Surf and the City Reviews

It is really unfortunate that you did not enjoy your stay at Surf and the City Hostel and even though you are entitled to your opinion we would like to clarify some issues you have raised and some completely false comments you have made, which we feel is very unfair. Firstly we pride ourselves on offering a hostel that is more a "home away from home than just a hostel" which is perhaps why it felt like you were staying in someone's house. Some guests really appreciate the homely touches we've added and we have received nothing but good comments prior to your posting. We are also a very new hostel that is still in the process of establishing ourselves and that is why at times we are very quiet and explains why there were no other guests during your two night stay. We placed you in the 8 bed dorm as it has an en-suite bathroom and we thought you would perhaps like the convenience and privacy of your own bathroom. We do regret not receiving your request for the airport transfer as we had problems with our email account at that time, but this has since been rectified and we do a number of transfers from the airport and Durban Station on a daily basis. Your comments about the bedroom and bathrooms being "dirty" are totally false and unjustified, as both are serviced daily by our cleaning staff and I personally checked that everything was spotless before your check in. Durban has a sub-tropical climate and traveling here in summer means you will encounter things like small lizards (which are in fact called geckos and are found in every home and establishment in Durban and are welcomed as they eat other bugs, especially mosquitos), the odd insect and things like flying ants. I feel you have not traveled much and once you have more experience staying in other similar establishments you will see that ours wasn't too bad, and remember this is South Africa and not Germany so yes we do get a lot of insects, especially in summer but we do our best to keep the house bug free. What you failed to mention was that we invited you to join us for free drinks around the bar, offered you a meal and cooked you dinner (free of charge). offered to help you RICA a sim card for your cell phone and offered to give you a lift wherever you needed to go. You also never made use of all our facilities as you never ventured into the garden, pool area or bar as you spent the majority of your time sleeping in the dorm room, so to rate our facilities so poorly is very unfair. It's funny how avid travelers who have traveled the world over and stayed in many hostels have nothing but praise for our establishment and have commented that this is one of the best hostels they have ever stayed in. I hope you gain more experience of backpackers and hostels on your travels and in time will see that we actually have a very accommodating, safe and clean hostel with great facilities, otherwise you should perhaps look at booking into a hotel instead.