1ST Homestay - HK Taiwan Hostel

Be careful with hostels at this address. I’d only consider block A, especially the Manila Lounge, safe. I think there’s a higher chance of being scammed by hostels in the building’s other blocks. The crystal hostel charged me under a different name, Shanghai hostel. They also ask you to leave a credit card deposit and make you sign an authorization letter so they can use the card. Avoid this at all cost.

The owner was very rude and, in my view, scammed us over a 200HKD service charge. When we asked what percentage it was, he said 15%, but our calculation came to just 90HKD. He told me, “Who is the owner? You or me? I am the boss. You just keep quiet!” and, “Luckily you are a girl. If you are a boy, I would punch your face right now”. Please avoid this place. He also took my phone and checked everything, especially the album and voice recording app. He even asked us to open the deleted album. We hadn’t recorded or taken pictures, but he took the phone straight away when I tried to explain. I asked why he was doing this and whether customers had recorded or photographed him before. He said yes. That immediately made me think he must have scammed people many times. I told my friend it probably wasn’t his first time. It was the worst experience of our stay in HK. The room was tiny and dirty, barely enough to move around with more than one person. Cockroaches were around, the toilet smelled awful, and the air conditioning didn’t work. We woke with worse headaches. There was no window and hardly any space. What a terrible experience.

This felt like a scam. Please don’t make the same mistake we did by booking this guesthouse. The receptionist was rude and unfriendly, and tried to charge us extra for a room we’d already booked and paid for. This hostel should be removed from booking platforms immediately.

The area is the worst place to stay in all of Hongkong, according to locals, and the hostel was disgusting inside and out. I wouldn’t spend even one night here. Absolutely not recommendable, just read the reviews.