Hostal Tzalahua

The rooms are really comfortable, and the staff are very friendly. I'd recommend this hostel for a relaxing escape from the tourist area. It's tucked away, with shopping, food, and gambling nearby.

So far, things are going well.

It's affordable, quiet, and in a handy spot near Walmart, shopping centers, restaurants, and bars. But the cleanliness was a real letdown. I stayed four nights and five days, and nobody cleaned my room, so I borrowed a broom from the patio and swept it myself a couple of times. One night, a woman at reception said she hadn't cleaned because I was there, though she never even came near my room. I might not have noticed her at all if I hadn't gone to the kitchen. The bathroom walls were filthy, the old shower curtain was coming apart, and there was no closet, dresser, or chair for my things. The staff were friendly, but I wouldn't stay at this hostel again because of the lack of cleaning.

This wasn't somewhere I could rest. The rooms smelled dirty, and the low-quality mattresses had springs you could feel and smelled like feet. Street racing nearby went on all night, so it wasn't quiet either. The kitchenware was disgusting: the kettle had a thick coat of black grime with a lumpy mess underneath, making it impossible to put on the stove. We told a manager, who brushed off the problems with the dishes and mattresses and said they were new. They were still terrible quality, like sleeping on boards.