Address: 31 Grange Avenue, Chinatown, Toronto
Website: none
Our last stop of this epic trip ended on a nice note, in a city ironically very similar to our hometown, Sydney as well as another famous city Melbourne. Being a developed Western country, the hostel rates weren't cheap but the Chinatown Travellers Home was the cheapest that appeared on Hostelbooker and assured by positive reviews, we booked a room with shared bathroom facilities for CA$43 per night (which included 13% tax).
With no train station at the Pearsons International airport, it was a long and cumbersome trip to catch a bus then the local subway with one transfer before getting off at St Patrick's station and walking around 15 minutes to the Chinatown district. Grange Street turned out to be one of those confusing streets that are disjointedly split into two. We found ourselves at the wrong end of the street before having to double back and finally #31. This hostel is actually a residential home converted into a kind of homestay for guests, which kind of explained why it had no sign at the front proclaiming it a hostel. A family, with children in their early twenties as well as a set of grandparents share rooms on the ground level, and also share the main kitchen with guests! It definitely felt like one could make this home into one's own home, which many people evidently have, with the place housing several long term travellers who were there studying or working in some capacity. The comfortable, laid back feeling was a great atmosphere to come back to, which was just an extension of the friendliness of this city.
As they didn't have any available two person rooms when we arrived, we were given a large, spacious top floor room which was fitted with four beds. It had a window which let natural light through and cable tv. Wi fi was available in all rooms which was great, and there was always a family member around if one had an issue. There was a bathroom on each level but as the only other room on this level housed two guys who were not exactly clean, it wasn't exactly nice to go into. It was also quite small and squishy, with the slope of the ceiling going down over the shower, cutting head space by about half.
After the second night, we were told that a booking of four were checking in so they moved us to a room in the basement level which was obviously smaller but still fit our suitcases (just). It was slightly colder in this room so we asked for more blankets. The walls were in need of a good wipe (there were a few very suspicious dried globs on it) and a lick of pain as well, and the tv was smaller but still worked which was the main thing. The bathroom was much cleaner on this level, with an additional toilet here as well. The only computer in the house which provided internet access was located here, but the kitchen facilities here weren't kept clean, with half washed pots drying on the sink and the stove top sticky with dried oil and sauce. However the kitchen on the ground level which the family uses was much cleaner and anyways, it was great that they recognised the needs of its long term guests and provided such helpful facilities for them.
As the home was located in Chinatown, there were many Asian restaurants only one block or so away. Toronto is quite a small capital city, with all attractions within conveniently walking distance of each other, so the location was good. The Art Gallery was closeby which at the time, had a Egyptian exhibition on which was quite popular with visitors, and the 'streetcars' (we call them trams down here) were there, running down the main roads.
Overall, a pleasant and relaxing place and city to stay in before the long flight home. The place felt so laid back, it could so easily be considered home even if you weren't a long term guest, and save for the place being a tiny bit run down, it only added to the 'homey' feel of the place. A place that we actually miss, now being actually home!
Rating: 8/10
Thursday, March 25, 2010
West Side YMCA- New York City, USA
Address: 5 West 63rd Street, New York City
Website: http://www.ymcanyc.com/reservations
Fazed by the sky high budget room rates and bad reviews, we went with an established name for the first two nights of our stay in New York City. We arrived late, at around 11pm where we were greeted by three people still working at reception. We booked through their website for a twin bunk bed room with shared bathroom facilities for USD$79- A$85 per night (they must have included the tax in their rates) and took the lift to the fifth floor. The hallways stretched long into the distance, mostly quiet and deserted although they must have had many rooms. Our room did indeed consist of a bunk bed, and not much space between it and a table, chair, built in wardrobe and a small cable tv hanging from the ceiling. The whole building is quite old; it must have had thousands of guests through the years but still in ok condition. The shared bathrooms were quite clean, with the ladies' requiring a pin to enter for security reasons- a good idea as hallway traffic was mostly quite low. Unfortunately, they also smelled strongly of gross raw fish for some reason! The showers were in small, narrow cubicles with only a hook on the wall outside for hanging up clothes and towels etc which was quite cumbersome.
