Barrio Downtown Mexico City Hostel

We booked Hostel Barrio after seeing a recommendation in a YouTube video, and I was excited to go. We paid extra to check in early. The Xolo 31 suite looked nice, but it was really warm, and the air conditioner didn’t work. Someone came to look at it but couldn’t fix it, so he offered a fan and put in a maintenance request for the next day. We were out all day, and when we returned the room was still hot. The front desk said maintenance had checked, but they didn’t know what they’d done or whether it was fixed. They said they’d notify maintenance again, but we were leaving the following day. We tried sleeping with the outside door open, but it was too noisy and bugs came in. There was also a confusing payment issue. They charged my card twice, then gave me cash for the mistake. I was fine with that and carried on with my plans. That night, the person who’d looked at the air conditioner asked me to return the cash so they could refund my card instead. I returned it the next day, but they had trouble putting the money back on my card. I had to call my card company, explain what happened, wait to get through, and find a money exchange to pay them back. Checkout was at noon. I called to confirm, but they deactivated my room key at 10 a.m., so I had to go downstairs to get it reactivated and collect my things. As an apology, the front desk gave us four vouchers for drinks at the upstairs bar, but we found out they weren’t valid until 6 p.m., when we wouldn’t be there. The guy at the bar was kind of rude and said we couldn’t use them. I told the front desk, and one of the women who gave us the vouchers got upset and ran to tell him. By then, I just wanted to leave. The staff weren’t communicating with each other, and I was very disappointed. ☹️

The decor is lovely, the location is convenient, and my husband and I really liked the place. We could walk almost everywhere, with some metro stations nearby too. There are lots of restaurants and taco spots in the area, and our private room was spacious and very clean. I gave it four stars because the woman working reception at night had a bad attitude. She seemed unhappy to help guests, answered rudely, and even made faces right in front of us.

My private room on the 3rd floor shared a bathroom and had no windows, which felt very claustrophobic. When I arrived, there was a strong cheap perfume smell that gave me a headache. Above the room, metal chairs in the common area squeaked loudly from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. You could also hear everything happening in the bathroom next door. Bring good earplugs if you want to sleep during the day. I was told there’d be a walking tour of Roma at 4 p.m. and that I didn’t need to sign up, just show up in the third-floor common area. The time was changed to 3 p.m. without anyone notifying me. Breakfast wasn’t great, though the coffee was good. There are some good, moderately priced hotels nearby. I’d spent three nights at one for less when I first arrived in MC, and had a much better experience. Unfortunately, it wasn’t available for the days before my departure. I let the staff know I was unhappy during my stay, but they seemed not to care.

I liked the hostel’s Mexican-style decor and lively feel, but the stay itself was rough. My private room was on the first floor beside reception, so noise was a problem. After arriving around 1 a.m. because my flight was delayed, I was woken at about 4 by someone shouting and banging at reception for more than half an hour. The staff didn’t seem to step in, and I barely slept. Breakfast was only cereal and milk, with no alternatives, and the staff weren’t especially friendly. I wouldn’t recommend the private rooms.