New Orleans Hostel - Marquette House

Very pleasantly surprised
I stayed at the Marquette House in April of '08. I helped set up the stay for our group of forty-nine people -- adults and middle school children. Due to the volume of negative comments posted on this site, I went to great lengths checking and double checking all information gathered. I had not been to N.O. before and relied largely on the honest information and opinions of those that knew more than I. I have traveled for many years with groups and have stayed in hostels around the world. They do vary from hostel to hostel. I found the hostel staff to be helpful and accessible. The desk was staffed with people willing and able to help with additional blankets to neighborhood information. They guided us toward restaurants and sites and away from troubled parts of town or areas less secure. The accommodations were clean and functional. They work well for groups. We had no experiences of feeling unsafe or unsecure while there. We opted to rent cooking suites that proved extremely helpful in providing facilities for food storage and preparation. We ate around the courtyard and veranda and prepared a large barbecue on their grills. I would recommend this hostel without reservation. When price is an issue this is your place. The St. Charles streetcar is one block away and makes the city easily accessible. If you want the Hilton, stay at the Hilton. If you want affordable, safe, and central, stay at Marquette House.

Inexpensive and great location
My experiences at Marquette House were good ones. I stayed in NOLA at Marquette House for a few days during an American Chemical Society (ACS) national meeting that I attended in April 2008. Among the other guests at Marquette House during this time were others people from the ACS meeting, students, world travelers, aid workers, volunteers, and workmen. Nobody was rude or threatening and the place was remarkably quiet at night. The St. Charles Avenue street car stop is about one block away and this gives easy and inexpensive transportation to the French Quarter and also a stop within a few blocks of the Convention Center. Either are within walking distance if you like to walk and taxis are not difficult to find in this area. The Marquette House staff was helpful and friendly and the place was reasonably clean -- no bedbugs or lice that I was aware of. I would certainly stay at this place again. I reserved a bunk for $16 a night through hostelz.com and think that this was a great bargain.

Quite gross
the location was good close to St. Charles street car line and walking distance to the French Quarter. I got a private room which was located in the building across the road. It cost me $75 for my one night. But it definitely was not worth that. There was hair in the bath and on the bathroom floor and on the shelves in the bathroom. The comforter had cigarette burns and did not look very clean. I did not even touch the blankets on the bed and was very glad that I brought a sleeping bag with me and did not have to touch anything. They were my main issues. They say they have limited housekeeping since Katrina, but seriously, how hard is it to clean a bathroom and change sheets? The staff that I saw were friendly though. It was still cheaper than other places to stay in the area so if you want cheap (and for one night) stay here. And bring a sleeping bag, and don't necessarily expect a shower. Next time I'll spend more and stay elsewhere.

Affordable, clean, friendly, helpful, convenient, and safe
The Marquette House was my first Hostel experience. I didn't know what to expect so I researched as much as I could, during that process I stumbled across this site. I was intimidated but after conversing through email with The Marquette House, I decided to risk it. I saw no rodents and was bitten by no bugs, in fact the only bug I saw was a lone spider and I can assure you it is now dead. I stayed during Mardi Gras in a female dorm room above the office. You needed a key (or to be buzzed in) to enter the office and then passed through the building to the back fenced in area linking other units together and then you needed your key to enter your actual dorm. Key to enter was good enough security for me and we had no problems. I never saw any of the units across the street. At the time I was there the kitchen was still under renovations. however the staff had a microwave in the office and was more than wiling to warm anything up for us. The lockers were also not locked while I was there but again the staff was more than willing to look after anything of value for a very small fee. As I've said I stayed in a female dorm. People come and go at all hours of the day and night. If your uninterrupted sleep is that important to you pay for something more private. Even if you are lucky enough not to be disturbed by neighbors the street noise will in the morning will wake you. That wasn't a big surprise or even such a bad thing as I said I was there for Mardi Gras and The Marquette House is right off the parade route, where you can go right up to the floats -- no barricades. I'm not sure of the exact distance but The Marquette House has to be under two miles from The French Quarter. We were able to bike and walk. The Marquette House even had a bike rack free of charge to lock up our bikes. The facilities were clean and the staff was friendly and went above and beyond to try and accommodate any needs. They always had the answer and the directions (and map). The Hostel was not at its full potential when i was there but there was work going on and progress is being made. I think a lot of people forget that the hurricanes caused a lot of damage and there is a lot of work going on as the communities are still recovering and rebuilding. I will be returning to The Marquette House in the future (hopefully Mardi Gras 08) and I would recommend it to everyone. The Marquette House is as close as you will get for this kind of money and well worth every penny!