There were several computers near the reception area for internet (I think they required payment though) while wi fi was available in their cafe area. It got busy in the early mornings and looked like a nice place to have breakfast and and eat, judging by the decor and the food that the kids were eating. There were many young people and children around as the YMCA must have various sporting facilities, the gym being one which are open to guests to use (but being in NYC- who'd have the time or motivation?!).
Overall, it was a good place to go after getting off the plane late, with it being quite close to Midtown (near Columbus Circle) and the subway station but definitely not good value at around A$85 per night for rooms needing much renovations!
Rating: 5/10
Website: http://www.ymcanyc.com/reservations
Fazed by the sky high budget room rates and bad reviews, we went with an established name for the first two nights of our stay in New York City. We arrived late, at around 11pm where we were greeted by three people still working at reception. We booked through their website for a twin bunk bed room with shared bathroom facilities for USD$79- A$85 per night (they must have included the tax in their rates) and took the lift to the fifth floor. The hallways stretched long into the distance, mostly quiet and deserted although they must have had many rooms. Our room did indeed consist of a bunk bed, and not much space between it and a table, chair, built in wardrobe and a small cable tv hanging from the ceiling. The whole building is quite old; it must have had thousands of guests through the years but still in ok condition. The shared bathrooms were quite clean, with the ladies' requiring a pin to enter for security reasons- a good idea as hallway traffic was mostly quite low. Unfortunately, they also smelled strongly of gross raw fish for some reason! The showers were in small, narrow cubicles with only a hook on the wall outside for hanging up clothes and towels etc which was quite cumbersome.
There were several computers near the reception area for internet (I think they required payment though) while wi fi was available in their cafe area. It got busy in the early mornings and looked like a nice place to have breakfast and and eat, judging by the decor and the food that the kids were eating. There were many young people and children around as the YMCA must have various sporting facilities, the gym being one which are open to guests to use (but being in NYC- who'd have the time or motivation?!).
Overall, it was a good place to go after getting off the plane late, with it being quite close to Midtown (near Columbus Circle) and the subway station but definitely not good value at around A$85 per night for rooms needing much renovations!
Rating: 5/10
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Hostel Fresh- New York City, USA
Address: 330 West 95th Street, Upper West Side, New York, USA
Website: none
Website: none
This hostel is in a great, safe location on the Upper West Side. The dorm rooms are located on the ground level of an apartment building near reception but the private rooms seem to consist of various rooms owned by the hostel in the adjacent apartment block which are mostly inhabited by permanent residents who also share the communal bathrooms with hostel guests. It sounds kind of dodgy but actually isn't that bad, with the bathrooms cleaned daily and kept in pretty good condition.
We booked a room with shared bathroom facilities via the Hostelbooker website initially for two nights, which we extended after a night. The rate was significantly less than the West Side YMCA but with nicer facilities which was why we decided to move hostels for the rest of our stay. It cost USD$60 per night but according to the tax system here, we also had to add 14.75% as well as a USD$3.50 daily fee which was still quite a good deal for budget accommodation in New York City!
There was a guard posting in the entrance to the building (which changed constantly) and a very old, slow lift which took us up to the fifth floor. Each level has three wings of rooms behind three doors, each with one shared bathroom. Our room was quite basic, with a sink, wardrobe and cable tv and no reason to complain regarding cleanliness. Despite the high numbers of residents and the relatively thin walls which enabled you to hear whenever people left their room and go into the bathroom, it was quiet most of the time which was great. There was a slight problem with the water from the sink leaking through the cabinet underneath and onto the floor whenever we turned on the hot water tap but we temporarily addressed this problem by avoiding use of the hot water tap.
