Cool Vibes Hostel — Hotel in Bahía Ballena

My rating is relative. If you are expecting the Hilton, this is not the place for you. But for what it purports to be (a cheap near-the-beach hostel) this is a 5-star place. I've only once stayed in a better hostel for less money

Our room, while basic, is clean, freshly painted, has reasonably comfortable beds with decent linens, private bathroom and (for a few dollars extra) AC. There are cheaper dorm room beds but i am beyond dorms, at least when travelling as a couple.

But they also have the management nailed down. Clear rules help things run smoothly There is a clean well equipped communal kitchen if you choose to cook . There are big fridges for your food and drink. There is a small (but really quite nice, and refreshingly cool) pool and a very pleasant indoor garden and sitting area.

Clients are travellers and vagabonds of all ages, styles and nationalities. Extroverts are in their...

The person working here during the day (who I think owns or runs it) is friendly and helpful. But the hostel itself is anything but "cool vibes". I suppose if you're a 20 year old surfer maybe you will have a different experience, but for those who aren't, it's quite cliquey - over several days, I encountered one or two people at most who were friendly and sociable. Everyone else seemed to stay with their group, with nary a smile or a "hello" to offer.

As others have said, there is often music or noise until 10 or 11 at night, making it difficult to fall asleep , and others are regularly up early.

The smell from the bathroom/shower is really unpleasant.

Close to the beach, which is nice, but a 10-15 minute walk to most of the town, and some of that walk is quite dark, so keep in mind how comfortable you will feel with...

Busy hostel close to the beach, good for travellers on a tighter budget.

The good: The hostel is a 2-min walk from the beach. The hostel is clean. Owners are nice and very helpful. The room was spacious.

The bad: We didn't have a good night sleep. Music played in the common area on the patio outside until 11 pm, so we couldn't fall asleep until 11 pm. And next morning we were waken up at 6:30 am by blender noise coming from the kitchen... we always use earplugs but this time they didn't help. The hostel is big and there are lots of people there (people of all ages 20 - 70, some of them stay long-term in the hostel). The place was too busy for our taste. The drains were really stinky in the common area next to the entrance. Mouldy smell in our room and drain smell in...