THE MINISTRY OF STEAMPUNK
ASYLUM ACCOMMODATION
Weekend at the Asylum 16
Introduction
Weekend at the Asylum is the biggest event in the Lincoln calendar and it sells out all of the available hotel accommodation every year. We are therefore pleased to confirm that the University of Lincoln will once again be offering student accommodation to people attending the event.
University of Lincoln student accommodation
As in 2025, the University of Lincoln (UoL) are inviting steampunks attending Weekend at the Asylum the opportunity to stay in their St Marks accommodation. Although situated in the lower part of Lincoln, St Marks is only a short stroll away from the Engine Shed and the Lincoln Arts Centre making it a brilliant location if you are attending evening events there, as you can see in the map below.
All bookings are on a self-catering basis. UoL provide fully equipped shared kitchens, living and dining areas in each 12 bedroom apartment. Bedrooms in the apartments are individually bookable, and all rooms have their own private ensuite bathroom with a shower. If you would like to share an apartment with steampunks please mention this in the address field on the booking form.
The rooms at St Marks are usually sold as single occupancy. The bed size is a small double so 190 cm long x 120cm wide but as previously they are willing to offer rooms for double occupancy for Asylum so long as guests have taken note of the size of the bed.
Please note that bookings are for guests ages 18 and over. UoL cannot accept guests younger than this for safeguarding reasons due to the layout of the apartments.
The cost of a room for single occupancy is £60 per night or £96 for double occupancy.
It is no secret that being in the lower part of Lincoln, the accommodation at St Marks is the 'wrong end' of Steep Hill if you are attending the daytime content in the Bailgate area (although the opposite is true for evening events at the LAC and Engine Shed).
Aside from walking up Steep Hill there are a number of other ways to reach the Bailgate area from St Marks including less steep hills, local buses, the Walk and Ride shuttle scheme (which runs on Friday and Saturday) and local taxi firms.
LBU (formerly BGU)
BGU changed its name to Lincoln Bishop University after Asylum in 2025. We have been informed that with significant changes to the University's strategic direction the University moved its accommodation provision to 46 week contracts and term dates have changed for a number of courses. The consequence of these changes is that for a large number of students term will start on 1 September 2026 and many will be arriving to take up their accommodation over the Asylum weekend. The knock-on effect for Steampunks is that LBU will not be able to offer accommodation for Asylum attendees this year, and quite possibly not for future years either.
Camping
In 2025 the Ministry of Steampunk organised a campsite at the International Bomber Command Centre specifically for people attending Asylum. Very few people used the campsite leading to a significant financial loss to the event and unfortunately we are not able run it again in 2026.
Capacity
In the aftermath of Asylum 14 in 2024 there was much concern in the Steampunk community around the cost of accommodation over the Asylum weekend. The Ministry of Steampunk invested a substantial amount of time securing additional accommodation including at BGU, UoL and International Bomber Command (see below). In combination we secured access to more than 1000 rooms and camping pitches.
In 2025 for Asylum 15 (AXV) only around 10% of this capacity was taken up. Despite the loss of around 50% of this accommodation at BGU there is still plenty of affordable university UoL accommodation at St Marks for Asylum 16 in 2026.
When to book - please read carefully
University accommodation does not work like hotel accommodation. The rooms are prepared in advance and then serviced at the end of the stay. Universities do not employ large numbers of domestic staff to turn rooms around on a daily basis. They need to know numbers much further in advance so that their staff can prepare the rooms for use. This means that bookings close significantly earlier than hotel bookings, typically a few weeks before the event (in 2025 the closing date for bookings at both BGU and UoL was 7 August).
Although the UoL accommodation is available to be booked now, it is not reserved for Steampunks. As with hotel accommodation, anyone coming to Lincoln over the Bank Holiday Weekend can book to stay at St Marks. This could include group bookings for other events of any kind.
If you would like to stay at St Marks over the Asylum weekend we therefore suggest you book your place sooner rather than later to avoid disappointment. You will find links to more informtion about the accommodation at St Marks as well as a direct link to the booking form below.
As noted above, if you would like to share an apartment with other steampunks please make this clear in the address field on the booking form.
Motorhome parking in Lincoln city
Lincoln Council do not allow motor homes to park over night in the city car parks. This is for safety reasons. Details can be found on the Lincoln City Council website.
Asylum 2027
Please be aware that the location of Asylum 17 in 2027 has not yet been decided. Please do not book any accommodation for 2027 which cannot be cancelled without financial penalty, as the event may not be held in Lincoln.
