Ayala K.
Yelp
I am so lucky to have been referred to Moderne Hostel! The referral was because I looked for a hostel with air-conditioning. I was glad to discover that the hostel itself is comfortable, inviting, and superbly located. It has just opened.
The hostel consists of a two story building with several bedrooms - rooms for mix genders, rooms for guys, rooms for gals, equipped with bunk beds, dressers and mirrors, and two rooms with queen mattresses. It has a good size living room and a very big kitchen with a rustic, huge oak table as its centerpiece.
The stay is very comfortable. The hostel has just opened and is sparkly clean and well maintained. The mattresses are new and firm. The length between the lower bunkbeds and the upper ones is a bit too short, but for my Asian height it was OK. The climb to the upper bunk beds is safe and easy. The bedding and towels, fresh and of good quality. The kitchen is large, has a high power stove, microwave, toaster, hot water kettle, and all the necessary equipment to cook a good meal. A recycling bin in the kitchen seems to be a necessary addition. The shower water pressure is powerful, and there's always hot water. The internet download/upload speed is stable and fast (including 5-G). Yet the cable allocation to the whole town of Mammoth wasn't able to sustain the thousands of tourists who were here during the 4th of July weekend. When they were gone, the internet speed stabilized. The place is so new that the rooms smell of fresh paint and new carpet. I kept my window opened while I was hiking and that reduced the smell's pungency. I think it will dissipate and disappear soon, as the place is being populated with guests and aired regularly by the fastidious cleaning personnel.
The location is fantastic - right on the bus line taking you (and your bike) to the shuttle service that has stops in almost every trail-head at the Devil's Postpile National Monument and its environs, leading to the Ansel Adams Wilderness. The hostel is situated within a short walking distance from Mammoth village, where you'd find plenty of higher-end restaurants, cafes and nice mountain fashion stores. The bus will take you a couple of stops down the mountain to the huge Vons supermarket, the drugstore, post office, laundromat, bakery, and tourist information center. In the malls down the hill you'll find reasonably priced restaurants. Driving distances in your own car to all these sites are minimal. The catch of the location is the traffic noise of the cars going uphill to Mammoth Mountain. With a closed window the noise is reduced tremendously. The other side of the hostel faces a small, serene piece of forest under which is a huge golf course.
I was greeted with a warm welcome by the staff. They are very helpful, gracious, accommodating, and attuned to the guests' comments and suggestions as the place is so new.
Most rewarding experience was the people with whom I shared the space: a melange of backpackers on a break from trekking the Pacific Crest Trail, passers by on their grand tour of America, coming from Vegas and heading to San Francisco via Devil's Postpile and Yosemite, bicyclists, day hikers, hot springs bathers, or folks stealing days from international conferencing in LA or SF to enjoy the striking Eastern Sierras, ages ranging from their 20s to 60s. During my time here I met folks from the Netherlands, Argentina, Virginia, Norway, Sweden, Japan, Maine, New York, Greece, Britain, Colorado, France, Switzerland, China and... California. I might have forgotten some... We shared snippets of our lives, travel adventures and hiking tips.
In brief, I highly recommend this place. Enjoy!