City Hotel Shymkent

The rooms are nice and each has its own bathroom. This is one of the most modern hostels I’ve come across, and it feels spacious. There’s no proper kitchen, but a large room has plenty of seats where you can eat prepared food and keep things in a fridge. Motorcycle parking is safe and secure, behind the hostel, though a little tricky to find at first. Follow the street beside the entrance, turn right, then right again into a parking area, then left into the secluded gated parking space. Also, don’t confuse City Hostel with City Hotel. Their entrances are close together on the same street.

In dorm 303 the AC only goes up to 25, and my roommates’ body odor was everywhere. The toilet room floor gets messy after showers because there are no mats. For some reason, devices don’t connect to the wifi right away. I worked in the common area, and there’s coin laundry available.

I’m on my second night and might stay longer. It’s a well-kept hostel with helpful staff, colorful decor, and a great location. A dorm bed costs 5,000 tenge, and you might get a private room if nobody else shows up. Lockers, towels, and slippers are provided. I’m very happy here.

The staff were hospitable and spoke well, but that was about the only good part. My room wasn’t very clean, and this wasn’t the most comfortable hostel I’ve stayed in. The biggest turnoff was that I’d booked a non-smoking room, but it was the most cigarette-smoke-filled room I’ve ever encountered. I complained to a woman at the front office, went to dinner for a couple of hours, and came back. They apparently hadn’t told the other guest to stop smoking, so I checked out right away.