Savannah Pensione

This place is always what I expect when I stay here. The guy is cool and laid back. but yes, the place is a little rundown, which is expected because of the age of the home and the traffic it bares. Also, it is so very affordable that you get what you pay for, which I am completely fine with!! These other people complaining could have gotten a regular hotel for about twice the cost and been fine, or maybe not. The location is worth money, the availability is worth money, and the overall cost is worth money. That adds up to decent place all around. Its very costly to live and run a business downtown, this isn't some corporate hotel or an overcharging overrated bed and breakfast. I'm glad I have booked at the Pensione all the times I have. p.s. its a HOSTEL, not hotel!

Hey Guys! This place is a great place to stay. The host Brian is a great guy, gave us a detailed map of the city, names of some taxi's and recommended great restaurants to us as well. The house was built in the 1800s, so yes of course it has its problems and I would suggest a better shower curtain lol but it's a wonderful experience! We will be back again!! Beautiful!

I did not even stay because the owner basically shunned me. He did not get back to me about making a reservation. He told me to come at 5 when they open. When he arrived he told me to come back around 7 because he had just had surgery, or to "go find another hotel". I had been on the road for a long time and asked if I could use the bathroom quickly and he told me to walk to the supermarket. I understand if you just had surgery, then close your Pensione! Very bad service. If I would have known of this circumstance, I would have prepared to find another place. Thankfully I searched and found another place to stay before dark. He was very unfriendly and I am glad I did not stay there. Again, if you're unable to take reservations because of surgery or health reasons, let your potential guests know so they are not up the creek without a paddle.

I really should have taken a photo to show how bad the room and bathroom where. The bathroom had two lights above mirror that did not only not work but exposed wires! The place was filthy! dirt in corners of the floors. Funky blinds in bathroom. The futon bed was fine but sheets had balls of other clothes all over. The doors had greasy black fingerprints all around the door knobs like a old gas station. Also the owner didn't even bother to change the lightbulb outside the entrance door, so when I came back at night it was totally dark. I let the owner know it was out, but he didn't even care, like he knew and it was no big deal. I cant believe the other reviews where 4 stars, maybe they had a better bathroom and didn't care about dirt. It doesn't take much to have a decent place, just clean it! and have working lights. I am going to notify the city about this place, its so bad.

I stayed here with my friends. We felt very safe here and it was a great place. The owers were very friendly. The common area was nice and we were able to cook our dinner easily. Our room was private and quiet and clean. I would 100% recommend this place for anyone staying in Savannah. And it is SO convenient!

I stayed here for just one night, and booked last minute. I was lucky I suppose, as one of the other guests did not show up. Owner seems laid back, unique guy and totally trusting (I had left my ID at a friends house). I think this would be a good place to check out for a few nights as it is not too far from Forsyth Park, one of the major attractions of the city and from there, not too much further to downtown + it is 1 minute walk to Grocery store. Owner also called me a taxi early in the morning on Sunday and woke me up just in the nick of time when I had overslept...Just made my flight!

The girlfriend and I stayed at this hostel last weekend. We stayed in the "back house" which had a rate of $80 a night. It was not on the hostelworld website, but with a quick call we were told about it. The owner, Brian is a character; seems a bit in his own world, but genuinely nice and willing to help. Its on the edge of the historic district, but within walking distance to the historic district city center. The "back house" consisted of a futon, and a set of bunk beds. It has a private bathroom with shower which is a plus. I would recommend this as a cheap and safe alternative to paying the $200+ rates of hotels and motels downtown. Park on the street to the north side of the hostel on the weekend; the streets directly south and west are ticketed on the weekends due to street sweeping. Call Brian via the website phone , skip the hostelworld stuff. We will be back.

I've never heard of a place CLOSING DOWN for 5 hours during the day, and you have to leave! Good grief. Weird.

My boyfriend and I stayed at Brian's place for two nights during our spring break. The place is super close to everything and Brian even printed us off a map and told us what the must-sees were. We stayed in the carriage house-- which has two rooms with an adjoining bathroom and a kitchen and living space. The room we stayed in was a full bed and our neighbors were quiet and older so there was no issue. Worth noting that there isn't a microwave in the kitchen in the carriage house. We loved Brian's place and will stay there again if we're ever passing through!

Room smelled like urine. Cat puzzle artwork. No fitted sheets for plastic mattresses. Highly would not recommend.

