Boston Backpackers Beantown Hostel

Very good
I liked the place. First, knowing that it's a hostel, we haven't expected perfectly clean bathrooms, bedrooms, modern furniture, or something like that, but a moderate place to sleep over. We stayed there one night, we got to the place on Saturday morning, left our bags there and went out. I expected the worst place ever, but it turned out as not bad. We didn't spend much time in there, only for a couple of hours sleeping and that's it. Mark, the manager, is very, very polite and kind person. I've read before that he's rude, but when it comes to me and my group, he was great! The place is in a great location, couple of minutes' walk from the downtown, very close to the subways, by which one can get to Salem and Harvard. If I went to Boston again, I'd definitely stay at the same place again!

Don't go here! never!
It was the worst hostel in which I stayed. The manager was very unfriendly, and he wasn't here a lot of time, even during the opening hours (which means no access to internet and to the kitchen). The security was bad -- I left a guide book ten minutes in the common room, and somebody stole it, although the manager was here. It was a lot of noise all the night (because there was a bar just under the hostel). And finally, the manager took $5 more than the price announced (it puts the price of the night at $35, which is more expensive than in NYC). Very bad place.

The place to go!
I stayed at this hostel for two days in August/September and had an absolute fantastic time. At first I was a bit skeptical reading all the bad comments on this hostel. George, the on-site manager, might seem a little strange in the beginning, but if you get to know him he turns out to be a real darling! The location of the hostel is more than fantastic and the place is very clean. The beds are comfortable and the under bad lockers are the best I've ever seen. Of course the bar with the live band below the hostel will turn out to be a nightmare for all of those that want to go to sleep at 10 p.m., but hey you're going to Boston so what are you doing trying to sleep at 10 p.m.? If you get in once the band has finished you'll have a wonderful stay here! I highly recommend this place. It's a must go!

Absolute disgrace
i stayed at this hostel from the 19th August to the 24th August 2007, and i have to say this is the worst hostel i have ever stayed in! Pretty much all the description about the hostel is lies! the rooms being mixed dorms -- the manager came into our room shouting and screaming that we couldn't be in the room and had to move. the "common room" being open til midnight -- first of all this is not a common room, which the manager told me at least five times during my stay, and on numerous occasions the kitchen and common area was closed and locked up at 8 p.m. without any prior notice -- very inconvenient as we could get food or water from the fridge! Laundry room -- this laundry room was not open at all during our stay. we went at 7 p.m. to use the facility and the manager told us that he was not prepared to open it and if we didn't like it we could leave. Free Internet -- don't be fooled by this! I went on and was told to get off the computer after four minutes! We also encountered problems with the money situation as well, when the manager tried to make us pay 35 dollars a night when we had reservations and already paid for the stay for 30 dollars a night, and tried to charge us some weird "Tax" of 3 dollars, which when we asked what it was for he refused to give us an answer! As some of the other reviews have stated we also had problems gaining a receipt from the manager. I must say, the rooms and the bathrooms were very clean, but the customer service was a disgrace and to be honest it totally spoiled my trip to boston. I would strongly urge anyone who was thinking of staying here to look for something else.

Do yourself a favour -- look for another place.
We were four people that booked this hotel for Aug. 28 and got a confirmation -- we paid a 60$ total in advance. We got to the hostel and this very unwelcoming manager opened the door and said he didn't get our reservation and that he doesn't have any room left. We asked him to help us find a room for tonight and he sent us to the public library. this guy is a jerk. Do not go there, do not book reservations online. Enjoy Boston, it is Awesome!

Horrible service
My girlfriend called this hostel several times and the person at the service desk hung up on her four times. The last time she called she was in the middle of asking a question and the person just hung up on her. I read the posted comments prior to calling but needed a place to stay.

Overall very unwelcoming
I agree with other comments posted on this page, the hostel is in a great location and is very clean and quiet at nights. However the manager is quite rude. One of the most annoying things is that the lounge/internet/kitchen area is locked if the manager is not there -- this happened frequently and at sporadic times so you could never tell when you can use the internet or get access to your food. When a friend came to catch up we met at the hostel lounge, and both got told off by the manager. Friends of ours got turned away from the hostel even with a booking. I would not recommend staying here.

This hostel is terrible. The loud music goes on until 2 or 3 a.m. every night, not what you need when you have to get a flight at 7 a.m. The manager is just odd. Spent the whole time convinced we were Irish, would appear in the room at night in just his underwear. Not very welcoming at all. We ended up going to the airport and sleeping on the floor rather than stay the night with the loud rap and the odd manager.

This hostel is awful. It is in a great location, and is relatively clean with pretty good facilities, but it lacks the most important thing a hostel requires -- a sense of security. there is a lock on the front door, but the combination did not change while i was there, and a few times people came in who were not guests, but knew the manager, and apparently the code as well. Also, the manager is a problem. At one point near the beginning of my trip he tried to throw me out of the hostel because i asked for my change. As a young woman backpacking alone, this really really scared me. Especially as i knew most of the other guests had been trying, to no avail, to find somewhere else to stay. From then on, i was afraid of breaking any rules, real or not, in case he tried to throw me out again. I was not the only one. If you want an enjoyable and relaxing stay in Boston, do not stay here.

