European Guest House

This place is the definition of shit. Actually someone taking a dump on me would feel better than staying in this sesspool for more than two hours. We checked in and then handed back our keys immediately after itching on entry to our room. The man who shot 60 people in norway would have better prison accomidation than this. The people that occupy this dwelling are like the people on the streets outside the hostel (crack Addicks) or people from the hills have eyes we date nir stay to find out. We feared for our life in and outside the hostel. Fuck this place!

0 Stars if I could !
This is a Public Service Announcement: DO NOT STAY HERE!
So I stayed here for 21 days and I feel qualified to leave this lengthy review. First off, let me preface by saying that this is the cheapest place you can get in SF, and if you don’t care about cleanliness and simply just need a bed then this hostel will suffice.
As a traveling artist I have stayed at many different hostels but this is by far the worse place I have ever stayed in. This hostel is a perfect example of the phrase «you get what you pay for».
When I first checked in and entered my 6 bunk room I was greeted by the smell of nasty body odor (like when you are at a concert around a bunch of sweaty dudes). As it turns out, one of my roommates was pseudo homeless, I discovered he was living off a disability check and he was very mentally unstable. Not to mention he reeked of urine and BO. He would randomly go off on nothing, mumble to himself and whatnot. Welcome to SF I thought to myself. I can put up with a lot for $ 18 a night but this was next level. How did this guy even check in? Obviously they will let anyone stay here if they pay, as it is not exclusive to students and travelers like the website listed.
I needed to take a shower — big mistake though as the bathrooms are disgusting. There was routinely piss on the toilet/​floor — and the shower heads were calcified to the point that the water kinda just sprayed/​misted out. Asides from the filthy bathroom situation — there was never any actual hand soap. I actually bought a huge bottle of hand sanitizer and kept it in my room because obviously no one was washing their hands. As a matter of fact, the soap dispensers were either missing, filled with some watery liquid, sometimes entirely with water!
I actually ended up showering at a gym I worked out at during my entire 21 day stay — the bathrooms are so gross at this hostel that I would only use the toilet as needed (but I brought my own sanitizer wipes in with me when I did, because there was usually some kind of bodily fluid on the seat). All the locks on the doors were busted, even some of the toilet seats were cracked and busted.
Needing to use the bathroom is also an issue — there are two located on each floor and they are pretty much always in use. I decided to wake up at 6AM (before anyone else) so that I did not have to do the pee-​pee dance running up and down 4 flights of stairs just to find an open bathroom in the morning.
One day I was grabbing some stuff out of my locker and that is when I had the pleasure of seeing a large rat dart behind the lockers themselves. Nasty. Rats were also confirmed when I made mistake of leaving an open bag of crackers underneath my bunk only to discover in the morning the box was chewed through. After that incident I chose to keep my food stored inside my bag on my bunk. At least I never woke up with a rat in my bed.
One time I used the kitchen. The sponge was filthy and who knows when it was last changed. One of the freezers was broken. I decided not store any refrigerated food while I was there because other guests would help themselves to it.
Now let’s talk about the area. This place is located off Minna and 8^th in a alley just off Mission street. Very close proximity to the tenderloin and there are homeless junkies everywhere. There was not a single night outside the hostel where I was not approached and asked if I had heroin or cocaine to sell. There were used needles in the streets and on any given night 2 – 3 homeless people would make that alley their sleeping spot.
Just walking up to this hostel off the street all you can smell is urine, some homeless guy took a standing dump right in front of me in broad daylight one day — he was on some hard drugs for sure.
Location sucks, and after 9pm your only options for food was to trek to a different neighborhood in SF.
Please do yourself a favor, spend a couple more bucks and go someplace else.

