Alaïa Hostel

I stay in hostels fairly often, and this was the worst one I've experienced. There usually wasn't any staff around, and one night a random man was sleeping on a couch in the common area. Even though the system is digital, I waited an hour after booking before I could get into my room. The restroom was dirtier than a train station, and there was a dead bug in the bed linen. We paid 100 francs for a double room, when 130 francs could get you a proper hotel room with a spa in Zermatt. A really bad stay, and I wouldn't recommend it.

The worst part was finding cockroaches in our room, which had a private bathroom and was meant for two. That's unacceptable even for budget accommodation. The place itself was okay and close to the train station, but there was no hand soap at all, no hair dryer, and no breakfast option. Check-in is self-service, and you need your phone and WiFi each time you want to get into the room, which may not suit everyone. There is a small kitchen and shared dining room. For what we got, we felt the price was too high.

We were there on a study trip, and every room smelled bad. The showers and the water in the shower room weren't working. There was a crazy woman at the hostel, and when we needed help, the hostel staff weren't there for us. Worst place I've ever slept.

Alaïa Hostel has a good location near the train station, rooms of a normal size, and fairly comfortable beds. The kitchen also has utensils, a kettle, and a fridge. But there were live and dead cockroaches in our room. It looked clean at first, yet nobody was dealing with them or even clearing away the dead ones. The private bathroom had no shower gel, shampoo, or even soap. I can't see what we paid 125 francs a night for. It's absurd. The check-in details were confusing too. Booking.com said arrival from 2pm and checkout by 11am, but private messages gave us 4pm and 10am instead, and nobody replied to messages. To check in, you need internet and location services enabled on your smartphone, which felt inconvenient and unsafe. After 10am the webpage no longer offered the option to open the room. Luckily we were already inside. We did see an employee and used cards from other rooms, so those clearly exist.