Shady Spruce Hostel

Stayed here for two weeks during an EMT training at Missoula college and it was an awesome experience. Long days where I could come back to the hostel and have the privacy I needed to study and prepare for the next day on top of being comfortable enough in the common areas to cook and relax before the following day was crucial. Felt like home after a while. Not to mention when I had time off the local bars and restaurants are all within walking distance. There’s a top notch gym right next door for $40 a week. And the airport is a quick Uber away where I was able to rent a car and take off on the weekend to some hot springs and hikes. Can’t beat the location, price and hospitality of this place. Hope to stay here again down the road. Thanks Shady Spruce!

I enjoyed the peaceful and central location of the Shady Spruce. It fit me absolutely perfectly. I was very comfortable and slept great. I was able to walk to meet my friends downtown in the evening and , in the morning, did a slow, stress-free walk to a local coffee shop minutes away. I highly recommend the Shady Spruce Hostel.

Staying at Shady Spruce Hostel in Missoula was one of the best travel experiences my family and I have had in a long time. The location alone is unbeatable — tucked into a quiet spot yet steps away from great food, entertainment, and local attractions. You can easily walk to coffee shops, restaurants, and even the river trails, making it our perfect base for exploring Missoula. What really stood out, though, was the hospitality. I accidentally booked the wrong dates, and instead of turning us away, the staff went above and beyond to adjust our reservation without hesitation. That small act of kindness saved us from scrambling for another place to stay — and it really speaks to how much they care about their guests. The hostel itself is immaculately clean, well-organized, and thoughtfully designed for both solo travelers and families. The shared spaces are cozy and social; and the room was quiet, peaceful and well-kept. From staff to fellow travelers, everyone we interacted with was friendly, helpful, and genuinely glad to be there. If you’re looking for a welcoming, affordable, and well-run place to stay in Missoula, I can’t recommend Shady Spruce Hostel enough. It captures the community-driven, laid-back Montana spirit while offering the kind of quality and care you’d expect from a much pricier stay. We’ll definitely be back!

My family's recent stay at Shady Spruce Hostel in Missoula, Montana was absolutely wonderful from start to finish. The hostel combines modern comfort with a warm, community feel — something that’s increasingly rare these days.||The location couldn’t be better: it’s just a short walk to excellent restaurants, local breweries, and shops, as well as easy access to Missoula’s outdoor adventures. Whether you’re in town for a quick stopover or a few days of adventure, this is a perfect home base.||The staff deserves special recognition. When I realized I had made an error in my booking, they immediately stepped in to help and moved our reservation forward by a full day. That level of flexibility and kindness completely saved our trip and made a lasting impression. Throughout our stay, everyone was friendly, responsive, and eager to help with recommendations and local tips.||The hostel itself is spotlessly clean, well-maintained, and smartly laid out. Our room felt private yet welcoming, and the common areas encourage connection without being crowded. You can tell that real thought and pride go into keeping everything running smoothly.||Overall, Shady Spruce Hostel is an outstanding example of how hostels should be run — affordable, community-oriented, and genuinely guest-focused. It’s the kind of place that makes you feel instantly at home, and I’d recommend it wholeheartedly to anyone visiting Missoula.

Stumbled across this place on Google maps when looking for accommodation in Missoula. I normally use Booking.com but this place had good reviews and was super reasonably priced so took a chance and booked this place directly. We stayed in the private suite twice for two nights each to bookend our road trip around Montana and it was great - clean, comfortable and cozy. They were super quick to answer any questions we had via email and let us store our bags for a few hours after check out as we had a late flight. Definitely recommend this place - if you’re a light sleeper, bring earplugs as you can hear the train through the night but didn’t bother us in the slightest. Really conveniently located and the free bikes are a nice touch, though everything is super walkable. Loved Missoula and loved Shady Spruce! ♥️

Very friendly, clean, and accommodating. Easy to check in and out, loved the kitchen and dining area. I stayed in Pod B and you might want a sleep mask for making it dark, or make sure you turn out the hallway light. Otherwise was a great stay!

Fantastic hostel! I would even go as far as to say it's elegant. Incredibly clean, great location within walking distance of downtown. It also has a nice home-like feel which I enjoy on the road versus staying in a sterile hotel room.

The Shady Spruce is absolutely amazing. The house is super cute and welcoming, with tons of accommodations. I went with a total of four people and our contact Chris was incredible and friendly. |I had mixed up a reservation and Chris was gracious about my mistake. |100% recommend if you ever come to Missoula and need a homey and comfortable place to stay.

So cute and very clean! Beautifully well decorated. Common spaces are well kept and very cozy!

I've traveled around the world and this is a fine place: a hostel for grownups! After about a dozen stays, it just gets better. Clean, no-nonsense, thoughtful in its amenities, cool other travelers (if you happen to see them around), and zero complaints. Thank you for making it so easy and fun to visit Missoula.

Pros: We loved our stay at the hostel. We got a private room and our stay was quiet and relaxing. The bathroom upstairs was nice. The neighborhood is cute and feels safe. They had wi-fi. They had maps and suggestions for things to do. One of the best things was that we could use the bicycles for free - in a town like Missoula this was a great perk. Although watch out because drivers aren't the most bike-friendly in this town. We had only purchased one night but when we decided we wanted to stay another, the reception got back to us via text quickly to arrange another night. It's not the cushiest - it is a hostel, after all. But it's clean and comfortable and a good-enough deal. Cons: We had to pay for parking on the street, which seems weird because there isn't very much going on nearby and the town is so small. The cream they had set out for coffee was curdled but I left a note and they quickly removed (but didn't replace) it.