There were no computers provided for internet users, with free wi fi only available in the immediate area around reception. Unfortunately, there were only two small, old couches available to use, with the security guard often stubbornly taking one of them, often leaving users to sit on the ground which wasn't that appealing. If they only provide internet connection in a limited area, at least provide sufficient seating or a specified common area!
The hostel was in a great location on the Upper West Side, a few minutes from a supermarket and restaurants, as well as a subway station. It was also within walking distance to Central Park, taking us about 15 minutes at a moderate pace.
Overall, probably one of the best value budget accommodation options in New York City. Good location, safe surroundings, and nice enough reception. Using the internet was a hassle, with the small, uncomfortable reception area unsuited to serve as a make shift common area. Best reason to stay is for the price and the clean facilities.
Rating: 7/10
We paid USD$79 per night (A$
Couchsurfing- Kamata, Tokyo- Japan
Address: Kamata, Tokyo
Wow, our second experience at couchsurfing and we were really lucky again in having a very kind and trustworthy person to stay with. After an initial mix up in finding the meeting point, we were greeted by our host, who I shall call 'Takaharu', who carrying a guitar on his back, looked just like a musician as he said he was on his profile. We walked about 10-15 minutes back to his flat which was also close to another train station. We got the shock of our lives when we stepped into his place- it was absolutely TINY! I mean, we knew that people lived in small apartments in Tokyo due to the high density living but the size of the whole place would struggle to meet my expectations of the size of one bedroom, let alone to fulfil all the services of a flat with all the usual amenities. There was a bed and table which folded up into the wall but Takaharu preferred to sleep on a proper bed which took up about a third of the whole space. The 'kitchen' was merely a small sink and a stove built into the wall, and the toilet was almost the size of a toilet on a plane! We were initially at a loss as to how three grown adults could live in this minute box for a whole week, and indeed, we soon had the firm idea to leave the next day and spend a lot of money on staying at a hostel. However with Takaharu generously giving up his bed for us and sleeping on the floor, we awoke the next morning calmer and deciding to give it a decent go.
And so glad we did, as our week in Tokyo would not have been so memorable and enjoyable without the hospitality and friendliness that Takaharu showed us. We were able to experience just how it was like to live in a seriously restricted space from a local's point of view, and come home to relax as he did after a busy day. Thanks, Couchsurfing for another great experience!
Rating: 9/10
Wow, our second experience at couchsurfing and we were really lucky again in having a very kind and trustworthy person to stay with. After an initial mix up in finding the meeting point, we were greeted by our host, who I shall call 'Takaharu', who carrying a guitar on his back, looked just like a musician as he said he was on his profile. We walked about 10-15 minutes back to his flat which was also close to another train station. We got the shock of our lives when we stepped into his place- it was absolutely TINY! I mean, we knew that people lived in small apartments in Tokyo due to the high density living but the size of the whole place would struggle to meet my expectations of the size of one bedroom, let alone to fulfil all the services of a flat with all the usual amenities. There was a bed and table which folded up into the wall but Takaharu preferred to sleep on a proper bed which took up about a third of the whole space. The 'kitchen' was merely a small sink and a stove built into the wall, and the toilet was almost the size of a toilet on a plane! We were initially at a loss as to how three grown adults could live in this minute box for a whole week, and indeed, we soon had the firm idea to leave the next day and spend a lot of money on staying at a hostel. However with Takaharu generously giving up his bed for us and sleeping on the floor, we awoke the next morning calmer and deciding to give it a decent go.
And so glad we did, as our week in Tokyo would not have been so memorable and enjoyable without the hospitality and friendliness that Takaharu showed us. We were able to experience just how it was like to live in a seriously restricted space from a local's point of view, and come home to relax as he did after a busy day. Thanks, Couchsurfing for another great experience!
