Auberge de Jeunesse HI Grenoble

I had a lockable room for my motorcycle, which made me feel at ease, and the staff were genuinely nice. Dinner tasted good and the beer was cold and refreshing. The location was good, though some unsettling neighbors were moving around and making noise in the middle of the night. I'd recommend it to sturdy travelers. Thanks to the staff for being so kind.

Getting around was easy on foot: Aldi, Action, Casino, a bakery, and a few bus lines to downtown and the University are nearby. The value was 5/5, and yes, I'd come back. I stayed in an eight-person room, and both the bed and bedsheet were clean; the beds were spacious. Staff were super friendly and helpful. The shared kitchen could use a second fridge and a new microwave, and it'd be better if guests could use their own lockers on the assigned shelves.

This place was awful, and even one star feels too generous. The room was dirty and very cold, and the bathroom was terrible and unclean. Some rooms had no hot water or toilet paper. We weren't given towels, so we had to buy them. The bed was basically a thin nylon mattress on a cage. Wi-Fi only worked in reception, which was the smaller problem. Breakfast was swill, and the place was very expensive. I do not recommend it.

The location is decent, around a 30-minute walk from the city centre, and the bedding was clean, the mattress comfortable, and some staff friendly. The showers had hot water too. Still, compared with other hostels I've stayed in, this was poor and shabby, with broken sink plugs and some taps, broken blinds, and grubby showers. Finding staff was difficult, especially outside reception hours, which were 8pm-8am. The bike shed was meant to be secure, but its key was behind reception and nobody there before 8 am could find it. I saw tired backpackers wandering around looking for help at 20:30, and eventually showed them to the bar. The self-catering kitchen was filthy and disorganized. A staff member had left half-eaten food and rotten fruit around, then got rude and defensive when people went near his so-called private cupboards. If they're private, put up a sign or lock them. Signs showing where the utensils, cups, and plates belong would help too. There were rancid sponges, watered-down washing-up liquid, and no paper roll in the empty dispenser. I was also told the night porter kept disappearing. Let's hope there's never a fire. I got the impression the hostel might be used as emergency shelter or housing, which I have no problem with. But there seemed to be little enthusiasm or pride in the place, or care for its core customers. It came across as badly managed and possibly close to shutting down. Poor service. Avoid if you can.