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Aille River Hostel

Doolin

2 of 5
Address
Fisher Street, Doolin County Clare, Ireland   Map
Price
Location/Contact
Details
Aille River Hostel Online Booking
Arrival Date:   Nights:  People: 
Their Description

Features

  • Kitchen
  • Lockers
  • Lounge / Common space
  • Book Collection/Exchange
  • Washing Machine (laundry)
  • Clothes Dryer
  • Travel information provided
  • Bike Rental
  • 24 Hour Free Hot Showers
  • Phones (public or in room)
 
The Hostelz.com Review
Doolin is a hotbed for B&Bs and hostels of all kinds -- Aille River Hostel is centrally located in the middle of the main street that runs through town. There are shops and pubs at either end of the road, and the hostel is located in the middle for an easy half-kilometer walk to the pubs at either end. The bus station is at the west end of town, so walking east along the road you get dropped off on will take you to the hostel, which is just across the river that runs parallel to the main road. If you're driving in to town, you'll come in perpendicular to the main road and see a bunch of road signs pointing left and right. Continue straight across the main road (just to the left of all the road signs) and you'll cross the river and the hostel will be the big white building on your right.

The hostel has extraordinarily friendly service, although you can only check in until about 8 pm, when there is still someone working there. The hostel itself is accessible all night long to backpackers who are told the combination to the door upon arrival. There is a fairly large sitting room with stove/fireplace and lovely wooden chairs, including a fantastic rocking chair, tables for sitting and eating, and a fully equipped kitchen for your use if you desire to cook. There is free tea available around the clock. The dining area is well-lit and sunny, making for a very cheery atmosphere.

There is a tiny closet with a computer in it for free internet access twenty minutes at a time as long as someone is working there. It's a bit claustrophobic, but at least it's free and not painfully slow. Expect lines of people waiting to use it in the mornings. There is free access to a washing machine with free detergent for your use. The dryer costs money, but there are also places to hang your clothes to dry outside if the weather is nice enough.

The rooms are nice, not too small, and include clean bedding for your bunk. There are rooms both upstairs and down. There is one room available that has its own bathroom. The rest share two showers and two toilets upstairs, and three toilets and three showers downstairs. We never had any problem with too many people trying to shower at once, and the showers are big and spacious enough as far as showers go in a hostel. Everything is kept very clean.

In the cozy little town of Doolin, this hostel is well-located, clean, and offers friendly service and advice if you're looking for things to do. A definite thumbs up!

