Timber Hostel

The staff were friendly and helpful, and the owner was especially welcoming and cared about guest feedback. Bathrooms and showers were clean, eggs and bananas were provided so we could make breakfast, and there was a local market around the corner with delicious, cheap food. But the noise was still a problem. The walls aren’t soundproof, and footsteps and vibrations on the stairs and ground woke me at 4:00 and kept me awake until 1:00 at night. Staff provided ear buds, but they didn’t help much. The door lock was so broken that we thought it was illegal to lock the door, until we heard the locking sound from the next room on our fourth day. Both hair dryers on the third floor were in such bad shape that we worried they might explode when switched on. Staff replaced them with one from the second floor. When the drying machine broke, the owner kindly helped move and collect our laundry from a new machine opposite the hostel. The blue socket light flashed all night with the keycard inserted, and the red one shone all night with it removed. The trash bin was always full. I wrote this at 4:33 in the morning after being woken by the noise.

The hotel itself is nice, but I wouldn’t recommend it because of how they handled our deposit. After one night, our sheet had a few saliva stains and was slightly dirty. They wanted to charge extra for cleaning, even though the stains should come out in the wash. I honestly suspect they don’t change the sheets every day. I found the practice outrageous, and it felt like they were trying to add fees when returning our deposit.

The location is good, but I didn’t find the place worth staying at. The rooms were very small, the bed didn’t feel clean, and I got a rash on my hands and feet after sleeping on it. You could clearly hear people outside. The shared toilets and showers weren’t clean at all, and there wasn’t enough shower gel or shampoo. I’ve traveled alone in more than 20 countries, and this was the worst place I’ve stayed. They had a female-only room but no female-only bathroom, which I don’t understand. All the bathrooms were dirty. So bad, I won’t go back.

The staff were so nice, and I felt right at home. The bathrooms were clean and had hair dryers, and the place was fully air-conditioned. I also loved the free breakfast, towels, and unlimited Wi-Fi. I’ll book again when I come back. 🇹🇭🇵🇭