Cocoon International Inn

The hostel was well run, and you can see they put effort into keeping the place clean. My room was nice, with a comfortable bunk bed, curtain, bed light and charging plug. The indoor temperature was moderate, and the shower facilities were good. The kitchen has everything needed for cooking, and they check and clean the fridge every day. The downside is that the kitchen has no window. It was hot and stuffy, and I could smell the humidity. I was also uneasy about having to enter my card details by hand at check-in. They say the system automatically deletes them after checkout, but that doesn’t make me feel fully sure they’re safe. I hope they consider another option that works for both sides. Even so, the price was really affordable, perhaps because it was low season, and I thought it was well worth it. I’d consider staying again.

The rooms and bathrooms were clean, and the facilities were good. The atmosphere was the one thing that let it down. It felt more like a cheap hotel than a hostel, with no backpacker vibe and nothing social happening. There were no events or tours either. I’d suggest bringing in some volunteers to help create a more social hostel feel :)

The receptionist was really nice and even changed my mixed room to a female one, but I decided not to stay because I wasn’t comfortable handing over my card details. I’d only seen some reviews about this on my way to the hostel. When I explained my concern, they didn’t tell me why they needed the details and only said they couldn’t check me in without them. There was no mention of a security deposit. Booking says it’s £300 and refunded at checkout, which seems excessive for a hostel if that’s correct. I understand reviews can be false or out of date, but with some questionable reviews in the past, it might be worth offering a cash deposit option and lowering the amount.

The kitchen is big and fully equipped, and the staff were fascinating. The place was welcoming and clean. Really nice stay, 5/5, totally recommend!