Rating: 9/10
Beijing Forbidden City Hostel- Beijing, China
Address: 5 Nan He Yan Street, Dongcheng District, Beijing
Website: none
cost 44yuan per night for a dorm bed (one 6 bed and one 4 bed dorm rooms) or 140 yuan per night for private ensuite double
We'd booked two nights in the dorm room initially on the Hostelbooker website, and thank goodness we didn't book any more. After dragging our suitcases for about half an hour from the nearest train station in the darkness, we were greeted by the receptionist not believing that we had a booking and questioned whether we'd actually made one! After showing her the email confirmation of the booking, she finally relented and showed us our beds (44 yuan per dorm bed night= A$7). The six bed dorm was tiny! Upon opening the door, we were met by three local boys just standing there in the room, which gave us quite a shock as we didn't know who they were. Later on, we realised that they were actually part of the cleaning crew, but how were we to know, as they were about 14 years old and didn't look professional at all, clowning around like they were.
We immediately felt uncomfortable as the room felt totally unsecure, with hardly any space to put our suitcases down. There was another guy and a girl in the dorm room but unlike people you'd normally find in dorm rooms, they weren't friendly at all and barely said hi to us. As it turned out, that was the least of our problems as one of the worst nights that we've had (probably THE worst) ensued. First, at around 1am, we were woken up by the lights being turned on as a couple checked in and took forever to organise things and settle down. The room's lights required a key pass being placed inside the slot, but as soon as this would happen, the ceiling lights came on and it would not turn off unless the card was taken out. Unfortunately, the newly arrived couple had the bathroom lights on so the ceiling lights stayed on as well, which was seriously annoying being woken up in the middle of the night as one can imagine.
Then a few hours later, they both checked out! I have no idea what happened with that but there was more awakening and noise. Then, at 6:30am the girl who'd been there before checked out and took her sweet time getting ready too. There was no way that we were going to
'enjoy' another night like that so we asked to pay the difference to move to a private ensuite room for the rest of the week first thing in the morning. The other guy in the dorm clearly wasn't impressed by the dorm experience also as he also moved to a private room the next day.
The new room (140 yuan= A$23 per night) was much nicer with clean sheets and bathroom. The only issue we had with the room was that it was always quite hot, as constant heating came through the wooden floorboards (don't ask how). It also wasn't your standard private room in several ways...by which I mean that there was probably only one of that type of room that we stayed in. Don't really want to elaborate unless one specifically asks!
They'd said on their Hostelbookers page that there was wireless internet through the hotel but in reality, there was only connection available in their restaurant- which was just a tiny box, only able to fit around six people at a time. There was a pool table in the middle of this which wasn't really used by anyone except the trouble maker cleaner boys that I'd mentioned earlier, which was annoying as they'd play in an obtrusive manner which wasn't very nice coming from a guest's point of view.
The hallways around the hotel wasn't cleaned very well, if at all, with dust and other small objects lying around on the floor. At least they knew how to clean the rooms properly. There weren't too many other guests from overseas, with the bulk of the people being local Chinese, so not many opportunities to meet new people. I felt that having only two dorm rooms, the hotel just uses this to attract a few budget travellers while primarily operating as a proper hotel, and made these dorm rooms so impossible to stay in that people are pretty much forced to upgrade to a proper room.
We had many problems with our stay here, most stressful of all occurring the night before we were due to check out and leave the country. They called us and said that there'd been a mistake with our payment and that they hadn't charged us the full amount. using complicated mathematics, the receptionist attempted to show us the amount that we sitll owed her. The situation was just extremely unprofessional and showed that they didn't have a clue as to how to operate their business which was an outrage as they should at least have half an inkling as to how to run a hotel if they are perpetuating themselves as one to tourists.
Overall, one of our worst experiences in a hotel during our trip; one which marred our last week in China.
