JO&JOE Paris Gentilly — Hotel in L'Haÿ-les-Roses

Location: the location is good. It's close to the Gentilly metro stop, boulangerie/patisserie, restaurants, and grocery store. The neighborhood is quiet.

Reception/workers: During my visit, I arrived very early and I knew that check-in wouldn't be until 15h so I waited at a table and did homework. When it was 15h and I went to check in, there were lots of workers standing around, but only one helped me. I DID NOT feel welcomed or helped because none of the receptionist gave me information. They didn't tell me where the kitchen was, where the quiet room was, laundry room, and they didn't tell me about any nightly activities. Every time I had to encounter any of the workers (except the kitchen staff, the kitchen staff was very kind), they always looked angry and made me feel like I was bothering them or that they didn't want to help me. As I mentioned, I arrived at 1130 and sat there until 15h. When I finally got to my room, my bed wasn't ready and a guy was still cleaning the room. Yet, the next day, cleaners came in at 10h and had the room cleaned and finished by 1030.

Breakfast: I chose Jo&Joe because it looked fun from the pictures online and the free breakfast. I didn't eat breakfast once because I felt so unwelcomed. I literally only had a glass of juice right before I departed. I had sat in the wrong area (because my bags were over there) and the staff could have easily come and told me to move. They waited until I was already putting away my glass before they said something. The breakfast (croissants, cheese, cereal, meat, tomatoes, fruit, coffee, juice) looked very fresh and delicious.

Room: I stayed in an 8 pax mixed. At most, there were only five people in the room. It felt like the guest that kept getting put in my room were all old men who snored. I know what to expect when staying in an 8 pax room, but for as big as that hostel is, there's no reason why they should have kept putting only old men in my room. It was uncomfortable and I couldn't sleep because of the loud snoring. Also, none of the staff explained how the LIGHTS work. You must put a card in the slot by the door to turn on any of the lights in the toilets, showers, or main room. It would have been nice if they explained it or left instructions on the wall. The light switch for the main room was confusing. Other than snoring, the room was quiet except for the Thursday night when there was a BIG party downstairs in the bar.

Bar/resto: The hostel doesn't allow people to bring their own alcohol and won't let you each your food downstairs (there is a kitchen on the 7th floor) because there is a bar and restaurant on the first floor. The only food I ordered was fries and they were a big portion which is good. The kitchen staff was actually nice to me and didn't make me feel like I was a bother. The BARTENDERS were not friendly or helpful. During the night of the random big party it was very packed and busy. It took forever to order a drink and the bartender didn't explain to me that I had to use my card to get a beer from the dispensary on the wall. I understand that this concept may be "hip" and popular in some places, but it's not like that everywhere. She could have easily explained it to me OR J&J could make some cards that explain the process and leave them at the bar so that people can read them. Luckily, one of the guests helped me get my beer.

The kitchen: The 'Happy Room' or kitchen is on the 7th floor. It's dimly lit in there. The sink was full of dirty dishes. There isn't really a stove/oven to cook your food. There is a balcony connected which is pretty cool.

Lounge: There is a quiet lounge on the 7th floor which I didn't even know about! I only found it because as I left the kitchen, I walked past it. It's not even listed in the elevator (the kitchen is). I never found the laundry room.

I've done work-exchanges at different hostels so I know that you're supposed to treat every guest kindly and give them details about events. The staff at Jo&Joe did not do this.

Would not...

This was my first hostel experience, after much research and reading reviews across platforms I decided to book Jo&Joe. I was travelling solo and was hoping to make friends so I booked the 12-bed female dorm. I was quite apprehensive at first about privacy, disturbance, noise, hygiene and lighting because I am used to the comfort of having a whole place all to myself.

I was pleasantly surprised. I reached just before midnight because the public transport system was shut down due to strikes but I was welcomed warmly. The lifts are plenty and super fast to shuffle between floors. The hallways are dark and with motion sensor lighting which is just enough to light up your way - perfect lighting to feel comfortable and at home. Any more lighting or bright lights would have made me feel I am at a hospital or at work. Lighting should be dim and scarce at home, it gives a feeling of comfort and downtime. So five stars for that.