I would not recommend this hostel. I went there twice, in October 2006 and March 2007, for lack of any other place to stay. The problems of this hostel are first that it is situated right above a pub. So concerts run until 2 a.m., if not later on special occasions (like Saint Patrick's Day), and there is no sound insulation, so it literally seems as if you were attending the concert yourself! No need to say that after a day of visit, when you're tired and you go to bed, you are not expecting to wait for another two or three hours to be able to sleep! Then, the second problem is the manager, who is really strange and disagreeable. I thought that him coming into the rooms in the middle of the night happened only when I spent my nights there, but apparently, according to reviews by other people, he seems to do it on a regular basis. What happens is that he comes into the rooms and he checks several things, doing comments to people (so waking them up at the same time) if something is wrong. For example, at something like 3 a.m., he asked a couple who was sleeping in the same bed to go into two different beds, when they were not annoying anybody else. And by doing so (for the sake of what, I have no idea), he woke up everybody (eight people) in the room! Then, he is extremely rigid on certain things, for instance, he refused to let people use the internet literally three minutes after check-out because check-out time had passed! Other problems are the price which has increased and is now pretty expensive ($35 to $40 a night); and the kitchen which is just there to decorate, as the manager said it could not be used. However, this hostel also has good points, not to be discarded -- it has the internet for free (during the time you are allowed to stay in the hostel), it is well situated (you are within walking distance of downtown, the Italian district), it provides lockers (but no padlocks), and it is clean. Then, the decision to stay there only depends on what you want from a hostel!

This hostel is awful. The manager is cheating and rude. There is no credit standing in this hotel. I only booked one day with $30 last December, but $90 was charged. I have contacted this hotel for so many times. Each time they just said they would send a check to you or they already sent a check to you. But actually they never done this. Last week, I call the hotel again. The manager is very rude and hanged up my call. It's nearly four months since the money was overcharged. I won't trust this hotel any more. I will ask help from credit card company! Don't book this hotel if you don't want something bothers you.

This hostel is awful. I have been backpacking through N. America and staying only at hostels and this place is definitely the worst. The management is extremely rude and does not have any respect your privacy. At night, he came into our dorm and flashed a torch into our faces. The next morning he came and physically shook us awake even though it was before our checkout time. This was after a horrible night's sleep as the band playing in the bar downstairs can be heard clearly in the dorm and the blanket provided is not adequate in the unheated room. When we left we asked for a receipt as we paid by credit card and he refused to give us one. Nor did he ask for our signature to authorise the payment. So basically he just took our credit card number and did what he wanted with it. I'm still worried that some strange charge will show on my card. Do not stay here!

The Boston Backpackers has the potential to be a really great hostel. It has large dorms with big bunk beds with lockers underneath to store your gear. It is close to town centre, bar district, sports centre, and the metro stop. There is a bar underneath which plays live music that plays until 1 a.m., so no chance to get an early night. But on the plus side there is free entry into the bar and the beers are $3 a pint. The problem with this hostel is the management. They have the ability to make you feel very unwelcome and that they don't like real backpackers -- only weekenders. They are likely to make up new rules at random (like, no drinking in the hostel just after we bought a six-pack of beer -- if we were aware of the rule we wouldn't have bought the beer). Also they advertise a guest kitchen but don't go and buy any food as you are only allowed to use the microwave. We have been backpacking for eight months and a kitchen to make our meals and save money is a very important feature. Be aware that the management feel at liberty to be in your dorm room at any odd hour of the day or night. I awoke on several occasions to find the manager standing in the middle of the room looking around. I found this very creepy, being a female backpacker. Also, half hour before checkout time (11 a.m.) don't be surprised to see the manager in your room waking people up trying to figure out who should be checking out that day and then reminding the relevant person that they have thirty minutes until checkout, twenty minutes until checkout and so on. I posted a complaint on an online booking service and it was removed promptly by the hostel management and then received a nasty email from the hostel something like the following -- "i was shocked to read the review that we received, it seemed that you or your boyfriend said anything to me about your views that professes a coward i view that. if you have a problem for $30 dollars a night go to a shelter where you can use there kitchen, and stop trying to take over someones hostel kitchen, and if i can make a suggestion, pick up after yourself. you were slobs and you smelled. smarten up." This is not really professional behaviour and in my opinion very childish. They should be able to take the good comments with the bad and then use them to improve the hostel. And just for the record I don't smell and am not a slob -- he must have me confused with somebody else!

This hostel has an excellent location, within easy walking distance of all the sights in downtown Boston. It is easy to find (go out of the North Station T stop and the big street is Causeway Street, stand facing the Celtics stadium and make a left, Friend Street is the second street you'll cross, after the Burger King). It is in a street with several bars, and there was a fight outside the night I got in, at about 1 a.m., though I personally never felt threatened. Apparently this is a fairly regular occurrence. I arrived after the check-in time because my flight was delayed, but called ahead and somebody stayed at reception for me. The hostel was clean and the facilities, including free Internet (though not wireless), are fairly good. On the downside, it is pretty expensive for a hostel (though $30 seems the going rate in Boston), and the thumping music from next door makes it difficult to sleep, especially on Saturday nights when it goes on till 2 a.m. On the Sunday night I was there it had stopped by midnight. It was not busy on the November nights I was there -- on the Saturday it was no more than half-full and on the Sunday night it was almost empty.