Calidad House

Cali, in the south of Colombia, can be reached from either Bogota or Medellin (nine hours) in the north over about the most spectacular road in the world or from the south from Popayan, the lovely colonial town two hours south.

Cali has not so much to offer for the more cultural tourist. It's mainly a place to party at night in one of the many salsatecas or have good dinners in great restaurants. It does make a convenient stopover on the long way north to the capital or south.

Calidad House is an extremely popular backpackers hostel situated in the northwest of the new centre of Cali where all the nice restaurants are situated. It's about a 15 minute walk from the historical centre of the city. A taxi from the bus station takes less than ten minutes and should be around a dollar.

The friendly owner probably makes up for the very simple hostel which I found not a place to linger for too long. The showers are below freezing in the morning as there is no hot water available. Cali is hot during the day but cool at night, and so does the temperature of the water! The dorms are spacious and have six or eight beds. Simple, very small single and double rooms are available. Beds are VERY hard and not too comfortable really.

On the plus side there is a kitchen with all the trimmings to use, laundry service, luggage storage, no internet, cable tv in the common room, two patios with relaxing hammocks and lots of info about what to do in and around Cali. The facilities, although basic, are clean enough and the price reflects what you get. Cheap, basic, friendly, good for a few nights if on a budget, but for longer stays or people who require a little bit more quality I would recommend looking elsewhere.

-- Exclusive Hostelz.com Review