Update: rumor has it that this hostel is now charging 212 $ a night and 40 $ to sleep in the hallway when its full. I think that might be illegal so u might want to avoid

Bait and Switch: They advertise a single room for $ 35.35 per night through
who washes their hands of their complicity in the scheme. When you click on the ad you find out all you get is one of 6 beds in the room. That’s a whopping $ 212.10 per room per night for apparently bed bug infested room! I emailed them and demanded they honor their advertised price, they declined to respond. They also go by the alias name of European Hostel

A small-​ish hostel with great service!
Came here last week for spring break.
It’s located near enough Market Street that you can walk to a muni or bart station, but secluded enough that you’re not hearing ambulances every. single. night.
We booked 2 private rooms for our group. Very inexpensive (I think less than $ 25/​night/​person?)
Andy at the lobby was also extremely nice and we had no problems with him.
Everything is well maintained, just don’t expect perfection.
There were times were it was really difficult to find an open bathroom. There’s two on each floor but in times of high traffic you might have to wait.
Common room/​kitchen is small, but there was never a time where our group couldn’t find room to sit or eat (not sure if this is different in the summer).
Would come back again!

I’ve stayed in many hostels, all in Europe except for this one, and I can confidently say this was THE WORST HOSTEL I’VE EVER BEEN TO or even heard of.
AVOID THIS HOSTEL AT ALL COSTS! SERIOUSLY!
My girlfriend and I decided on European Hostel because we are on a budget, and they were charging about twenty bucks less per night for a private room than other hostels SanFran. This hostel was NOT WORTH THE SAVINGS. We would have been better off paying a little more so we could have a more comfortable environment.
The Room was about 6’x8’, just slightly bigger than the queen-​sized bed. It smelled bad (like feet), and the carpet was so dirty it was horrifying. There was a window that opened up to a walled-​in space of about five square feet, which let in very little light. The window was also situated in such a way that I was constantly in fear of falling out of it. There was nothing to hang our clothes and towels on. There was barely enough room for us to get dressed. The bed was clean enough, but uncomfortable, and the covers were several sizes too large, so we ended up getting tangled quite often. There was no table, which would have been useful, but then again there was no room for a table.
The bathroom on our floor had a broken lock and would not close properly without a fight. Every bathroom in the hostel had a serious mold problem, and they were not very clean. The thermostat on their water heater was set far too high and I got a severe and intensely painful burn when I washed my hands. The water must have been between 150 and 190 degrees.
And THE NOISE!!! Oh my god! The doors slam so incredibly loud in this hostel. It seriously sounds like someone shooting a gun right outside your door. We were woken up dozens of times during our stay by people allowing the bathroom door to slam behind them.
The Kitchen was filthy and in total disarray. The staff of the hostel do not clean the kitchen, and they excuse themselves from this responsibility by taping signs to the walls that say «you must clean up all dishes and cups after yourself or you will be charged a fee.»
The «common area/​lounge» consisted of a single broken couch. THERE WAS NOT ONE SINGLE ASPECT OF COMFORT OR RELAXATION AT THIS HOSTEL. It was a very uncomfortable, unwelcoming, and unclean environment.
The location was awful. There were homeless people everywhere. We couldn’t leave the hostel without having at least five bums confront us and try to get our money. The area felt VERY UNSAFE AT NIGHT. Because of this, after our first night we spent every night inside our little stinky room watching movies on my laptop. We were very uncomfortable going anywhere after the sun went down.
The staff provided no help. We were booked for seven days. On the third day we confronted staff and asked to cancel our final three days. Since our booking receipt said they require 48hours for cancellations, we at least expected to get a refund for our last two nights. NO SIR. The person at the desk said he couldn’t help us with that, and that we had to email the manager if we wanted to try to cancel our reservation. Of course the manager never responded to our email, so we were forced to pay for the full seven days even though we only ended up staying there for four nights (and after reading other reviews, it seems clear now that HE WAS THE MANAGER).