Rating: 1/10
Website: none
cost 44yuan per night for a dorm bed (one 6 bed and one 4 bed dorm rooms) or 140 yuan per night for private ensuite double
We'd booked two nights in the dorm room initially on the Hostelbooker website, and thank goodness we didn't book any more. After dragging our suitcases for about half an hour from the nearest train station in the darkness, we were greeted by the receptionist not believing that we had a booking and questioned whether we'd actually made one! After showing her the email confirmation of the booking, she finally relented and showed us our beds (44 yuan per dorm bed night= A$7). The six bed dorm was tiny! Upon opening the door, we were met by three local boys just standing there in the room, which gave us quite a shock as we didn't know who they were. Later on, we realised that they were actually part of the cleaning crew, but how were we to know, as they were about 14 years old and didn't look professional at all, clowning around like they were.
We immediately felt uncomfortable as the room felt totally unsecure, with hardly any space to put our suitcases down. There was another guy and a girl in the dorm room but unlike people you'd normally find in dorm rooms, they weren't friendly at all and barely said hi to us. As it turned out, that was the least of our problems as one of the worst nights that we've had (probably THE worst) ensued. First, at around 1am, we were woken up by the lights being turned on as a couple checked in and took forever to organise things and settle down. The room's lights required a key pass being placed inside the slot, but as soon as this would happen, the ceiling lights came on and it would not turn off unless the card was taken out. Unfortunately, the newly arrived couple had the bathroom lights on so the ceiling lights stayed on as well, which was seriously annoying being woken up in the middle of the night as one can imagine.
Then a few hours later, they both checked out! I have no idea what happened with that but there was more awakening and noise. Then, at 6:30am the girl who'd been there before checked out and took her sweet time getting ready too. There was no way that we were going to
'enjoy' another night like that so we asked to pay the difference to move to a private ensuite room for the rest of the week first thing in the morning. The other guy in the dorm clearly wasn't impressed by the dorm experience also as he also moved to a private room the next day.
The new room (140 yuan= A$23 per night) was much nicer with clean sheets and bathroom. The only issue we had with the room was that it was always quite hot, as constant heating came through the wooden floorboards (don't ask how). It also wasn't your standard private room in several ways...by which I mean that there was probably only one of that type of room that we stayed in. Don't really want to elaborate unless one specifically asks!
They'd said on their Hostelbookers page that there was wireless internet through the hotel but in reality, there was only connection available in their restaurant- which was just a tiny box, only able to fit around six people at a time. There was a pool table in the middle of this which wasn't really used by anyone except the trouble maker cleaner boys that I'd mentioned earlier, which was annoying as they'd play in an obtrusive manner which wasn't very nice coming from a guest's point of view.
The hallways around the hotel wasn't cleaned very well, if at all, with dust and other small objects lying around on the floor. At least they knew how to clean the rooms properly. There weren't too many other guests from overseas, with the bulk of the people being local Chinese, so not many opportunities to meet new people. I felt that having only two dorm rooms, the hotel just uses this to attract a few budget travellers while primarily operating as a proper hotel, and made these dorm rooms so impossible to stay in that people are pretty much forced to upgrade to a proper room.
We had many problems with our stay here, most stressful of all occurring the night before we were due to check out and leave the country. They called us and said that there'd been a mistake with our payment and that they hadn't charged us the full amount. using complicated mathematics, the receptionist attempted to show us the amount that we sitll owed her. The situation was just extremely unprofessional and showed that they didn't have a clue as to how to operate their business which was an outrage as they should at least have half an inkling as to how to run a hotel if they are perpetuating themselves as one to tourists.
Overall, one of our worst experiences in a hotel during our trip; one which marred our last week in China.
Rating: 1/10
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Shanghai City Central International Youth Hostel- Shanghai, China
Address: 300 Wuning Road, Putuo district, Shanghai
Website: none
This UTEL hostel would most definitely rank as one of the top hostels, if not the top in China. Not that I've been to all the hostels in China but having all the amenities and services that this one had to offer, it'd be pretty difficult to beat.
Shanghai City Central is locatedis located about 5 minutes walk away from the Caoyang Road train station, down a quiet street off the main road. Several McDonalds and a KFC were closeby, as were local eateries. A Carrefour megamarket was also about 15 minutes away across the bridge which was very convenient, and there were numerous banks around the area.
