Auberge de la Paix - Hostel

We paid for a private room for two people for two nights, and I wouldn't return. The convenient spot near Old Quebec was the main plus. If you're okay with a bit of walking, downtown might be a better base for visiting Old Quebec during the day. The worst part was the constant noise. I normally fall asleep easily, but woke several times from hallway conversations, sounds from nearby rooms, dropped phones, slamming doors, and drunk guests yelling and singing outside until early morning. The building seems poorly insulated, so even private rooms have little privacy. Signs ask guests to be quiet late at night, but they didn't help us relax. Our room was tiny. Once we'd opened a medium-sized suitcase beside the double bed, there was barely room to move. The mattress was uncomfortable and squeaked whenever I shifted, and there wasn't a mirror. Staff were mostly friendly and helpful, and check-in and check-out were quick and easy. We saw staff cleaning the bathrooms and they seemed to be doing their job, but the facilities were old and visibly worn. Built-up grime and permanent stains made them feel dirty even if they'd been cleaned. The place badly needs renovation. For what we paid, it wasn't worth it. Getting a good night's sleep is the bare minimum on a trip, and we didn't get that.

We stayed here with a group in summer, and it was the worst experience I've had, even after backpacking quite a bit through Central America and East Asia. The room was extremely hot and dark, and the whole stay was horrible. There was no working electricity in the rooms: the plugs didn't work, and the supposed air conditioning was a portable unit that didn't work either. The hostel was filthy, the bathrooms were never clean, and the showers only had one temperature, super hot, with no way to adjust it. Staff said we'd get a refund, but we never heard anything after that. It felt like a total scam. Don't be fooled, go somewhere else.

The rooms for our group were around 30°C, and we spent a horrible night in the dark. The windows were locked and couldn't be opened in any of our rooms. Bathrooms were filthy, and there was no way to adjust the shower temperature. Just go somewhere else. In room 104, the advertised air conditioning was a portable cooling unit taped to the window, and it didn't work. Neither did the lights or plugs. Staff said it might be a blown fuse and took me to the fuse box in the basement, which didn't feel safe. After I put the fuse back, the lights and cooling worked for about three minutes, then failed again. I kept going down to the basement every few minutes until I gave up at 1am. I asked for another room, but was told the place was full. The same problem affected our other rooms, 301, 303 and 304, where even the main lights didn't work. We'd booked several rooms and had to pay in advance to get the keys, which should have been a warning. When I asked for a refund, staff said to contact them the next day because their shift was nearly over. I called the main desk the next day, was told the manager would be contacted, then waited 2hrs before insisting on speaking to the manager by phone. We agreed on a 30% refund for our stay, but I haven't heard from them since. I have to assume this was a scam and fraudulent behavior.

Really cozy and clean, with great flatmates and pleasant staff. The price for what you get is very good, especially with activities so close by.