I wish that there was an option of giving the place no stars. I wish there was an option of giving them minus 50 stars negative so it will bring the overall rating down to «they should get the chair» for things they have done to us and other customers. I spent a month at that place due to the fact that i became disabled and practically homeless at the same time .I am fairly young, i was already disabled, walked with a cane when i moved in while looking for an apartment. I moved in in April 2009 and a week alter my boyfriend moved in with me. The owner was Indian woman Sarla and her son (Sahib or smth like that) took ownership in a few weeks after we moved in. I am honest and clean, as is my boyfriend. We got a stinky, disgusting room on the second floor. Permanent residents (crackheads and lowlifes, respectively) immediately started attempts to move in/​steal from/​assault me in the hallways, and so did Sahib and his brothers (3 other rude men who were always by his side). Our food-​whatever it was-​in a fridge downstairs was eaten and stolen every waking minute, sometimes from the FRYING pan, sometimes from the fridge WHILE i was in the bathroom. Neighbours who were permanent residents tried to break into my room, in fact the christening of our move into the hostel was an insane homeless woman OPENING our door with HER own key and screaming that we took her clothes, while we were having sex. In our room. Quietly. We lived there, for God’s sakes. The place did not have a janitor but instead a bouncer type named Anthony who was supposed to clean it for the cost of his living there. He did not do it and the toilets and SHOWERS were every day covered in SHIT (I am talking shit, explosive diarrhea and vomit on WALLS because locals and permanents were wasted ²⁴⁄₇ and did not control their bowels. Showerheads and LIGHTBULBS were repeatedly and on purpose removed by the management and when we asked them to replace these things, management, Sahib and Anthony tried to charge me $ 10 for screwing in a lightbulb. Toilet paper was stolen every time you leave it for a second out of sight. I physically caught a mouse in the kitchen and showed it to Sarla and she told me its no big deal. Neighbours (I am talking serious crackheads, i am talking humping, screaming, delusional, stinky, thieving, lying and disgusting crowd) started fights in the hallway and many nights I thought i will be killed. My boyfriend, protective and fearless as he is, would not even let me go to the bathroom by myself –two steps across the hall at night. They refused to give me a brush or a broomstick to clean my own room, and Anthony loaned me a broken vacuum-​cleaner that he tried to charge me for lying to me that I broke it. They repeatedly hired a little Mexican child to do their laundry-​I guess concept of child labour is unfamiliar to these pricks. Locals and OWNERS repeatedly insinuated (i cooked a lot and to my demise was very friendly with everyone) and insisted that I share all my cooking with the whole community. I did to some extent and when i stopped they simply stole from me, period. They overcharged me from the get-​go. Management was dishonest, drug deals were happening right in the kitchen, a permanent resident broke into another persons room next door on my floor and stole everything-​bike, records, money, computer. Our room was opened with a key and the only thing I had (a few gothic silver rings that were more of a sentimental value than anything) were taken. Besides all that horror, we were NICE to everyone. We made friends with some nice young kids who were staying there, down on their luck like us, we shared food with Sarla (my bf made her food!!!), But this is NOT why I am writing this essay. Four weeks into living there and praying that we move out ASAP when apartment turns up, management CHANGED. Sarla moved to S. Lake Tahoe, leaving the place to Sahib and his horde. I was a tenant and lived there for over 30 days. I have lost 1 (one!) receipt but kept the others, knowing they have a LOG. He told me that I must leave because he rented out my room to someone for more money!, despite my rent being paid weeks in advance. I of course told him that it is illegal to do such a thing and he and three other men while I stood with my cane in his office insulted me, told me to fuck off, called me «A stupid bitch», driving me to TEARS. Again, advance rent paid. They gave me 3 days to «get the fuck out» during which they told everyone who lived there to leave as well. To entice us, management took out the lights, all the showerheads, stopped cleaning toilets entirely and TURNED UP the heat to the max in the rooms. They agreed to accept a BRIBE from us and we have it ON TAPE. They destroyed their own log (!) and waited for 3days for my bf Mike to leave the room for a few hours during which they CALLED THE COPS on me lying to them that i refuse to leave and that i only stayed there for 2 weeks. I HOPE they end up in jail.