The lighting in the dorm was also dimmable and adjustable. Upon entering the dorm, I was pleased to find that the dorm mates were whispering if they had to talk amongst themselves and would go out if they had to take a call - very respectful. Very few took calls inside and made noise during the night. I was given a cot bed (it is at least 6 feet long so no problem there). It had leather-effect drapes all over it (top, all sides). There were only two of these in the room and the rest of the beds had wooden bases all stacked in pairs of two, with the lower one having curtains but the top one having none. I was so so SO GLAD I got the cot bed because I don't like lighting when it is my bedtime and I was able to FULLY close all the drapes around me to the point that absolutely no light entered my bed. HEAVEN. Inside, I had all the space I needed, I could put my handbag on the other end of the bed and night clothes, and on the head side of the bed there was a light and enough charging ports and space to put my toiletries. I had already brought silicone ear plugs with me, in they go and I don't hear anything, I don't see anything. Just perfect.

There were at least 4 toilets and 4 showers next to my dorm, I never had to wait. The toilets were clean, big thumbs up. Sometimes the tissue paper and handwash would not be replenished however. There is a kitchen on the fourth floor, not very clean but that is the fault of the guests for not cleaning up properly after themselves. The kitchen is fully decked with an iron, an ironing board, two huge fridges, microwave, electric hob, lots of utensils, pots and pans. There is an oven too, I did not use it. RIght next to the kitchen is a beautiful patio to enjoy fresh air and have a meal outside or make a call if you need to.

There was a slight mix up with the beds, I was given no. 11 and when I came back the next night, another girl was in my bed and my stuff given to reception. No hard feelings, because her name was also Zohre (very similar to Zahra) and we became the BEST of friends because of this mix up and travelled the city together all week. I also made another amazing friend from Canada. Also, the transport was not working due to strikes so it took a long time to travel to and from the hostel everyday because all buses were full and slow. Ther train station is right next to the hostel but unfortunately that also was affected due to strikes.

They have a very lively atmosphere down at the bar with open mic, parties etc and a ping pong table in the beautiful garden area. Unfortunately I did not enjoy any of those because I was out sightseeing all week, but I hope to come again with my husband to enjoy it fully. Highly recommended.

Tips for future guests: Bring with you a medium sized towel, a shower gel, shampoo and...

This is the worst hostel I’ve ever stayed in and I don’t know if I’m annoyed at the hostel or at the people who left misleading positive reviews.

I’m currently staying here at the moment and looking to move somewhere else.

The ‘happy house’ is actually just the shared kitchen… where you have just a fridge and a microwave. and a sink. Despite being so rudimentary it still somehow smells in there all the time and is incredibly dirty, most likely because there is nothing placed in this kitchen to let anyone clean up after themselves, not even just paper towels. For the dishes, they’ve put a bottle of their Jo&Joe shampoo there. Is washing up liquid a luxury these days, that we should be washing dishes with their branded hair shampoo instead? As for the smell - the bins are basically open and the room has lots of windows with sun coming in, but no ventilation. So it always stinks. The ‘social’ part of the happy house is also nonexistent because the terrace area is locked and seems to just be there for decoration as it is genuinely never open.

The bathrooms and showers are always incredibly dirty too. I don’t know what’s the point of taking a shower here because you can’t wash yourself in a setting like that and be clean. These toilets and showers are also ridiculously small - it’s worse than an airplane toilet because the (very tiny) sink will be exactly next to the toilet seat and there is only space to stand. Bizarre.

I keep getting kicked out of the hostel’s common areas on the ground floor which I don’t understand. It seems like you’re only allowed there when they’re selling food or drinks which is, again, just bizarre because this is where you’re staying, it’s not a public restaurant or café. You’re not allowed outside food on the ground floor area either, so I guess you’ll have to eat anything you get outside in your bed or in the kitchen that stinks. I’ve seen people eating in the staircase since there’s nowhere else you can go, maybe that’s another option too.

Again emphasising the lack of hygiene and cleanliness throughout this hostel - it doesn’t just start in the kitchen and end in the bathrooms, it extends to the rooms too. They are dirty and there’s always random stuff in the lockers that you have to clean out, meaning that you’ll end up with the top of the lockers looking like a fly tip because there’s so much rubbish that everyone had to remove. Where are the cleaners?

My room also has had a couple of aggressive people staying there, one time I woke up at 1:30am to a guy randomly swearing at one of the guests in his language which the guest did not speak. I understood everything though and decided to act oblivious, and the guest was confused too. This happened multiple times in the night.

I do not recommend this place at all to anyone. The only positive thing for me has been that I asked for earplugs and was given them for free. But considering the fact that they were 1€ anyway this is meaningless compared to how trash...