Costa Rica Backpackers

A good value-for money hostel with friendly staff and decent, clean and functional rooms. The food at the restaurant was really tasty and very well priced! The only areas for improvement were the showers (I had no hot water, which was probably an unlucky isolated incident), and the fact that after a certain time in the evening the lights were switched off in the social areas, which is a shame! Overall I’d recommend and will return soon.

This was a great hostel but what unfortunately ruined the experience for me was the terrible and rude treatment from the worker at reception. I stayed for only one night and had to leave to the airport the next afternoon. There was a misunderstanding that after I cleaned off my bed and packed my things for checkout I thought I could leave my closed bag in the room as I waited to go to the airport. However, somehow she recognized my bag and even though my bed was cleaned and replaced, she immediately charged me for another night instead of asking me (I sat next to reception for 2 hours working on my computer and waiting to go to the airport). I only found out I was charged when I asked her to double check it’s okay my bag is still in the dorms and then she rudely told me she already charged me for another night. Clearly there was a misunderstanding and despite that this worker treated me like an idiot and was not willing to help in anyway. She charged me for an entire extra night for having a closed bag in the room which I would have immediately moved had I known it can’t stay there. Terrible experience.

AVOID AT ALL COSTS!! The only positive thing in this hostel is people that are working there, they are kind and willing to help. The rooms are disgusting, everything said on the reviews is absolutely true. The sheets had hair, and were dirty and the walls as well. The room was smelling weird and there are no lockers you have to throw your stuff in some corner and pray not to be stolen. I overheard a group of people saying that the roof was leaking and there was water in their room. I end up leaving within hours. Of course it's non refundable and you have to pay before you even check the room. Authorities should inspect this place due to the poor hygiene.

I picked a bunk and left my belongings, including my laundry, on the mattress. Later that night I went back to the room to sleep and discovered someone in my bed. They had moved all of my belongings to another bunk, even unplugged my computer and moved it. I went to the front desk to report this and they would do nothing, claiming that they don't assign bunks. This was absolute insane behavior and I was appalled that management would do nothing to correct this, while still allowing this person to stay at the hostel. Do yourself a favor and go somewhere else. The pool and bar/restaurant is nice, and the location is great, but don't expect the people who run the hostel to do anything when there are issues. Any other hostel would confront this person and fix the situation.

I stayed at this hostel twice and overall had a fantastic experience. First of all, the location is excellent — it's about a 10-minute walk to the city center and the National Museum. There are also plenty of restaurants nearby, giving you lots of dining options. One of the highlights is the swimming pool, which is quite rare for a hostel and a great bonus. The hostel also offers good privacy — each bed has a reading light and a power outlet, which I really appreciated. The Wi-Fi is stable, and there's both an on-site restaurant and a shared kitchen if you prefer to cook your own meals. Overall, a great place to stay. I would definitely choose it again!

Got served cold chicken and day old rice. When I pointed it out to the lady in the kitchen, she put it in the microwave for 6 minutes and it came out rubbery. It was obvious that it wasn’t fresh food, even the salad had brown spots. I returned my plated and left. Pool area is cozy but a little dirty.

My bed was FULL of bed bugs. It was absolutely impossible to sleep. There was so much of them that I was able to see them. I booked for 2 nights, after the first night left this place, they refused to return me money. Apart from this everything looks good: atmosphere, people. it would be better to make this place more clean, but for this price it's fine

Hello, Unfortunately, my experience at this hostel was very disappointing, and I wouldn’t recommend it. When I arrived, I had an issue with my bank card and asked if there were alternative payment options. The person at the front desk responded in a very cold and abrupt way, simply telling me to go find an ATM. So I had to walk alone, at night, through San José — which didn’t feel safe as a woman traveling solo. When I came back, I noticed that PayPal was actually accepted as a payment method — something that was never mentioned to me before. I was also disappointed by the room, which wasn’t the one I had booked, and by the overall atmosphere from the staff. (To be fair, all the women at the reception were lovely and very kind.) A sad and frustrating experience.