The Hostelz.com Review - Genuine, independent review you can trust.
Kantaya Hostel is a friendly hostel offering basic clean accommodation, a simple breakfast, and tourist advice. It is located near Puno’s main plaza -- a lively area with numerous shops and restaurants.
The Location
Kantaya Hostel is around four blocks (a six-minute walk) from Puno main square, where there are a number of cash points. The street contains several restaurants, shops, and another hostel. The area is quiet in the mornings but fairly busy in the evenings. The bus station and pier area are a short taxi ride away or a half-hour walk.
Rooms and Bathrooms
The hostel is medium sized, with a few private rooms and dorms of various sizes. The cheapest dorm is on the ground floor and houses ten people. Bunk beds are clean and fairly comfortable, and the room is spacious. There are a few plug sockets (not enough for everybody in the room). Small lockers are available for valuables. The downstairs dorm may be unsuitable for light sleepers, since a window lets in light and noise from the dining room, where breakfast is served early.
All rooms have en suite bathrooms. Bathrooms are on the small side but appear to be cleaned regularly. Showers take a while to heat up, but will eventually produce hot water at decent pressure.
Common Spaces
The ground floor of Kantaya Hostel contains several pleasant common areas. The reception area has sofas and tea-making facilities. There is a small communal kitchen with a gas stove and refrigerator. A third room is used for serving breakfast in the morning, and later for eating or watching television. The breakfast is very simple -- bread, milk, pancakes, jam, and instant coffee.
In general, common areas are brightly decorated, clean, and kept warm with gas heaters. The hostel is pretty quiet -- most guests only stay for a day or two and spend most of their time outside of the hostel doing tours of Lake Titicaca. There is Wi-Fi in common areas and some rooms, although it can be slow at times.
Summary
Kantaya Hostel is a convenient base for exploring central Puno, booking tours to Lake Titicaca, or for a stopover between Peru and Bolivia. The friendly hostel staff can help organise tours and buses. There are good facilities such as a communal kitchen and en suite bathrooms. Most guests only stay for a day or two so there’s little atmosphere, but it’s easy enough to meet other travelers over breakfast or in the communal areas.
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DondeScarlet
Hostelz.com Staff Reviewer
Published on Dec 12, 2018
Location and Contact
Location
When you get to the bus station, take taxi and tell the driver: The address is: # 220 Jr. Santiago Giraldo next to Bank Caja los Andes, one block from Parque Pino.