Terrible to deal with over the phone
I called this hostel to make a reservation and I had the worst experience ever. The staff was a complete crack-head and a jerk. Wouldnt take my reservation and wouldnt even tell me anything about the hostel. I hung-up on him after a few questions with "what? huh? what?" and it wasnt a hearing problem, it was obviously an intelligence and maturity problem on his behalf.

Of all the hostels I have been to, this is the worst. I have seen people beaten up, whiskey bottles on the tables permanently. The owner, Steve Cross, is an alcoholic and the staff, Eddie, is doing crack. I heard from one man that people have broken into the hostel twice the last couple of weeks and one of the staff members who was working there has been stabbed in the head three times and they broke his arm in several places. And he is in the hospital right now. It is very unsafe there. The cameras at the front desk do not work so anything can happen.

I dont expect much from a hostel, just safety and some sleep. Random people and local girls kept coming in the guys dorms after midnight -- drinking and smoking! Loud music and just being annoying. I didnt feel safe at all since these weren't visitors, they were random locals (friends of the people living there). It was pretty nasty looking mattress as well. Manager guy was borderline prick too. Stay away!

This is the ultimate dive -- we looked at the so-called dormitory, saw the state of the filthy mattresses, and the incumbent woman who growled each time we opened the door, it woke her up? It was the afternoon! So we took one of the so-called rooms over the road. The minute we got inside a cockroach ran away underneath the cupboards; the curtains are rotting on the rail, mainly as they have never been cleaned; dust rules everywhere; the air conditioner sounded like a train was coming to demolish us; the lock on the door was so flimsy it was laughable, obviously many had tried to break in before; and to top it all off, there was pubic hair inside the bath. The floor was disappearing in the corner, so we had to studiously avoid it. The only reason we didn't walk out was because we were too tired to go elsewhere, but we used heaps of Lavender essential oil to chase away the bedbugs (the blankets were also filthy). This place is a flophouse. I stayed at many locations in the U.S.A. and this one surpassed them all for filthiness, lack of friendly staff, lack of security -- just a bum outfit. Be afraid.

I stayed there for three days and it was horrible. The guy behind the desk was very nice but the hostel itself was terrifying. There were random nutters all over the place, the girls dorm had several of them, and they regularly had rows at 4 a.m. On my last night there a large, nasty smelling lady turned up on the bed next to me, changed on the bed, then started muttering threats at me. I moved shortly afterwards and informed the manager who did nothing. Just dire! Don't stay there especially if you're female -- it's dangerous.

Well, in spite of the negative comments, I stayed here in mid October for almost a week. I chose this place as I figured it had the best location.The India house was to far away from the Quarter and Jo's charged to much and I wasn't so sure about that area. I didn't get any bedbug bites even though the mattress wasn't the cleanest and didn't see any rats. Also, this hostel is not in the ghetto as someone stated but on the northern edge of the Garden District just north of St. Charles Ave. I didn't see any prostitutes or see anyone doing drugs. About a mile south are some of the most grand homes one will find in Nola and I had no problem with the area. I had a rental car and other than needing a bed for the night, I spent little time here as I was up early and on my way to see and do things and sometimes back a little late. I didn't meet too many people but there are several rescue or construction workers staying here to help rebuild New Orleans. They are indeed workers and not transients. No problem with them. The photos they have shown here are not of the hostel but of the building across the street which is owned by the hostel owner as well. It has suites or apartments that can be rented daily, weekly, or monthly. Upon entering the hostel is the reception area and lots of brochures on New Orleans. You are given your linen and a key and exit through the back of this building into the courtyard. You will need your key to get back into the reception building from the courtyard. Security was good. The hostel rooms are in several long buildings with different entrances or rooms. There are different prices depending on the room and how you book. If you just show up they will try to charge you $25 but if you book through this site you will pay the $16 plus tax. Also, a room with less people will cost the 25. I had the prices of the hostels written down and showed the owner. He gave me the room for the 16 even, as I guess he thought I might go to one of the other hostels. I didn't have any problems with the owner or the current staff. As stated there is no kitchen service and there didn't appear to be a TV room either which is too bad and due to this, 25 is too much if you have to pay this. I stayed on the main floor as the upstairs rooms were occupied by the workers. There were only two bunk beds near the back so you had more room. I kept my stuff in the trunk of the car since I was spending little time here. One strange thing is that there are lockers in the main building or reception area but they cant be locked as there are no hooks to attach a lock. The door just closes. The shower/bathroom was upstairs and was relatively clean. No better or worse than most hostels. Since I was on the main floor you had to put up with people coming and going but what can you expect for a hostel. If you have a car rental you can park on the street or on the grass lot next to the reception building. At this time the St. Charles streetcar is not running but there is the bus just a short block away to get you to the French Quarter. Overall, if you just need a bed and don't plan on spending much time here as you explore and enjoy New Orleans, this hostel will suffice. However, if you are one to sit around the place or don't want to eat out and try all the good Cajun/Creole food you will be disappointed. I went to a few of the hotels for continental breakfast and enjoyed eating out for dinner. With no kitchen or TV room, I should probably just give this place two stars but I will be generous and give it three as average since I didn't have any problems.

