AZ Hanoi Hostel

The hostel is right in the heart of the old town, and for three nights it served its purpose. I had a basic but clean double room with a shared bathroom. There were only two rooms on the top floor, so the bathroom with two toilets, two sinks, and two showers was fine. Just know the hot water lasts literally a minute, so start scrubbing straight away. Getting to the room was a workout, about five flights of stairs. It had air conditioning, a TV with plenty of channels, a small balcony, and two bottles of water plus a banana on arrival. Breakfast was OK, I had an omelette with toast and unlimited black coffee. There was a sort of common room, but I never really saw anyone there. If you’re looking to socialize, this may not be the place. I struggled to get a conversation out of anyone during my stay.

The laundry was quick and great, and the staff were friendly. We stayed in the 12 man mixed dorm for a week, met some lovely people, and enjoyed relaxing on the balcony in the evening. The beds were nice and the showers hot.

The stairs are worth knowing about, there’s no lift, so look elsewhere if you need one. The dorms were comfortable and had a place to lock away belongings. Next time I’d spend a little more for a bottom bunk to avoid the inconvenience. I had a great time at the rendezvous hostel. The staff were friendly and helped with all sorts of things, from figuring out how to get between places to arranging an open bus ticket. They even got my SIM card working in a tablet, even though I wasn’t carrying a mobile phone. Their English was fantastic too.

I compared a few hostels, and the rooms offered elsewhere, including signature inn, felt either too expensive or claustrophobic despite being for just four people. AZ hostel had about 16 beds on the fourth floor, but hardly anyone was there. I got a lower bunk by the window, with good light and a beautiful view. The balcony was nice too. Wifi was okay. At 100k, towels weren’t included, but bath gel and shampoo were available. I’d stay again if the room didn’t look crowded.