Hostelworld Reviews 

Great way to find your Hostel ... the information you provide is the most usefull one

Booked a hostel 3 months before. Hostelworld said I'd have to pay for the 90% of my reservation at the hostel and BOOM five minutes later the whole thing gets credited instantly on my credit card without asking me. No refund possible, they say.

Great staff and hospitality, nihat was espically nice and helpful!

One of the worst customer service experiences I have ever encountered.

My experience with Hostelworld, following a booking at OneFam Hostel in Prague (June 2026), has been nothing short of appalling.

I booked the hostel through Hostelworld. While there is apparently an age limit of 40, I found this far from clear during the booking process. I am 52 years old. If this restriction is so fundamental, it should be impossible to complete a booking without your age being verified at the point of booking. Instead, Hostelworld happily accepted my reservation and payment details.

When I arrived at the hostel, my age was not questioned at all. Instead, I was informed that I could not pay by cashless methods and was instructed to walk to the nearest cash machine to withdraw a substantial amount of cash. This completely defeated the purpose of the cashless trip I had planned and caused unnecessary inconvenience.

After returning from the ATM, filling in all of my registration details and wasting even more time, the receptionist then paused and finally asked my age. Only at that stage was I told I could not stay because I was over 40. By then I had already withdrawn cash unnecessarily. I was also informed that my deposit would not be refunded.

Fortunately, I found alternative accommodation next door at Downtown Hostel, which was excellent and handled everything professionally.

However, the situation became even worse.

Two days later, despite previously insisting they could not take payment by card, OneFam somehow managed to take a further £120 from my account on top of the £20 deposit. I returned to the hostel immediately to challenge this. The irony was astonishing: they supposedly couldn't process my payment when I checked in, yet somehow had no difficulty taking money from my account afterwards.

The receptionist's response was deeply concerning. Her exact words were:

"It happens all the time, don't worry... it'll be refunded. Just speak to Hostelworld."

If this "happens all the time", then there is clearly a serious issue with either the hostel's payment systems or Hostelworld's booking process.

After returning home, I contacted Hostelworld. Their responses were painfully slow, requiring repeated chasing. When they finally replied, the response was effectively:

"The age restriction is listed on the website. The hostel is entitled to keep the full amount. Sorry."

There was no acknowledgement whatsoever that their booking process had allowed someone clearly outside the permitted age range to make the reservation in the first place. No ownership. No accountability. No meaningful investigation.

I appealed the decision, hoping common sense would prevail.

Instead, Hostelworld offered what can only be described as an insulting gesture: they would refund only the deposit, and even then only as Hostelworld credit, forcing me to use the very company that had mishandled my booking in the first place.

That is not customer service. It is an attempt to retain a dissatisfied customer by issuing credit instead of providing a proper refund.

The entire experience demonstrated a complete lack of accountability from both Hostelworld and OneFam Hostel. A booking system that allows ineligible guests to reserve accommodation, a check-in process that fails to identify the problem until after unnecessary inconvenience has been caused, an unexplained additional charge taken from my account, and customer service that appears more interested in protecting the hostel than treating customers fairly.

I will not use Hostelworld again and cannot recommend them to anyone. There are plenty of other booking platforms that value their customers far more than this.

Avoid.

over-all good Experience

Good help & information from the app, perfect !

Hello,
I especially appreciated the warm and helpful welcome. Great location and a good place to sleep. Many thanks for finding me a place to stay, especially on that particular night.
Best regards, Tatjana.

Amazing place to stay in JBR! The hostel is always clean, the staff is friendly, and the sea view is beautiful. The location is perfect—close to the beach, Metro, Tram, supermarkets, and restaurants. Great facilities, fast WiFi, and a comfortable atmosphere. Highly recommended for tourists, students, and professionals. Definitely one of the best hostels in Dubai!

I definitely enjoyed using your website. It was quick. It was easy. It was precise and there was no surprises. I think it was awesome.

The rooms were very clean, and the terrace with a beautiful view was amazing. We had a wonderful time there. The location is excellent and very convenient. Thank you for everything Harmony team.. 🙌🏻

The website is really great , easy to use , great aesthetic, search and filters work perfectly and I am absolutely in love with the mailing system and prompting also the little messages that pop up like the one after a session expires makes the overall experience more fun and lighthearted.

Great view off mekong river The room was very clean and bed was super comfy. Loved that you could see the Mekong river and we were lucky enough to see elephants from our balcony!

Staff were friendly and very cheap price free pickup from the pier to hostel and drop off

Very problem

3³

I’d loved my stay at the BUFFALO Hostel. The restaurant is really nice. I wasn’t sick once during my stay. There is a large choice of food. There is also a nice Jacuzzi with hot water! The staff was really nice and helpful for every problem. Everyday between 7pm to 8pm there’s free beer for everyone! And on Sunday, there also a free barbecue, and cocktails. I would recommend this place for any kind of travelers, from all over the world! The rooms are very nice, there AC and confortable mattress.

I had amazing Stay and they were very accommondating. They helper me through my Stay and Guided me through Melaka. They do have good recommedations. Its was so Easy check-in and was clean property too. I really like it.

Honestly extremely friendly staff especially Iven 🔑 and Elief ☕️

Nihad as well was awesome, he reacted fast to fix the AC and supported in everything we wanted

The entire experience is pleasant, staff, accommodation. Extra toilets would be a great addition

Hostel was very clean, quiet, and located right in the city center. I was able to check in early without paying any extra fee. After checking out, I left my luggage in the baggage room and came back to collect it shortly before my flight.

The location is excellent—very close to the Old City, Sahil Metro Station, and the seaside boulevard. Most of Baku's main attractions are within walking distance, so you can easily explore the city on foot. The air conditioning worked perfectly, which was especially important during the hot weather.

I was very satisfied with my stay and will definitely come back again.