Hostel Icarai Inn

The room service is very basic, and the facilities need upkeep, including fresh paint and general repairs. The stay itself was average. I also think having someone available at the hostel reception is essential for guest support and information, but there wasn’t anyone there.

I booked through Booking for my mother-in-law, who had suffered a stroke. She can walk short distances with a cane, but needs a wheelchair for longer ones. The listing said the units were accessible and on the ground floor, which was why we chose this room. In the requests, I asked whether a room with a larger bathroom might be available, since it would make bathing her easier. The reply was, “Declined. There’s no way a wheelchair can fit in that bathroom, the door is narrow.” I explained that I was only asking in case one was available and that she can manage short distances. They then said the hostel entrance was difficult, with several steps, and that we should find a hotel with easy access. When I pointed out the accessibility information in the listing, they denied that it said that and asked where I’d seen it, saying, “A hostel with accessibility?” I don’t know where they got the idea that hostels can’t be accessible. I also don’t understand why they were so hostile when I hadn’t created or edited the listing, I’d simply relied on what it said when I booked. I won’t be staying there, and if the service in person is like what they gave us on Booking, I can’t recommend it. They should review the listing so other people don’t get this kind of awful response from someone unprepared to deal with customers.

I’ve stayed at this hostel several times while getting cancer treatment in Niterói. When the manager, Giselle, is there, I’m always welcomed warmly and the place is clean, fresh-smelling, and organized. But she wasn’t there on the 22nd. I arrived at 3 p.m. and found a shocking mess that had been left since the night before: broken bottles, dirty cups, pizza boxes, and overflowing bins. When we checked out on the 23rd, I went to get a glass of water and gave up. There was even more mess, a man apparently drunk and sprawled on the sofa, clothes thrown over the barbecue, and a standing clothes rack full of laundry in the shared area. My husband and I left outraged. He complained on Booking, and the owner, who seems unable to take criticism even when she’s in the wrong, replied that someone had come to clean on the 23rd and that she didn’t want him staying there again. So from the night of the 21st until the cleaner arrived on the 23rd, guests like us were apparently expected to put up with all of it and keep quiet. The owner knew about the dirt, there are cameras all over the place, and still let new guests arrive to find that mess. We understand it’s a hostel, not a hotel, but common sense says someone needs to be there every day to keep things in order and stop inconsiderate guests from treating a shared space like their own backyard. The rest of us paid to use the whole place and deserve at least a little comfort. This was a lamentable way to handle things. After the owner’s reply: I don’t care that there’s only one owner. What I saw was someone who doesn’t handle criticism well and keeps calling guests liars or villains instead of listening and making positive changes. My complaints are valid. No guest should have to go through something like this, even if they’ve stayed before. “Things happen” is an amateur excuse for a place that deals in people’s comfort and well-being. I didn’t post on Facebook, Instagram, or other social media. I have every right to leave a review on rating sites, and I chose to do so because I experienced this myself and want to help warn others, just as I’d want someone to warn me. The owner should be more attentive and polite when responding to guest criticism.

Having a car inside the gated property made me feel much safer, and that was the main reason I chose this hostel. The location is excellent, in a very safe area practically in the city center, and we also got to use the pool. I was there for work, and the place had everything I needed and more: a room with two beds and air conditioning, a great bathroom with a strong shower, plus a well-equipped kitchen with a fridge, ovens, appliances, cups, plates, and cutlery. Highly recommend it.