Parasat Hostel

The host speaks English, which makes things easy if you don't speak Russian. It's clean and comfortable for the price.

Everything feels spacious and cozy. There's no A/C, but you don't need it. The host and all the staff are so kind. Everything was good, just try it.

At its new address, Karmysov Street 82, Parasat Hostel Kazakhstan is convenient for tourists and close to everything. You can get to the cable car to Koktyube and buses to Medeo and Shymbulak. The beds are especially large and comfortable. There's fresh air, a river flows in front of the building, and the area is quiet. Guest parking is available, and there's a beautiful view of the Hotel Kazakhstan.

The location is the one thing we liked, right by Kazakhstan and just like the photo. The rest has made these two weeks feel like a mistake. We took the first suitable offer because we were inexperienced, and now we're counting down until we can leave. The shower and kitchen don't look like the pictures. The listing on 2gis was even upgraded, apparently; it used to show a much fancier kitchen with people you don't see around here anymore. The shared kitchen is lit well and the gas works, but the electricity goes out often. Dishes are left on the floor, there isn't any detergent, and I watched local guests use the same rag or sponge to wipe the floor. They don't even wipe the table after themselves. People make tea right in the electric kettle, and some may come back drunk at night. Not everybody is like that, there are well-mannered Agashki, but plenty fit that description. The bathroom toilet is often dirty, with no soap or toilet paper. I finally wanted to write this after we couldn't even make breakfast or tea the other day. Our room has one bed, a nightstand, two chairs and, thankfully, a coat rack. The TV is older than we are, there's no desk or closet, and only one outlet works. That's a real problem when you're studying and have several gadgets. We could have used a splitter, but where is the Wi-Fi promised in the hostel description? We pay a lot for what feels like nothing, and laundry costs extra too. The cleaning setup is something else: no proper water bucket, just a huge emulsion bucket that holds around 50 liters. There's also the price. When we first called, they quoted 10,000 rubles more than we learned we'd owe on arrival. What was that, carelessness? Shoes have to come off at the entrance, so you can spend ages untying them while trying to balance. Yet some local guests are allowed to walk around in their so-called house slippers. For a hot shower you need luck. If you get there after the local workers, don't count on hot water; Ariston can only hold so much, so maybe you'll get some in the morning. There's no iron either, and the lighting is dim. I don't feel safe leaving food in the fridge. One evening, while the power was out, a man opened our door and peeked in before I could say anything. He went quickly to the kitchen, and I never learned who he was. As a girl, I don't feel very safe here. The owner is a good person, though. I liked the Tateshiki, and Aunt Jamal was sweet with the children, treating them like a child. She answered questions and kept reminding us what not to leave behind, and to put our slippers in a bag when we leave so nobody else wears them. That advice was kind, but it doesn't make up for the problems. There are places for the same price with much better conditions, even a toilet in the room. Asking for 20-30% back seems fair, but moving now costs too much, 6,000 tenge per night, so we're staying until the end of April. Update: I found out today that the expensive pay-to-use washer can't take more than three kilograms, doesn't heat the water and doesn't spin dry. Washing light-colored things costs 300 tenge, and dark-colored things are another 300 tenge.