Pacific Tradewinds Hostel

Probably the worst U.S. hostel I've stayed at
I couldn't get into the vibe of this place. It's really, really small -- smaller than it looks in the pictures. I guess people like the fact that it's "laid back" or "intimate" or whatever but I found the way it was run annoyingly unprofessional. The employees are always taking up the entire place. The small kitchen and small common area were always packed with tons of employees. There's nowhere to go. There's like seven or eight of them. They all live there and sleep in the same dorms as you. I saw more of them than guests. It's almost as if the place is run for the benefit of the people working there in exchange for room and board than for the travelers who pay to stay there. It's weird. Some of them were friendly and helpful, but there were a few that were quite rude though. One particularly loud obnoxious guy comes to mind. The place was really loud at all hours and impossible to get a good night's sleep. There weren't enough outlets in the common room. There was only one toilet in the whole place. Yes, one. There was never any hot water in the showers. Someone stole my food from the refrigerator. I guess it was well set up for meeting people, only because it's so small that you can't help but be within an arm's length of another person at all times. You might like it if you really want to try to fit into the little click that they have going on there, otherwise, you'll be much happier elsewhere. On the positive side, the location was excellent.

Friendly and fun
We just spent four days at the Pacific Tradewinds hostel, and it was such a blast my friend is actually thinking of going back there to work for them. The accommodations are nothing special, but were comfortable, but the thing that made this hostel awesome was the atmosphere. The common room upstairs was the scene of much hilarity, the managers and staff were friendly (Dave, Al, Mila), and so were the other hostelers. I've stayed in hostels before and the only other time I've had this much fun was in Prague. The rates can't be beaten, the location is fantastic, and the kitchen is fully stocked and usable. They even let you exchange sweat equity for room discounts, so definitely ask if you're interested. Clean, well maintained -- my only complaint would be the lack of storage options in the room (one under the bed locker per person, not enough hooks), and the lack of individual lights (one common light for the room, hallway lights go off at 10 p.m.). I would go back in a heartbeat.

Awesome, perfect, couldn't be better
This hostel hits the nail bang on the head. It's very clean, very well run, the staff are super friendly, and I have to say without a doubt that it is the best hostel I have ever stayed in. It's very social, partly since it's a smaller hostel, and partly since the common room area is smaller as well and is set up to be quite intimate and promoting of good conversation starting. Since there is a fourteen-day limit, everyone at the hostel has just arrived and are looking to make friends and meet people. I don't know how they do it, but they seem to keep most of the bad apples out as well. The kitchen is well equipped with good quality cookware, and utensils, a good stove, big modern fridge (with water cooler) and is well lit. There are two free internet terminals in the common area and there is free wireless as well. Since they don't try to enforce dozens of fun-police type rules like HIs do, people tend to relax and just kick back. Drinking in the lounge is allowed, and the kitchen doesn't get closed at ridiculously early hours. It really felt like a casual house party. The dorms are all co-ed, with one big dorm downstairs and two smaller dorms upstairs. The bunk beds are a custom design and are made of heavy gauge welded steel. I'm six-foot-four and was quite comfortable. The dorm downstairs is arranged with partitions creating about three or four "cubbies" with four to six beds each but surprisingly noise wasn't a huge problem. Each bed also has a steel locker underneath. The location was also great, right downtown. It's an easy walk to the North Beach bars, but yet far enough away that the bar-scene chaos doesn't spill back into the hostel. The only con I can think of is that there is no way someone with a physical disability can stay here since the hostel is three floors up, with no elevator.

It is a safe and clean place to stay. The staff is helpful without being intrusive. The facilities give the traveler practical comfort. The price is ok. It is located near interesting places that are near enough for people who love walking.

First of all, the entrance is almost impossible to find because of small signage in the anonymous street. Second of all, the dormitory room is a joke: it is just one big and long hallway divided into four or five "cubicles" with overcast fluorescent lamps blazing brightly and no doors. Third of all, no lift is fitted there, so forget about carrying heavy luggage up several flights of stairs. Fourth of all, "free coffee" is nothing but a jar of instant coffee and hot water. I would never stay at that place ever again!

DON'T STAY HERE!!! I have stayed at many hostels in the Bay Area and this was the WORST of all. My reservation said a 4-bed dorm and in reality, I was in a room with at least 30 beds, separated by dividers. And there were six beds in my cubicle. They kept the bright overhead lights on in this 30-bed room until 3 a.m. or so. On the Web site, they claimed it was not a party hostel but this is far from the truth. When I arrived, there was a man snorting cocaine while on his bed and later that night a couple was having sex in the cubicle beside mine. The hostel also claimed to be clean . . .it was NOT. People left dirty dishes in the kitchen and left the toilet area messy with bodily fluids. And, to make things worse there are 2 toilets . . . one per floor! This is insane. Save your money and go elsewhere!!!

This was just a great fun hostel. I wouldn't recommend it for very light sleepers, but after a day in the city, I just crashed and didn't have a problem with such an open room. I also brought an eye cover because they don't turn off the lights until 11 p.m., and I was exhausted. Everything was clean and new. People were very friendly and the staff definitely brought out the extroversion in even the quietest of people. I left with some great stories and new friends after only a few days.

I stayed here in May 2005. The staff try to be helpful; my friend and I were in an eight-bed dorm and the staff were nice. But this hostel is at the top of an office building, with about 8 stairs up and no elevator, not good when you have luggage to carry. The staff did their best but they offer no free breakfast or laundry. We moved to another hostel, which was better.

This was a great place to stay. The staff were friendly and welcoming. It's just been renovated and as a result it's very clean and has all the mod cons [modern conveniences] you need. The common area has loads of room and great atmosphere. The location is spot on, It's not too far from the airport connections and within walking distance to most of the sites.

Very nice and clean rooms and facilities, nice staff and great location. But the number of people per bathroom and the fact that the dorms haven't got any doors(!) puts the overall impression down a bit. Don't go if privacy is very important to you.

The dorms here are horrible! They offer zero privacy and lots of noise. Bathrooms were disorganized and not too clean. However, it was nicely located, staff were very nice and the kitchen and common areas were fun. I just don't understand the hype about this place, but I guess some people like HUGE dorms. I will not stay here again next time. It's just not my cup of tea (I like cozy, homey, small cups of tea), but you may just like it.

Wow! Amazing! Great! And that is just the manageress! This place is fantastic! It's clean, comfortable, safe and so friendly. I spent a total of two weeks in this hostel and would go back in a flash. I honestly don't understand why people would stay anywhere else in San Francisco.

First, a big hello to Megan, Libecca (is that how you spell it?), Oliver, James and the rest of the crew!!! This has been my second visit to Pacific Tradewinds and I can honestly say that I am very impressed with the renovation. It's very clean in all areas including the kitchen, showers/toilet, communion room and all the dorms. It has clean, comfortable beds. I have yet to find a hostel that can match up to this standard and real value for money. It has a very knowledgeable staff who know how to have fun nights out!!! I certainly recommend this hostel!!! I look forward to next year's Halloween at the Castro!!!

This is a brilliant hostel, I loved it!

I was there last year between Oct/Nov '03, Admittly, the bathrooms are very small compared to the number of beds there (which I feel does need to be highlighted and possibly looked in to). I would recommend either using the bathrooms late at night or very early morning. I only met the Manageress on a couple of occasions and can honestly say that I enjoyed her company, especially when a group of us and herself went to the Castro for Halloween night - that was fantastic!!! I look forward to visiting the hostel again this year for another great holiday in San Francisco. Good value for money!!!