— Exclusive Hostelz.com Review
April 2006


Ratings & Comments

4.7 Average from 24 Ratings

This is an open forum, and unlike other hostel guide websites we don't censor out the negative comments.
We can't validate the legitimacy of comments posted on this site—so take what you read here with a grain of salt.
Comment by Stefan, Germany
August 2008
4 Almost perfect!
Very nice atmosphere, beautiful and clean old house, kitchen well equipped! Nice people! Allergic people (house dust milt) may have strong problems (like me) -- newer mattresses could solve that problem.
Comment by Melanie, Canada
April 2007
5 Absolutely Amazing. I stayed here, with my partner, for three weeks altogether last year -- and even through a hurricane we were comfortable and felt like a part of a great family. We can't wait to get back to Doolin and make more friends, eat some more chips at the pub, and listen to some of the best music on Earth! Oh, and to stand by the cliffs again! I would recommend this hostel (which also has a wee camping section) to anyone in an instant!
Comment by Mike, France
October 2006
4 Really, the private rooms and bathrooms on the first floor are fantastic! You really feel at home and it is pretty clean. But the kitchen, common room and corridors are far too small for the incredible number of people who to and fro there!! You bump in someone every now and then, due to the consequent number of campers who borrow the facilities and which must be added to the number of lodgers. The common room is not very welcoming, quite dark and small, and try to avoid the ground floor facilities if you are not a camper! Objectively the hostel is good, just as I rated it, but they have the most stupid reservation policy I 've ever seen! I sent them four confirmation e-mail mentioning that I absolutely needed to know that our rooms were being booked for, since our tour of Ireland was carefully planned, then I called them again on the very morning of our arrival, and when we arrived, at 7:30 instead of 6 p.m. (traffic jams), these people had simply given away our room! We ended up camping in a leaking tent on the night before my girlfriend's birthday! I was really disgusted by their attitude! Of course it went raining, and our neighbours were drunkards, grass-smoking idiots (two of our nationals of course) who came back from God knows where at 2 a.m. talking aloud and acting like pigs, waking up the whole camping. Well, the following night, in a clean and comfortable bed, with a firm mattress, was simply wonderful. Matter of contrast, maybe?
Reply from the Hostel: Unfortunately we occasionally have people who book, confirm and yet still fail to show up. For this reason we have a reservation policy that requires guests travelling by car to check-in before 6pm. This booking condition is made clear and agreed to by all guests before a booking is taken. Where possible we make exceptions and allow a certain amount of leeway for reasons such as traffic, but an hour and a half after agreed check-in and with no phone call, we can not be expected to hold a room - it is not fair on the hostel, or on other people looking for beds in peak season. We are very much a family-orientated hostel and will not tolerate illegal drug use of any kind - anyone found with these is asked to leave.
Comment by Brad & Leila
June 2006
5 We stayed here for two nights and could have made the stay much longer if we had the time. Karl the manager is super helpful and the there is a communal vibe amongst the guests regardless of background. The small size of the hostel encourages social interaction and the rooms are clean as are the showers. No worry of enduring loud groups of footballing teenagers, school trips or the institutional feel of the larger city hostels here. Home away from home. Highly recommended.
Comment by Laurel
April 2006
5 Staying in Doolin at the Aille River Hostel felt like a second home to me. The warmth of the fireplace matched the entire environment including the hospitality of Karl, who runs the hostel with amazing care and love. I highly recommend the experience of Doolin and Aille River Hostel and look forward to a return visit.
Comment by Megan
March 2006
5 I traveled around Ireland for a week and Aille River Youth Hostel was by far the best hostel we stayed at the whole time! Karl is a wonderful, helpful host who will tell you where to go to see cool things, and who is awfully friendly in showing you around the hostel itself. Beds are cheap, showers are plentiful, and there's even free tea to drink and free laundry facilities (detergent included)! Its location in the center of town makes it an easy five-minute walk to either end of the main street to get to the pubs on either side (although I highly recommend going to McGann's!). There's also free internet access in increments of twenty minutes, so that's extremely helpful just for checking email, too. The website says it costs money, but it's free now. If you're planning to go to Ireland, definitely go to Doolin, and definitely stay here!
Comment by Shannon
October 2005
5 Just great!!! You have to go there!!!
Comment by Jonathan, USA
September 2005
5 I loved Doolin, and I loved this hostel. This was my last stop on a long backpacking trip through Europe, and it was the perfect place to spend my last few days. Very laid-back and relaxing, great staff, and there's always plenty of people willing to join you for a trip to the pubs. The Internet is free and so is the washing machine (only place I've seen to offer that), and the kitchen offers everything you need. I can't say enough good things about this place. I highly recommend it.
Comment by Larry
August 2005
5 I have camped here a number of times over the last couple of years, and I absolutely love the place. The staff are friendly, the facilities are great, and the atmosphere is fantastic. =0) Always looking forward to returning...
Comment by Sue
July 2005
5 I was there in August 2004, and on my four-week journey through Ireland this was my favorite place. Such an incredible atmosphere, nice staff, great people, and wonderful surroundings. When I think back to the time I spent there, my heart begins to beat a little faster and I get "FERNWEM" (there's no word for it in English, sorry). ;-) So don't miss this spot in Ireland! I will be there again as soon as possible!
Comment by Matt C - New York
June 2005
4 Really nice little hostel on a river in the Irish countryside. Free tea and full kitchen, free laundry, and free Internet. The problem is that there's only one washing machine so it's ALWAYS being used. And even though you're supposed to get 20 minutes free Internet the weird guy running the place is always coming in and saying my time is up when it's been 5 minutes. Conveniently it's always him that needed to use the computer. That was really annoying. The beds were comfortable, though, and all in all it was fine.
Comment by Valeria
June 2005
5 The hostel is wonderful, comfortable and immersed in a quiet and magical landscape. Karl is a very helpful person and gave me a lot of advice on what to visit in the surroundings. I had never visited such a particular place before and I think I will go back as soon as possible!!!
Comment by Anonymous
March 2005
5 This is the best hostel to stay at in Ireland.
Comment by Andy R.
January 2005
5 I've been here for a week every year since 1993. Go for two days, and stay for the season. Many do. The knobby wooden chair by the fire is my single favorite chair in the world.
Comment by Uli
October 2004
5 This was the best hostel I found in the two weeks of my journey around Ireland. It was very clean, the room was great, and it was very nice to stay here. I'm sure to come back. Doolin is a funny little town. Also thanks to Natasha for the nice time!!!
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2 of 5


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