Very cute house and the owner is very nice and has the cutest dog cupcake! The owner will also help you if you have any questions about the town and give you a map. Comfortable bedroom, bathroom and kitchen and located in a great area! Check out the coffee shop right next to it as well!

My boyfriend and I stayed in the carriage house and had a fantastic weekend. The house is very charming in general, and the carriage house is super private with a separate entrance, living room, kitchen and small back patio. There are 2 bedrooms upstairs with a shared bathroom. Fortunately the other guests were extremely nice and friendly so the shared bathroom was not an issue at all for us.The room is bare but all of the essentials are included. We had a full size bed, with a twin bunk on top. Not the most comfortable, but not the worst either. The location is absolutely perfect. Under 15 minutes walking distance to all of the major sights/everything you need. Forsythe park only 2 blocks away, we went there both mornings for a picnic breakfast in the grass. Kroger,Starbucks local coffee shop conveniently located directly across the street. Street parking is free and easy. If we visit Savannah again, we would happily re-stay at Savannah Pensione!

I liked this place. The guy who runs it was very very friendly and nice, made us feel very comfortable. $60 for a rather small private room was a little pricey, but it's a trade off. Spend around the same and stay at a Days Inn in crappy suburbia or one that has destroyed the neighborhood around it surrounded by parking lots, or stay in a smaller room in an awesome old house in the middle of historic Savannah and support that world. The choice was me was pretty clear. The walls are pretty thin, and a large drunken gaggle came in the middle of the night, but I don't think this is typical... thankfully I'm a deep sleeper but kept my girlfriend up for a little... A traditional "hostel" it is not, but on a relative budget that excludes the swanky hotels further downtown, I'd stay again my next trip!

When searching for a place to stay in Savannah, I initially went the bed and breakfast route. Each search revealed a $200+ per night cost, so I quickly turned to something more affordable: hostel. My bf and I are familiar with hostel-style staying, as we've both done so at home and abroad. But this was unlike anything I've yet to experience. The owner, Brian, was great. Very friendly and hospitable, he showed us our room first and let us get unloaded from the car, before checking us in. I've yet to have a hostel do that, but it did help to know we could still change our mind should the accommodations not be what we expected. The house is beautiful, complete with wood floors and old-style balconies. Brian lives on the other half of the house and we could hear the footsteps and laughter of his children occasionally, which made it feel a bit like a hybrid of a hostel and an old-school boarding house. Our room was a private and, because we were the only two staying that night, we had the entire upstairs to ourselves, including kitchen and tv room. My only complaint was that it felt kind of grimy, like it needed a good spring cleaning-like scrub-down. The factor that really bumps this up to a 4-star stay is the location. Located in the heart of the historic district, the Pensione is just blocks from Forsythe Park, the home of Flannery O'Conner, various pubs and coffee shops, and surrounded by the historically beautiful architecture that Savannah is so famous for. For just $70, we got the opportunity to experience the essence of Savannah which really made our stay at the Pensione quite priceless.

Great for what it is! Really just needed a place near downtown Savannah where 5 people could sleep for a reasonable price and the Pensione came through in the clutch. $30 per person for a private room with its own bathroom was a great deal. No frills, which really didn't bother us because we really just needed a place to put our heads after a night at the bars. The owner, Brian, was very friendly and I also liked that he let us take a look at our room first before he checked us in. My only issue is I don't really like the sleep sacks he gives you. Would love to come into a room with fresh clean sheets already on the bed, but other than that no complaints. Would stay again if I was rolling through Savannah on a budget.

My friend and I recently stayed here during a weekend trip to Savannah. We had originally intended on staying in a hotel but being poor grad students, we could not afford the outrageous prices of the hotels in the downtown historic district (upwards to $200 a night!!). Of course, there are hotels that are about a twenty minute drive away that are cheaper than downtown but then stumbling home drunk wouldn't have really worked out. Similarly, it was so nice to be able to stay in the historic district for not much money, on top of that it is right next to a grocery store (if you don't want to eat out every meal) and there is free parking. If you want a place to stay in the historic district and don't have much money, this is DEFINITELY the place to stay. I really can't recommend it enough. We paid a little extra for a private room ($70/night) but split between two people it's totally reasonable. I have stayed at hostels before and this was by far the best experience I have ever had. There is a kitchen as well and it reminded me of a cute beach house rather than a hostel. I think the experience made it a litte more fun than staying in a stuffy hotel. The guy who runs it was totally nice, helpful, and willing to work with us as we couldn't get in until very late into the night. Being tourists, we had quite a few questions about where to go (and not go) and he gave us a map was able to answer all our questions. He has obviously lived in Savannah for a while because he knew all about the city and how to get to beaches nearby, etc. Seriously, you have to stay here.