I love this hostel it's the best place to stay for value and location near to downtown Missoula.

Inexpensive and its located right near downtown. The shady spruce is clean and the beds are comfy. However don't expect any social guests, during my stay not once did an opportunity to connect with other travelers present itself. I made friends in town instead. Overall this place is pretty cool and I'd recommend it to any budget minded traveler.

Female dorm - Assigned 4 beds - 2 upper & 2 lower (bunk beds) Pros: - Immaculate, beautiful, well thought out hostel - Quiet - Fully stocked kitchens - Spacious, single person restrooms on both floors (1 full upper, 1 full lower & 1/2 bath lower) - Curtains on bottom bunks - Reversable mattresses - 1 side soft & 1 side firm - Personal light at each bed - Closet & hangers in dorm room - Trash cans & recycling bins in rooms - Small lockers for valuables downstairs - All instructions/information clearly posted throughout facility - 2 laptops provided for use - Free wifi - Free large towels - 10pm quiet time - Bikes available for use - Free earplugs in RR Cons: - 3p - 6p check in (if no reservation). With reservation, they will email you the front door code (which I hope they change periodically) - No lock on female dorm door - Female dorm connected to kitchen - No parking on site. Must use either downtown street parking or pay at a garage; however, downtown street parking is free after 6pm and on weekends/holidays (No idea of what time in the am paid parking resumes though I left at 5am and was ticket free.) - Small lockers for valuables downstairs - No lockers for luggage though they state they are "not responsible for missing/stolen items". In short, leave your belongings at your own risk, yet nowhere secure to leave your belongings (except for small valuables). - Bathroom curtain does not go to bottom of window (frosted glass) - Dorm room's almost full length glass entry door covered with see-though curtain so that anyone in the kitchen can see inside. - No outside pillows, blankets or towels allowed - Postings in restroom a bit serial killer-y - cut out letters and all. - Can hear train sounding at various hours of the night

The Shady Spruce was definitely not shady, in fact it was legit. Decent location save for parking during weekday days. Clean facilities, well appointed kitchens. I have docked one star, though, for their only providing one skimpy pillow per bed. If there's only gonna be one pillow, it should be fluffy and wonderful. The one I had was flat-ish and lumpy :( Otherwise a great little hostel in Missoula! Nice to have a clean, comfortable affordable option for an overnight stay in the Zoo.

Meticulously designed in efficiency, edited to perfection, aesthetically pleasing, and immaculately clean, the Shady Spruce Hostel welcomes you with kindness and ease in the absolute perfect location. It's comfortable, spacious, well-maintained, and provides exactly what you need. Nothing more, nothing less. I can't imagine any other hostel in the same price range holding a candle in comparison. I highly recommend.

Definitely the place to stay in Missoula! Cute and super clean. Walk right to downtown, or use one of the bikes they have available. Chris & Dylan are awesome...Thanks again guys!

I can't say enough good things about Shady Spruce Hostel. The biggest takeaway is how well-organized it is, from the pre-check-in email and name tag that greets you at the door to the bike rental system and loads of resources about traveling around Montana and Missoula. The light green Victorian home is beautiful, with a charming feel and patio furniture and hammocks in front. The kitchens have great appliances and cookware, the bathrooms are high quality (with shampoo and soap for those who forgot), and the single room I stayed in is the perfect size, with a little desk and stool in addition to the twin bed. One of the highlights, and something you can't find at your local Holiday Inn, are the bikes you can rent for free, with helmets. Missoula is a great biking city and small enough that you can see it all easily on two wheels. Arturo was really friendly and gave me a good recommendation about getting to the "M." The only two issues I had with Shady Spruce were that it was pretty quiet and didn't have as much of a social feel as other hostels I've stayed at, and the shower to people ratio was a bit small. But it was such a beautiful hostel and so well-run that I have to give it five stars.

In every way the best hostel I've ever stayed in. Cleanliness, hospitality, friendliness of staff, 5 stars in all ways. Fast WiFi, easy to check in, the owner Chris is incredibly nice and very helpful offering local advice on what to check out.

I was very disappointed with my interaction with the Shady Spruce Hostel. Needing a room that same evening (a Monday), I found a private room on Booking.com for the seemingly too-low price of $20. Thinking that this might be an off-season or mid-week random price, I immediately and excitedly booked the stay. There was no one at the physical location, which wasn't abnormal as we guessed there wasn't anyone staying there. After calling the number provided in the reservation email to ask for the door code and talking to one of the staff, he told us that the $20 price listing was in error. He said he would talk to the owner about the mistake and call us back. We were understanding about the error, and told him we would be willing to pay more than the price we were promised on Booking. Unfortunately, in business, when you promise a certain price, it is best practice to deliver for the sake of customer satisfaction instead of backtracking, but I digress. We waited for a call back; no response. After taking a walk around the block, we realized that no one was going to call us back. Fortunately we were able to book one of the other hotels in the area and check in promptly. After staying at many hostels both overseas and in the US, I was looking forward to seeing the Missoula version. Hopefully they have fixed whatever glitch was in their communication system with Booking.com so future guests actually get to stay at the hostel when they make a legitimate reservation.