HI - Etroubles - Dortoir Echevennoz Hostel is located in the Aosta Valley near the larger town of Etroubles, within driving distance to ski lifts and within view of the spectacular Italian and Swiss Alps. Run out of the adjacent trattoria, the hostel is a loose term for the accommodation -- don't expect any common areas or HI-related notices around or many fellow travelers (it only has eleven beds). However, it is a clean, warm, and safe place to stay for the night.
The Location
The hostel is in the small village of Echevennoz off the main highway (ss27) which leads through to St. Bernards Pass (to Switzerland) in the Aosta Valley. Surrounded by Italian Alps, the views are breathtaking and the hostel itself is in a building adjacent to a pretty, old church. Check the bus routes for a way to get there, though it's certainly more useful to have a car. Echevennoz itself is just a collection of houses with a few minutes' drive on the highway to nearby villages with no shops or amenities except the trattoria at the hostel. If driving, follow signs to Etroubles and Echevennoz from the Valley de Osta.
Rooms and Bathrooms
Despite the dorm accommodation indicated on the website, it appears that most of the eleven beds are in a self-contained apartment that perhaps may be rented out as a dorm at times but at our time of stay was occupied by a group of three. As a result we had to pay extra for a double room and the kitchen we had hoped and noted on their web page wasn't there. Don't expect any common areas unless you get into this apartment.
Other rooms are simple, small, two- to three-bed twin rooms with a third foldaway bed and plenty of blankets, which were useful in February as heating was turned off at some time in the middle of the night! The bathrooms are clean and water hot -- the two double rooms downstairs appear to share a bathroom. The rooms and front door are lockable and the hostel feels secure.
Common Spaces
The only common area is the trattoria, where breakfast is served should you choose it. The restaurant is also open to the public. There are no common spaces in the hostel unless you were in the apartment/dorm. There is car parking outside the hostel.
Summary
This is a reasonable Alpine stopover, but not the hostel we were expecting. It's got no hostel atmosphere despite it's cosy potential.
Review by S. Topf-- Exclusive Hostelz.com Review
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