Cubabackpackers, Havana

7.4
7 Reviews

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Cubabackpackers Reviews

Cubabackpackers is housed in the blue, thirteen-floor apartment building that looms over the Estadio Latinomericano in the northern suburb of Cerro and contains no fewer than five backpacker hostels. Cubabackpackers is one of the first to appear in Cuba, so it’s one of the oldest in the country.

The Location

The Cerro district of Havana is a very local Cuban area. There are no tourist sites; this is "real" Cuba. It’s a thirty-minute walk to get to the center, or if you can work them out, you can take a local bus or shared taxi. There are a few local eateries in the immediate vicinity -- mostly pizza and spaghetti snack shops -- and the stadium is home to Los Industriales baseball team, one of the best in the country.

Before that, however, make sure you have the correct address. You must check in at the family apartment -- number thirty-four on the third floor. If there's no answer, then try apartment number thirty-five around the corner, where the mother lives. You’ll then be taken down a floor to apartment number twenty-eight, which is where the hostel is. The apartment is only marked with a "hostal" sign. You’ll be given keys to the front door of the apartment and to the building itself for a small returnable deposit.

Rooms and Bathrooms

There are two bedrooms in the apartment at number twenty-eight. One is a four-bed, en suite dorm and one is a six-bed dorm sharing a common bathroom. All the beds are bunks of the squeaky metal variety and there are no ladders to get to the top bunks in the four-bed dorm, so good luck! The mattresses are on the soft side and there are two fans and an air conditioning unit in each of the dorms plus ceiling fans in the sitting room. Each dorm has a wooden locker for each bed, but guests must have their own padlock. Guests will also find a huge mirror on the wall of the four-bed dorm. The bathroom in the four-bed dorm is clean with a toilet, hand basin, and cold water shower. The common bathroom in the hallway between the two dorms has likewise. The six-bed dorm has French windows that open out to a balcony facing the square and stadium.

Common Spaces

The balcony can also be reached via the large sitting room. This sitting room has a couch, two armchairs, and a small dining table with chairs plus a rocking chair. There is a wooden cabinet with figurines in it and a nonworking TV. The balcony has some garden chairs and a table, and is close enough to the park (where the Wi-Fi hot spot is) to catch a fair bit of the signal. There is a kitchen of sorts. It has only a fridge and a sink. The cupboards have quite a range of cutlery and crockery too, but you cannot cook here.

Summary

Cubabackpackers is pretty good. It’s clean but very plain -- a bit of color would do wonders for this place! It also doesn’t have the few extra touches that a couple of the other hostels have to make it stand out from the crowd. Nevertheless, it’s very cheap, so it constitutes a bit of bargain, if you don’t mind the distance from the center. The family only speak Spanish here. The second-floor location also means you don’t have to negotiate the temperamental lift!
Photos taken by the Hostelz.com reviewer — Genuine photos you can trust.
Edificio Industriales
Entrance to the Building on the Right
Hallway From Lifts to Hostel Door
Hostel Front Door
Sitting Room
Kitchen
Balcony
4-Bed En Suite Dorm
4-Bed Dorm Bathroom
+4
#
LondonroadMa
Hostelz.com Staff Reviewer
Published on Dec 2, 2018

Location and Contact

Location

Cubabackpackers 1 is located in a very central location where you can reach by bus, taxis and and collective taxis. The hostel is easily reachable. For more information, please do not hesitate to contact the property.

Facilities and Amenities

Family-Friendly Hostel

Lockers in Lobby

Parking

24 Hour Security

Air Conditioning

Elevator/Lift

Hair Dryers

Laundry

Lounge Area

Credit Card Payments

Curfew: No Curfew

Reception Hours: 24 Hours

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