I stayed here in April of 06 and are planning to again this weekend. I liked the place and the guy who runs it was very friendly. My room was clean as was the shower/bathrooms and I will gladly stay here again. I liked the courtyard and it was a shame the kitchen can't be used but I just ate out. It's a good location and all the guests I met there were nice too. So thumbs up from me!

Quite a change from when I last stayed there in 1994. I know that things change, but when I booked, I was not told the extent of the changes. The place no longer allows guests to use the kitchen [we are told it is under renovations, but a reliable inside source told me that the owners just didn't want to do the upkeep anymore]. The rooms look almost nothing like the photos, there is no stove in the private rooms [there used to be], the rooms used to have wardrobes in them where you could hang your clothes [these are gone], there is no internet, no TV, no ammenities at all. The prices have tripled [from $25/night in a private room, to $75/night], some of the bed are propped up on bricks, and this place was not even damaged by Katrina at all [the water stopped at least four blocks away, and one cannot see any wind damage]. On top of that, they promise to have night staff, but do not, even though it says they do on all correspondence, and even though I told them I would be arriving late and was assured I would be welcomed, I was not. I had to wake up the proprietress, who was most ungracious and unwelcoming. Oh, I eventually got in, but was told that I was wrong about the hours [I have the email to prove that I wasn't]. In short, I do not recommend this place at all. Yuck.

While this hostel was in a good location and I met a lot of great people there, it was definitely one of the worst I have ever stayed in. The kitchen was not fit to be used - especially as we saw a rat running around (we told the staff but they already knew and weren't bothered about removing the offending rodent). The living/communal area was pretty dismal as well. The rooms themselves were spacious and the air conditioner worked which was a plus. So basically, if all you want is a bed for the night it's a good enough place. I found the staff very unfriendly and unhelpful though. I got caught in a big thunderstorm the day I was leaving from the airport so had to change clothes before heading off (had already checked out of the room) - the staff charged me $1 for the use of a towel and a $1 for a plastic bag to put my wet clothes in - not a lot of money really but most places would have been glad to help without trying to make money out of it.

Stay away or get bitten by a rat! Another trekker did while I was there. I'm a lifetime member of American Youth Hostels and have used hostels now for 30 years. I found cockroaches and rats roaming freely in the unsanitary kitchen. Alcohol and drugs were abundant, fight' ensued and the staff also drugged and drank on duty. And there were street prostitutes and scam artists conducting business at the hostel while the owner turned a blind eye, as long as he could hunt me down for my .50 cent locker fee daily. (He was ripping me off until I suggested I may dispute the charge on my platinum card, which made him think twice and he never bothered me again}. If it were not for the fact I had finished a project in Eastern Texas and in desperate need of culture and unwittingly arrived as Jazz Fest was in full swing, I would have stayed in the Quarter by the Ursuline Convent on the quiet side of the French Quarter. I was astonished they never took a reservation when I telephoned from the road and gave me no confirmation code like most hostels and hotels do. Miscreants, squalor and junkies are not what American Youth Hostels were founded on and after returning home I saw fit to voice my complaint and veto the endowment the AYH did. Toss Marquette House out of AYH. I saw staff members taking the stubs of cigarettes to smoke them because they were so underpaid. I also needed to have everything I brought into the hostel dry-cleaned to remove the lice. And I had several baths with a lice remover. The surrounding neighborhood was impoverished, but the maids at the hostel who lived just a block away in the area another described as gang territory were actually working poor. They were the very same grandmothers we saw at the Convention Center waiting for days after Hurricane Katrina. But they were kind enough to let me know about some church dinners going on as I was in NOLA for several months, and I have to say it was the best home cooked cuisine in NOLA. The owner also has another hostel I heard was equally reprehensible in Texas.

I stayed there for about two hours during Jazz Fest. As soon as we checked in the staff said don't worry about reports of bedbug infestation, we have it under control! Very reassuring... The first people we met had bites and lumps all over them, but they couldn't leave, as everywhere was booked out. Also we were there as other comments were made about the guy who had his car stolen from outside the place. Some asshole nicked his keys from his bag, leaving him and his sister stranded at that dump. When we asked for our money back, we were threatened by the guy at reception, which I expect happens a lot. We said that we were not told of any bedbug infestation when we booked so we wanted our money back. Eventually we got it and went quickly. Oh and when I first got to my bunk there were dirty sheets on it and some guy's stuff. When I told the reception guy he said just move it then. Cheers, Joe, for sorting it out.