The Hostelz.com Review
The Downtown Backpackers Hostel Bratislava is a fine institution. Since there are now multiple other hostels in Bratislava and price can be volatile. Sometimes they are even higher than in neighboring Vienna.
The hostel offers a restful nook yet it is central enough to be walking distance from everything (except the unpleasant bus depot). The hostel's location gives access to the pub scene as well as the sights of the city. There are plenty of banks, stores, cash points, and other amenities nearby.
The hostel staff are often foreigners, but they are still as friendly and cool as the locals. They will bend over backwards to make you comfortable but they stay chill doing it. There is a decent kitchen, comfortable beds, cramped, dank shower rooms and toilets, and a pleasant sitting room with internet access and games. The décor of the hostel isn't the world's best, but the building's details make up for that.
Bratislava is the sort of city that many people either flat-out hate and many fall in love with. This hostel is the same way. We found museum fanatics to be less happy and city walkers and pub crawlers to be thrilled.
The hostel offers a restful nook yet it is central enough to be walking distance from everything (except the unpleasant bus depot). The hostel's location gives access to the pub scene as well as the sights of the city. There are plenty of banks, stores, cash points, and other amenities nearby.
The hostel staff are often foreigners, but they are still as friendly and cool as the locals. They will bend over backwards to make you comfortable but they stay chill doing it. There is a decent kitchen, comfortable beds, cramped, dank shower rooms and toilets, and a pleasant sitting room with internet access and games. The décor of the hostel isn't the world's best, but the building's details make up for that.
Bratislava is the sort of city that many people either flat-out hate and many fall in love with. This hostel is the same way. We found museum fanatics to be less happy and city walkers and pub crawlers to be thrilled.
— Exclusive Hostelz.com Review
January 2007
Their Description
HI - Bratislava Downtown Backpackers Hostel Details
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HI - Bratislava Downtown Backpackers Hostel Reviews on Other WebsitesHostelz.com Guest Reviews
Party hostel The common room had a great atmosphere which you can meet a lot of people. — Anonymous (2010-02-23) Great This place was awesome. Staff was mostly friendly, save a cranky blonde. The room was bitchin. If you can, ask for the two-man room, it has a balcony. This is a huge bonus as you can smoke out there. — Jon Paul , U.S. (2009-06-11) Location -- Good. Cleanliness -- Poor Good location, nice bar, but very dirty and untidy. Kitchen looked like it was never cleaned, bed sheets never appeared to have been changed (leading to a bad attack of the bedbugs and hundred-plus bites). — Ryan , Irish (2008-09-01) It's all right The construction workers on the other side of the street woke me up. the staff is friendly, but the price could be a bit lower maybe. Anyway, I still recommend it. — Thomas , Belgium (2007-06-29) This hostel is way too expensive for one of Europe's cheapest countries. It is a decent place, with a dark, somewhat depressing atmosphere. It is hard to tell between the staff, their friends and the other guests, who all seem to be hardcore heavy metal fans. The staff will help you when asked, but won't volunteer any assistance. The only thing you get for your money is a nice bed and sheets — for anything else, you have to pay. The facilities are clean, but there are only a few of them. The kitchen is good and well equipped. The location is nice, and there are great pubs and restaurants nearby. It is an average hostel, with a much-more-than-average price. — Jonathan, Jerusalem (2005-08-09) Last year I stayed at a hostel called the Downtown Backpackers Hostel in Bratislava. Well, I didn't really stay there because there were no beds left (I arrived at 1 a.m.) But my two fellow travelers and I stayed in the very nice lounge (living room) and spent the night there for free, but not after the lovely Zuzana tried everything in her power to get us a nice cheap hotel. Not only did we stay there for free, but the next morning she called me a taxi to the airport (I was flying home from Bratislava) and arranged a good fare for me, too. I really enjoyed the last night of my trip and would love to go back to Bratislava just for that great hostel. — Anonymous (2005-04-06) Long halls decorated by 40 dorm double beds, about 6 water taps, 4 water closet bowls and one hostel bell, and 30 meters away is big, noisy building activity and sometimes a soft earthquake. This is a great ridiculous absurdity. — Anonymous (2005-02-23) I thought this hostel was sound. Good hospitality. — Danny Barnett, Wrexham (2005-02-01) Shite. It's your only real choice, but at US $22 for a dorm bed you really think someone could scare them with competition near the Old Town. There were three staff members while we were there who just stayed in the lounge the whole time and then slept on the couches at night. Moreover, they invited their friends there too, who made a lot of noise and took over most of the space. At 9 a.m. they were still all asleep on the couches and you had to make your way through this makeshift dorm for the bathroom and shower. One staff member was great, but the rest had attitude in abundance — one could almost forget that they would actually want people to stay there. And remember US $22 — it's much more than for better accommodations in bigger surrounding cities. — Thomas (2005-01-17) If you are planning on staying in a hostel in Bratislava this is your only choice. I was very happy with this hostel. You do have to call ahead because they are very full. Good times, oh yes, good times. — Drew (2004-10-21) I was just here a month ago, and had no problems. It is pretty busy, but it was quite nice relative to other places I have stayed. There's a nice common room. The hostel is not too far from the old part of town, but it is a bit of a walk to the party boat. The only thing I have to complain about is that after you (or the friends you meet in the common area) have drunk the first six cold beers of the night the rest are rather warm. (Is that a valid complaint?) — Cam (2004-10-12) We attempted to stay in this hostel, but were foiled by the charming Zuzana, who is a credit to her country. I made a reservation in advance and informed her that we would be arriving quite late on the first night (around midnight), which was confirmed in subsequent e-mails from her. However, when we turned up, she told us that she had given our beds away, and then claimed that we had never confirmed the booking (we had), and that we hadn't informed her of our late arrival (we had). We were not amused. On top of this, despite it being clearly her fault, she made no attempt whatsoever to help us. We did finally manage to find somewhere else to stay by ourselves, but at this point it was 3:30 a.m. I suppose it has to happen at least once, that you turn up to your accommodation in the middle of the night to find that they have no beds for you. But the fact that was that she lied to us, blatantly disregarded our booking, and then was extremely unhelpful only makes it more galling. Would I recommend this hostel? Absolutely not. If you could give zero stars as a rating, I would. — Rich (2004-09-22) A distinctly average hostel, pretty dark and dingy. There aren't many places to stay in Bratislava, and if you're on a budget this would probably be your best bet. Just don't expect too much! — Anonymous (2004-09-21) This place was not very impressive, compared to some of the other hostels we stayed in. It's very dark and expensive, and I didn't find the staff very friendly. We stayed there at the end of August and expected a good atmosphere. We found a fantastic atmosphere a little ways away from the hostel, in the Dubliner Irish pub!!! — Jk Irish (2004-09-15) This place was pretty cool. The staff were nice, and seemed to like to hang around there even when they weren't working. They were also very nice about helping with train times, sorting out taxis, even bargaining with the driver for you to make sure you don't get ripped off. Also, their knowledge of events around town was superb. People were coming up and saying, "where can I listen to some good drum and bass tonight?" and they would pull out a map and show them the best place without even thinking. Thanks for a great stay guys! — Laura (2004-08-31)