especially Laura who works nights ☺️
The employees here are very friendly and helpful. Whenever I encounter any problems, whether it's in terms of accommodation or life, I have had a very happy time here,
I love Laura, she is a very nice person.
I had a delightful experience at a tranquil and comfortable location, and I am grateful for the exceptional service provided by one of the staff members, Laura. She is courteous, friendly, and attentive to all residents, especially during nighttime when she is always available to offer guidance and aid. Furthermore, She always puts in extra effort to ensure that the residents' well-being is taken care of. Thank you very much Laura for everything and may god bless you. Kind regards Dr.Omar
I had a great stay here, the staff were lovely, particularly Laura- who was a gem throughout.
Wonderful, spacious student accommodation with lovely, responsive and welcoming staff. Cost effective and located in a nice area in the vicinity of the city centre.
Great location, great accommodation. 24 hrs reception. Great to talk to Laura the night owl all night!
I had a lovely stay at John Bell in my final year at Queens- staff were always friendly and helpful! The building and management exceeded expectations, would recommend!
Really good location in city centre, staff friendly and helpful with any issues. Rooms are spacious with large windows which let in lots of light. Really enjoyed staying there.
The oven did not work ( kitchen). Flatmates: one of them dirtied the kitchen. Thus, we were alarmed to pay because of one flatmate. I did not use the kitchen at all. Slow response from the staff. The heating of my room had a problem for a week consecutive, it cannot be turn off. The room was heavily warm. Slow response to fix. The light of my bathroom did not work at the end. It was two weeks before I left for good. Thus, it was meaningless to ask to the reception. Thankfully, I had a window. Some of my friends had a lightwell for their rooms or kitchen (fourth floor). It felts as a prison. Some building regulations could say that it is slightly illegal as a space for sleeping. Overall, slow response from the staff to repair but fast if it was about to charge. I would not recommend to stay at John Bell house and many of friends agree with it. With the same amount of money per week in John Bell, you can get a stunning apartment in Belfast.
Stayed here in first and third year and couldn't fault it. The building is amazing and has so much character
I had a great stay in John Bell house. I love my room and the location is perfect. Never too noisy or busy in the building. The staff are always kind and helpful! Best place to live during my final year at university <3
Very good property to stay in and the building is very well managed by a great team down at reception who are always there to help and answer any questions one may have. The location of the property is fantastic and I will miss the accessibility of my college being just round the corner. Aisling and Niamh have been very helpful from day one of moving into the property, thank you very much.
I stayed at John Bell House from 2020-2021. During my time there, I met a lot of good people, and even great staff. If I ever needed anything, I was able to go to the front desk and I would always get help. Niamh was an incredible help if I ever needed assistance, had a great attitude, was especially generous in her generosity and was definitely my favourite staff member. Perfect stay for first years and those on Industrial Year.
Great student accommodation. It's so easy to get to the Met as John Bell House is in the centre of town. The staff are super helpful and being able to not worry about your post is also another bonus.
I stayed in the Studio Apartment Gold at John Bell House with my boyfriend. There is no oven and there are two Hobbs in the entire kitchen area. There was no kettle or toaster either. There is only one cupboard to put all your kitchenware. There is no where to put cutlery. There is no seating area for meals and we have been eating dinners on our bed. There is one small wardrobe that couldn't fit half of my stuff, let alone both mine and my boyfriend's. The shower, which we reported as broken on day one, is still broken and our entire bathroom gets so flooded that we can't use it for days. The shower cubicle is also so tiny I have to wash my hair outside it. There is also a silverfish infestation in the building and it always smells. I am paying £8,100 to stay in a tiny box nightmare, when a 3 bed house would have cost me £6000. This place has made me suffer with mental health problems. DONT EVER STAY HERE
Right smacked in the city centre which makes travelling to places extremely convenient.
perfect location and a stunning building. Would recommend to any student but especially first years looking to branch out - they run great social events and everyone’s so friendly
Far far too over priced, like all Student Roost accommodations in Belfast
It’s a pity the staff aren’t as great as the building itself. Stayed here while it went from fresh student to student roost. Couldn’t fault how it was managed with fresh student the staff were lovely and welcoming and you could actually have the craic with them but once student roost came it was a different ball game. Was going to stay here for my 3rd year but student roost completely put me off!
Lived here last year with a friend and had a decent year, flat mates weren't the friendliest but we couldn't complain about the overall living experience. Staff were friendly and made living here a pleasurable experience for the year which made me and my friends decided to rebook for this year again. However, before moving back up we found out that our flat was preoccupied and my friend didn't have a place to stay unless she went to a different flat. As for referring a friend the team advertise a £150 voucher for amazon if they book to live here. We did this and waited over the recommended days it takes to receive the voucher. I emailed asking about this only to find out that my friend was not a resident in our building despite having emails to say otherwise. Overall, this year is not off to a good start and has made me reconsider living in this building next year, unless staff become more experienced.
Stayed there last year and am staying here again this year. Last year wasn’t perfect but overall couldn’t complain. Amazing rooms, gorgeous building, friendly staff. This year is different however. The new staff don’t seem to know very much about what they’re doing. They gave the flat, that I had pre booked months in advance, away to other students even though I have emails confirming my spot in that flat, and they had no explanation for this. Their only offer of apology was a free pizza. They advertise an amazon voucher for referring a friend but gave us one for an unknown website instead, and say they reserve the right to change the voucher. They don’t seem to have records of past dealings and overall they aren’t the most helpful. Lovely place to live in as long as you don’t have to deal with them apparently.
City centre located accomodation. Security and privacy are of high standards. Heart of all social events in the student orientated city. Short walk from QUB's iconic Lanyon building.
Good not worth the money and wouldn’t let me change from a studio to an apartment after me telling them that being in a studio by myself was bad for my mental health
Amazing space, great facilities but well over priced
I have lived in John Bell House for the past two years and have completely loved my stay. The rooms here are spacious and modern and the location right in the city centre is ideal for me. The building offers lots of social events as a way to meet other students and has a great variety of room options. The staff are amazing and nothing is too much for them, they will go out of their way to make sure that all students have an enjoyable experience here. Could not recommend enough.