South Hostel Cadiz

The place felt neglected everywhere I looked. Things were missing, stained, broken, dirty, or badly arranged. The bathrooms were falling apart, flooding, or had no hot water, and there was often no one dealing with it. The staff seemed more focused on their own lives than on the guests. I saw one person doing homework, another sleeping with a coworker on the common room couch, someone else using a couch for video calls with her boyfriend, and others smoking, cooking, or just chatting instead of cleaning, restocking toilet paper, or fixing things. They live in the hostel, but treated guests like an intrusion into their personal space and didn't seem to know much about the area or care about helping. I was paying for this stay, and it felt like I might have been better off couchsurfing for free with someone who cared about their place.

The common room was pleasant and the staff were helpful, but the bathrooms smelled bad and two of the three men's bathrooms were out of order. There was nowhere in the showers to put clothes where they wouldn't get wet. Cádiz is small, so the location didn't feel like much of a special advantage. I left feeling a bit scammed over the booking. The website kept glitching when I tried to reserve two nights and would only let me book one, so I left a message asking for two. On my second day I had to change rooms, and the hostel charged me an extra €10 when I checked into the new one, saying I should have booked through the website, even though I had tried. I couldn't make two separate bookings for each night, but they wouldn't do anything about the charge.

The beds were comfortable enough, and meeting the other travelers made the stay good overall. But I found a large cockroach in the room. The bathroom sinks were tiny, the shower stalls got grimy quickly, and their doors were very uneven. The kitchen was short on dishes and cutlery, and there was no freezer. It would have been nice if staff did more than hang out and check people in.

The staff were the best part, really friendly and helpful. Special thanks to Patti, Greta and Roberta 🤩 The location was great, near both the center and the beach. The reception and common spaces made it easy to meet other guests, the kitchen had everything we needed, and the bathrooms were always clean. I had a great time, thanks girls!!!