Alajuela Backpackers Reviews

helpful staff, web booking convenient and good location for airport

Not having a kitchen, or even a place to boil water, was inconvenient, and the food was good but expensive. Nice big tv room and rooftop lounge. The staff were all very nice.

I think the roof terrace should not be open only at night but all day long. The bar could still remain closed but that nice view would certainly be worth it !

Restaurant was delicious and everyone was helpful and friendly.

The only piece of constructive criticism I could say is to try and make the common areas a bit more active and encourage the residents to co-mingle a bit more. This hostel leans more towards a hotel social environment rather than a communal hostel type interaction.

Very nice, clean and big hostel. It is a bit unpersonal though. But very good location

Alajuela Backpackers was a very clean and safe hostel. Perfect location downtown Alajuela. The roof top bar was cool. Free shuttle to the airport. However, this hostel attracted only travelers who were passing through to the Airport the next day or just got off a flight. Alajuela did not seem to be a destination. Also, there is no kitchen. Other than that, great hostel.

I did not go to the Backpackers. I originally made a reservation for two nights. When I tried to change it to one night, well in advance, Backpackers told me to contact Hostelworld and Hostelworld told me to contact Backpackers. I was bounced back and forth. Backpackers also never answered my question regarding getting a pick up at the airport, and instead kept harping on about how I would owe money for the second cancelled night. In the end I rented a car and skipped Alajuela altogether.

+ extra-Shuttle from airport where we arrived per bus + the roof-restaurant´s view ./. too much small animals in the bathroom ./. too many things in the restaurant that were not available (pasta, pina colada)

Awesoem hostel! Very friendly staff, and only a few minutes away from the airport. The free shuttle was a huge help. Wish we could have stayed here longer.

It was VERY hard to find in my rental car! You should include a map because there are no street signs or addresses. Good pizza and a nice bar on the 4th floor. Private rooms were very nice. Even a shower/tub with shower massage shower head, pillow top beds, AC, and hot water. I would come back when flying in or out of SJO.

This hostel has very little atmosphere and is quite expensive.breakfast was not included and the information desk was never manned.one the plus side the airport shuttle they provide is a good service and the view from the bar was amazing.it feels like an airport hotel.

The Hostel was nice and had a good restaurant . The private room we had with private bathroom was nice , but we'd had nicer for less $ . The free shuttle to the airport in the morning was handy and the front desk staff was friendly. There was also some repairs that were needed in the room that hadn't been addressed.

Very helpful staff, very friendly. Great free shuttle service to and from airport.

The room was dirty when we arrived. We were told the sheets would be changed. When we returned later there were no staff and the sheets were still visibly dirty and stained. There were only 5 beds in the room for 6 people. A cab was called for us and we were told it would cost $35 dollars. The man at the desk took 19,000 colones from us, gave the cab driver 6 mil and kept the rest. We later found out that the cab should have only cost 4 mil (8 dollars). We were taken advantage of and robbed.

I really feel a locker/safe option is key and they only have tiny cubicle sized safes in the main lobby, cool atmosphere, staff at night was really actually pretty unfriendly, bar overlooks the town- I woud recommend to fellow travelers to book the shuttle at least an hour before you actually need to get to the airport - they only have one 5-person shuttle vehicle, so if lots of people need to go at the same time, they need to take multiple trips and this could delay you by as much as 30-45 min

Basic accommodation at a great value, very friendly and helpful staff went out of their way to make my stay comfortable, even just for a day. It was only me for the pickup, so the hostel paid for my cab. Food in the restaurant was good, nice vibe and lots of fun people. Only downside was the location of my room. Poor ventilation and a on the 2nd floor a bit close to reception and therefore loud in the early am.

Good place for one night. Free Airport-Shuttle worked well. Will stay there for my last night again.

Only 2 problems. 1. Hotels.com said there was a hot tub but its not there anymore. 2. The big deal was that the website specifically says they accept credit cards. We were asked to pay a deposit through Hostelworld.com. We paid it with credit card. When we arrived we were told that since we paid the deposit by credit we had to pay the rest with cash or get charged the deposit again. Then we also couldn't pay for meals with credit. We didn't bring that much cash so we got a lot ATM fees...

facilities lack a kitchen to use