109 Funchal Hostel

The room was kept very clean with daily service, and towels were included, but I didn’t feel safe enough to stay and won’t be back. Keys to all the rooms were left openly accessible, and there was no key for the bathroom. As a woman traveling alone, using the toilet and shower with the door unlocked felt really scary. When I asked, the owner or receptionist, who was only reachable on WhatsApp, said nobody had asked before and she would work on it. I want to give her the benefit of the doubt, but not providing a bathroom key for a shared room with strangers seems poorly planned. Before arriving, I got no communication and found myself outside a locked door. Asking ahead about check-in would probably have prevented that, but you have to take the initiative. Without mobile service or an overseas phone plan, you’re out of luck. I only understood this was a recurring issue after reading other reviews. The bathroom is shared by the three people in the room and is open at the top. If someone turns on the light during the night, it lights up the whole room. There are two small lockers per bed, each with a key. With no air conditioning the rooms get musty unless you open the windows. The narrow street outside isn’t very busy.

The old house has a lovely structure, and the bathroom is spacious. The terrace is small but could be nice with proper chairs and a clean-up. WhatsApp communication wasn’t very friendly, unfortunately, and the neighborhood is pretty run down. Fine for a few nights, with some ups and downs.

The private room was good, but the four-person shared rooms are tiny and offer no privacy. The toilets were always out of paper, and there was noise throughout the house with nowhere decent to relax. Outside, the basic seating area had broken chairs. The neighborhood also had lots of homeless people and drug users. I didn’t feel comfortable there as a woman traveling alone, so I checked out early. I don’t really understand the five-star reviews.

The place was clean and well located, and the host replied within minutes whenever we contacted them. A couple of things kept it from being a five-star stay. The upstairs bathroom showerheads were completely broken and sprayed water everywhere, though luckily there are two bathrooms. Our bags were kept at another property down the road. When we went to collect them, nobody was there and the place was locked. Contacting the host got it sorted quickly, but it added stress to our last day. I’m not sure why we couldn’t leave the luggage at the main property.