Having booked via Hostelbooker for two nights initially to test the waters (40 yuan per dorm bed per night= A$6.50), we decided to stay for the remainder of the week after the two days but by that time we were advised that they had raised the dorm rate to 46 yuan per night which was still a decent price in Shanghai, reputably the most expensive city in the country.
The dorm rooms were all four bedders and together with the private rooms, were spread across five levels of this large hostel which was serviced by an elevator. We were pretty much in a private room as no one else was allocated the other two beds during our stay which was great as we had our own space and privacy. The room was sparkling clean and the bin was emptied daily by the efficient cleaners. Lockers were provided in the room but you needed to bring your own large lock. A heater was also provided but we slept comfortably without it as being in a building made the rooms quite warm already. There was ventilation through the window but the wi fi was only accessible in the lobby which was spaciously furnished with sofas and decorated with Chinese lanterns and paintings. The staff were able to speak basic English and were polite in assisting us with information and directions. A rare freebie was offered in the shape of breakfast from 7:30- 9:30am in the nice restaurant/bar area behind the lobby which contained a mixture of continental Western style breakfast (cereal, toast, cordial) and Chinese (steamed buns, red bean soup and pickled vegetables). The restaurant also served decent food, and by night the place turned lively with friendly fellow travellers frequenting the common area and a large projector screen and a large projector screen which showed the Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
Overall, this was one of the nicest and most relaxing stays of our trip so far, with every facility regularly cleaned, free breakfast which set us up nicely for the day and which sometimes even allowed us to skip buying lunch, and the friendly travellers who stayed there.
Rating: 10/10
Website: none
This UTEL hostel would most definitely rank as one of the top hostels, if not the top in China. Not that I've been to all the hostels in China but having all the amenities and services that this one had to offer, it'd be pretty difficult to beat.
Shanghai City Central is locatedis located about 5 minutes walk away from the Caoyang Road train station, down a quiet street off the main road. Several McDonalds and a KFC were closeby, as were local eateries. A Carrefour megamarket was also about 15 minutes away across the bridge which was very convenient, and there were numerous banks around the area.
Having booked via Hostelbooker for two nights initially to test the waters (40 yuan per dorm bed per night= A$6.50), we decided to stay for the remainder of the week after the two days but by that time we were advised that they had raised the dorm rate to 46 yuan per night which was still a decent price in Shanghai, reputably the most expensive city in the country.
The dorm rooms were all four bedders and together with the private rooms, were spread across five levels of this large hostel which was serviced by an elevator. We were pretty much in a private room as no one else was allocated the other two beds during our stay which was great as we had our own space and privacy. The room was sparkling clean and the bin was emptied daily by the efficient cleaners. Lockers were provided in the room but you needed to bring your own large lock. A heater was also provided but we slept comfortably without it as being in a building made the rooms quite warm already. There was ventilation through the window but the wi fi was only accessible in the lobby which was spaciously furnished with sofas and decorated with Chinese lanterns and paintings. The staff were able to speak basic English and were polite in assisting us with information and directions. A rare freebie was offered in the shape of breakfast from 7:30- 9:30am in the nice restaurant/bar area behind the lobby which contained a mixture of continental Western style breakfast (cereal, toast, cordial) and Chinese (steamed buns, red bean soup and pickled vegetables). The restaurant also served decent food, and by night the place turned lively with friendly fellow travellers frequenting the common area and a large projector screen and a large projector screen which showed the Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
Overall, this was one of the nicest and most relaxing stays of our trip so far, with every facility regularly cleaned, free breakfast which set us up nicely for the day and which sometimes even allowed us to skip buying lunch, and the friendly travellers who stayed there.
