Hostel Alice

- very well located in Vila Madalena - the staff was nice and helpful - cheap breakfast - coffee all day long - potable water

All in all, I would recommend it. Here's why: - I didn't like the common areas. The tiny one inside is always occupied by the Volunteers. Outside you are always bothered by mosquitos. And for some reason, they are not inviting enough to really meet the other travellers. - the bathrooms don't seem to be cleaned every day, they weren't as clean as they should be anyway - the dorm room is way too packed when full, there is not enough space - the lockers in the dorm room can't be locked with conventional locks; the hostel should at least offer fitting ones - it is absolutely outrageous that you have to make your own bed when you move in, and that the sheets don't really match the mattresses; with seven volunteers it should be no problem to just change the sheets after each guest and get real fitting ones - no towel offered - the dorm rooms weren't clean. Under the beds it was very dirty. Again, everyday cleaning should be a given in a hostel - no outside beer allowed, a rule that I truly hate everywhere. If you do that, you make the guests cater to your needs and not the other way around. At least offer some cheap beers, and not some fancy one for 7 reales, we are backpackers with a budget and can get a decent one for 2,50 in the supermarket - for the dorm rooms, you have to pass the patio and the bakery

Location close to Vila Madalena

Main feedback is to expect much less than the hostel photos suggest. After a day we decided to book elsewhere for our stay in SP. Private room has no windows, no proper door (more like a lockable grate) that opens directly onto the communal outside space, light above the bed completely broken (I told reception and nothing was done), shower wiring exposed, bin hadn't been emptied of other peoples used toilet paper, pillows were covered in plastic with a case on top, the "window" in the bathroom was an air brick opening onto the communal bathroom, WIFI didn't work in our room. We're generally not fussy, have stayed in many hostels and never left somewhere before, but this place wasn't for us. On leaving we explained our reasoning but got the feeling that nothing would be done.