Budget Backpackers Transient HOSTEL near NAIA AIRPORT

It's a little tucked away, but there’s a 7/11 next door and other local shops nearby. I was disappointed by the smell when I entered the room. There was no curtain in the bathroom, so I used a towel to cover it.

The room was spacious, air-conditioned, and had some nice touches. At 1,149 pesos, the price was affordable, and the location beside 7-Eleven was handy. They also let me check in late at 11:30 PM, unlike the other places I'd asked. It was hard to spot because there was almost no signage, just a sticker on the metal gate. The curtain was see-through, which raised privacy concerns. The toilet wouldn't flush, so I had to use a pail, and there was no free tissue or toiletries. Those had to be bought from them or at 7-Eleven.

The room was roomy enough and close to NAIA Terminal 3, but the area felt crowded and made us uneasy. People were looking at us when we got out of the taxi, and we worried there might be snatchers. The room was upstairs on the second floor, while downstairs looked like a storage area. From the moment we entered, the place didn't feel like lodging.

The room listing said there would be a refrigerator and four beds. I knew that sounded odd, but assumed it might be a group or family unit. When we arrived, there was no fridge and no four beds. We stayed less than 30 minutes while I urgently searched for another place. The owner suggested I might have booked the wrong place, but the listing was later corrected to show the number of beds. She also denied that a fridge had ever been listed. The glossy floor and decor didn't match the condition of the property. The area was slummy, and we came in through a dirty entrance that looked like a poorly kept garage. A large roach greeted us on the stairs, and our unit smelled strongly of pesticide. Anyone considering a booking should look at the street view on Google Maps first. Beware!