The owner is very nice and shows you the place. Not a bad price. It was very hot however and that made sleeping difficult. I would suggest bringing your own linens and pillow because the beds and pillows have weird plastic on them. Bathroom is okay. Me and my friends were looking for something for our budget and this worked.

For the amount that I paid for a weeks stay, I thought the place was pretty good. It was near everything and since it was next to a Kroger, I didn't have to walk far to get food to keep in the kitchen for when I didn't want to eat out. The owner was nice and helpful when I had a question about the hostel or the city. I was in the carraige house on the other side of the courtyard with a private bathroom. It was very nice and quiet, but I will say that at night there is no lights in the courtyard so it can be difficult to see, and the internet doesn't reach the room so be aware of that. For a working person like myself, it might be a little frustrating, but there are also a lot of nice cafes that have free WiFi near by, including one that's 1 minute walk down the road. There isn't a lot of things in the hostel, but really it's just to sleep and eat before going out and exploring! If I were to come back to Savannah, I would stay again, but might request a room in the main building for internet purposes.

My best friend and I booked a room in the carriage house for 5 nights because it was the best deal we could find for the location and dates we needed and we figured why not save some cash and just stay in a hostel. Our room shared a bathroom and we slept on a folded down full size futon. We actually had the whole house including the downstairs living/full kitchen area to ourselves for the 3 days we were there because no one was staying in the other room at the time, which was great. There isn't wifi or a tv anywhere in the carriage house unfortunately but I guess there is in the main house, we just never ventured over to check it out. An uber to River Street is literally $5 and there's some good places within walking distance too. However we ended up cutting out a few days early and staying somewhere else the last 2 nights of our trip and the manager Brian worked with us and was very nice about everything. One thing to keep in mind, we read all the reviews and thought we knew mostly what to expect but experiences can definitely differ!

RIP OFF!!! This place was a first try "hostel" style for us that left me feeling very very HOSTILE. It was impulsive and we definitely regret the $70 we spent for the room. If you spend $70 I would expect a TV or something...I mean you can easily spend less at a hotel. Aren't hostels supposed to be a way to save money traveling? You check in at 5pm and are literally KICKED out at 10:45am, the owner actually knocks on the door to make sure you are awake!!! The floors were gross, he closes the place down from 11am-5pm to clean so why are they so dirty? He has a ton of crazy rules that he rambles while showing you the place, he was on auto pilot with the explanation of things. If you have a car for your trip to Savannah go to mid-town almost southside to the Days Inn and spend $49 a night with a pool, TV, etc. It also offended me that when we were first asking about the rates for multiple days he said if we stayed an extra night he would take off "5 bucks, there you can have a beer on me." Seriously? He's a little coo-coo. He doesn't make a copy of your drivers license, write down a credit card number, he just makes you print your name in a school paper notebook that surprisingly doesn't show the rate you are paying or date. Hmmm...I wonder how much he is paying in taxes. STAY AWAY, he is making a pretty penny here and good for him he fooled me once.

We only stayed one night, but it was enough to realize it wasn't worth what we spent. It's absolutely filthy. We had to scrub and scrub a couple of coffee mugs to have some coffee and they still looked filthy, the fridge is filthy, there's dust everywhere. It doesn't look like they keep this place up. We were also eaten up by bugs. So needless to say, I would not recommend this place.

Way too expensive ($60 for 2 people) for a room with bunkbeds, plastic covered mattresses on beds you made yourself, one bathroom shared by up to 8 people, and a requirement to be out from noon to 5 pm. REALLY? Expensive homeless shelter. Floor clean but everything else covered with an old film of dust. The guy who runs the place was simply odd and thought we were trying to sneak in another guest without paying. There was wifi, but no place in the room to sit at a table. There was a living room. A big funky historic house with lots of potential. Bathroom has no place to hang clothes, towel, no place to put stuff. I quickly used the wifi to book a hotel in the historic district for $20 more, and we got beds with sheets aleady on them, free breakfast and our own bathroom in a very lovely inn.