The Hostelz.com Review - Genuine, independent review you can trust.
Mapping Hostel is a basic and simple hostel on the outskirts of Chiang Mai close to the train station. However, it goes beyond basic, as it is situated right on the riverbanks of the Ping River and it offers a huge outdoor area with authentic wooden pagodas, garden swings, and a variety of comfy furniture to chill on in a nice natural setting.
The Location
The hostel is located on the east side of Chiang Mai, well outside the city walls. This can be a great location if you want to be near to the train station, as it is probably that closest hostel to it. Moreover, if you want to be relatively close to a city but enjoy the natural surroundings and spend time chilling in the open air, you could not find a better place than this. One of the biggest markets of Chiang Mai is right on its doorstep and you have a variety of street food stalls nearby too as well as a huge secondhand shop next door. However, the touristy amenities and places of interest are all a minimum of twenty minutes away.
Rooms and Bathrooms
The hostel offers dorms of different sizes and has a variety of women-only options as well. Most of the dorms are indoors, in small and slightly crammed rooms that are cooled by fans. The mattresses are somewhat hard, but all in all, the huge beds will help you to a good night's sleep. However, you also have the option to sleep in the open-air dorm, where you only have curtains for privacy and a mosquito net for protection. The bathrooms are nicely decorated and spacious, but are outside the rooms.
Common Spaces
There are several common areas -- both indoors and outdoors -- spread over a huge area. The indoor part is slightly boring, with its uninviting metal tables and chairs, but a cool feature is that they do a swap box where you can stock up on stuff discarded by other travelers. The best part of the hostel is the outdoor area right next to the river. People sit here the whole day, do meditation, or just contemplate life, so you can always find some likeminded souls to talk to. Best of all, all the pagodas have electronic sockets so you can even work on your laptop outside.
Summary
Mapping Hostel is a great little place that you will love if your priority is to have a nice place to chill out in during the day. The dorms are pretty basic, but the outdoor area belonging to the hostel will definitely make up for that.
Photos taken by the Hostelz.com reviewer — Genuine photos you can trust.
+4
JudyM
Hostelz.com Staff Reviewer
Published on Oct 23, 2019
Location and Contact
Location
• 68 Chiangmai-Lumphun Rd., Watked Maung Chiangmai (South side of the Iron bridge, near the Mamia Coffee shop) • 南奔路68号(清迈铁桥南侧,与Mamia Coffee馆相邻) • 68 ถนนเชียงใหม่ – ลำพูน ต.วัดเกตุ อ.เมือง จ.เชียงใหม่ (อยู่ทางทิศใต้ของสะพานเหล็ก ติดกับร้านกาแฟมะเมี๊ยะ)