Che Lagarto Hostel Morro de São Paulo

The rooms were quite dirty, and I ended up with bed bugs. Thankfully, they moved me to a much nicer private room afterward. On the good side, the hostel is close to restaurants and only a short walk from the beach. I stayed near the end of 2024, when Janata was managing the place. He made me feel welcome and helped me connect with other solo travelers, which meant a lot since I’d just arrived in Brazil and spoke very little Portuguese.

The area is perfect, and the rooms are clean. I loved the place. Breakfast was 7 USD, but we didn’t order it because it didn’t look very appealing.

The staff are super friendly, and the atmosphere is excellent. Traveling solo, you’ll certainly meet nice people to spend time with. If you book a room, check where the air conditioning is mounted. When it’s lower on the wall, the person in the upper bunk may get too hot while sleeping.

We stayed in a private room for about six days, and the beds and pillows were as comfortable as in the other LAGARTO hostels. The kitchen is large and well equipped, the staff are incredible, and the location is great. The artwork and paintings are lovely, made by a cool artist we got to meet. Most guests seemed to be from Argentina, so brush up on your Spanish. My one downside is that they don’t organize hostel parties, like costume, gender exchange, or caipirinha nights. That could take the place from great to amazing.