Rating: 10/10
4 Eyes Backpacker Youth Hostel- Hangzhou, China
Address: 66 Hupao Road, West Lake district, Hangzhou
Website: http://www.hostelhangzhou.com/
With my basic Chinese and assistance from a rare, kindly local we were able to navigate two buses from the south railway station to reach a small neck of the woods near the famous West Lake of Hangzhou. The 4 Eyes Youth Hostel was located at the end of a small street branching off the main road which rose quite steeply but only for a short distance. It was about 2 minutes from the bus stop opposite the zoo and surrounded by three local restaurants which were quite handy. The main building was built of wood with a 'rustic' theme and decorated nicely with lanterns, streamers and posters. The staff were busy serving lunch to guests in their reception area which also was in the restaurant/common area which was arranged with sofas and a pool table. There were also three computers with internet access for which you had to pay for, and relaxing jazz music was the permanent genre of choice.
We checked into a private ensuite room for two people at 130 yuan per night (A$21) which basically was equivalent to an attic room, with a sloping ceiling that was so low, we encountered several head bumps before the end of the first day was out. The room as well as the bathroom were very clean and in good condition, with a tv also provided. The hostel had its private rooms contained in several different blocks, with four or five rooms spread over two levels in each block.
The main problem which marred our stay in Hangzhou was that the rooms had no heater, which in temperatures of close to zero degrees was a nightmare. We both got bad colds during our stay here which lasted well over a week, and would be chilled to the bone as soon as we stepped into the room which wasn't very nice after a day of walking around already bone cold!
The reception/restaurant area where wi fi was available was also never heated despite us discovering a heater behind a sofa on our last day- instead of being rugged up, the staff should definitely have used the heater for its built purpose turned the damn thing on which would also have provided a nice welcome to newcomers. At these prices and in these modern times, heaters in the rooms should be mandatory. The staff dorm was heated all day so I'm not sure how it was deemed unnecessary to provide the same service in the private rooms.
Overall, a nicely decorated hostel staffed by people who were polite but lacked basic English. The one major issue that prevented us from enjoying this pretty town as much as we could have were the freezing rooms which were almost equivalent to sleeping outdoors- not a good look.
Rating: 4/10
Website: http://www.hostelhangzhou.com/
With my basic Chinese and assistance from a rare, kindly local we were able to navigate two buses from the south railway station to reach a small neck of the woods near the famous West Lake of Hangzhou. The 4 Eyes Youth Hostel was located at the end of a small street branching off the main road which rose quite steeply but only for a short distance. It was about 2 minutes from the bus stop opposite the zoo and surrounded by three local restaurants which were quite handy. The main building was built of wood with a 'rustic' theme and decorated nicely with lanterns, streamers and posters. The staff were busy serving lunch to guests in their reception area which also was in the restaurant/common area which was arranged with sofas and a pool table. There were also three computers with internet access for which you had to pay for, and relaxing jazz music was the permanent genre of choice.
We checked into a private ensuite room for two people at 130 yuan per night (A$21) which basically was equivalent to an attic room, with a sloping ceiling that was so low, we encountered several head bumps before the end of the first day was out. The room as well as the bathroom were very clean and in good condition, with a tv also provided. The hostel had its private rooms contained in several different blocks, with four or five rooms spread over two levels in each block.
The main problem which marred our stay in Hangzhou was that the rooms had no heater, which in temperatures of close to zero degrees was a nightmare. We both got bad colds during our stay here which lasted well over a week, and would be chilled to the bone as soon as we stepped into the room which wasn't very nice after a day of walking around already bone cold!
The reception/restaurant area where wi fi was available was also never heated despite us discovering a heater behind a sofa on our last day- instead of being rugged up, the staff should definitely have used the heater for its built purpose turned the damn thing on which would also have provided a nice welcome to newcomers. At these prices and in these modern times, heaters in the rooms should be mandatory. The staff dorm was heated all day so I'm not sure how it was deemed unnecessary to provide the same service in the private rooms.
Overall, a nicely decorated hostel staffed by people who were polite but lacked basic English. The one major issue that prevented us from enjoying this pretty town as much as we could have were the freezing rooms which were almost equivalent to sleeping outdoors- not a good look.
Rating: 4/10
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