The European Guest House is on the cutting edge of adventure lodging and extreme health risks. Upon your arrival you will most surely find it difficult to find anyone to answer the door, leaving you out in a crack-​alley, waiting for someone to either rob you or let you inside.
Upon admittance into this quality resort, you will surely wonder why it costs so much money as you are led down the corridor into a shabby room set aside for receiving guests. No need for a lobby or etiquette! This is adventure lodging at its best. Complete with exercise facilities consisting of STAIRS up which you will surely lug your bags (if you decline the creepy guy’s offer to take them for you), getting the best workout that a rat trap can offer. When not lugging bags around, you may find exercise as you attempt to dodge the unsavoury individuals who enjoy hanging out in the lounge and looming in hallways in the wee hours of the morning.
For those who think health is for sissies, the European Guest House offers up a rare treat: unclean furniture. It doesn’t matter what; EGH doesn’t cut corners here! Only the finest dirt and vermin on the couches in the lounge, or even in the beds! Unfortunately, the lack of furniture in the rooms prevents maximum dirt-​exposure, but fear not! What you cannot pick up from your room will surely be caught in the bathrooms. From the mould covering the shower door and walls, to the bottle of *mystery* shampoo lovingly stored on the window sill for any unsuspecting… er, that is, as a courtesy for guests. What’s in it? Well, it’s white and oozing out of the top, at this point, it’s anybody’s guess! Take a gamble, take your chances (or play it safe and bring your own shampoo).
Good news for all those bathers out there! Touching the shower walls is a guarantee! Unless you stand stick-​straight with your arms at your sides and simply rotate left-​to-​right under the shower spray, you are most assured to scrape some part of mould-​encrusted shower with your naked body. WIN!
I can hear what you’re saying. «Oh, I can get this sort of filth anywhere. What else does EGH have?» Well, I’m glad you asked, because only the EGH can offer something no other lodgings offer: excitement and danger while you sleep! Forget bed bugs, how does an un-​impeded risk of falling 4-​storeys down to your death sound? Good? GREAT! With their patented no-​window-​or-​screen technology and with a thoughtfully placed bed right against the window, guests who sleep on the 4^th floor will be guaranteed night after night of gut-​wrenching excitement every time they roll over in their sleep. «Will I roll out the window?» «Is tonight the night I die?» These are some of the questions they will ask themselves over and over again. If you’re lucky, it could be you!
Wait, you may be asking yourself, «Gosh, this sounds too good to be true! Is there anything you’re not telling me?»
Yes, I admit, I’m holding out. Here are some other fine features of the EGH you can look forward to, should you decide to partake in this adventure:
— Tiny rooms
— Fashionable hooks on the wall for hanging clothes and bags (who needs a dresser?)
— Dirty bathrooms
— No toilet paper (bring your own and keep it in your room)
— Did I mention the questionable individual hanging outside your door for a few hours at 2am?
— Carrying all your valuables with you when you leave your room
Bonus adventures include:
— Getting your deposit back for your room key
— Avoiding the creepy guy in the lounge who might keep hitting on you if you are female
— Visiting the other floors to steal the toilet paper from their bathrooms
Guaranteed Questionable-​Fun for the whole family!
«I stayed a whole week and don’t know how I survived!» — Caro. A
Pictures have been uploaded for enjoyment and proof of this review, including the mystery shampoo.
Author’s Note: In all seriousness, this all happened to me and my friend while we stayed here. This happened a couple years back, but judging from the reviews here, I’m sure this experience could be re-​created if I (or you) were to visit again. Yes, I did lug 4 suitcases up the super-​narrow stairs to avoid some creeper being in my room with me. We were given poor instructions to find the place and so ended up walking a few blocks down a crack alley (past crack addicts) to find the place, where we were left waiting outside. And yes, at 2am we found someone hanging in the hallway outside our door (just… standing there for a few hours), making it difficult to slip into the bathroom. I did have to think fast to get my deposit back and then hang out outside the EGH to get a taxi at 5am (surprisingly, the crack alley wasn’t as threatening at that time of night. Go figure.)
What an adventure, at least it’s a story to tell, right?

So this place is under new ownership, apparently.
Supposedly its just as bad as it was before the new ownership (according to some reviews on here)… I don’t know, I haven’t been there in a year…
What I can tell you is when I was here last year for a couple of nights… BOY was it BAD…
… Mainly because of the long term residents here (I have nothing against people staying for a long time at a hostel, just to be clear) that are MESSY, sloppy, and weird.
The nightly rate was also higher than it should have been, E S P E C I A L L Y for how nasty this place is!!! (I wouldn’t have minded if it were all glammed out or something).
Yeah, I’ll never stay here again. Period.

I can sum up my whole experience with European Guest House with one word — Fabulous!
My friends and I stumbled upon this hidden gem when the folks at Hotel Mithila forgot that I booked a room and basically told us that we were shit outta luck and directed us to the only other place that had availability during the tourist hell known as Memorial Day weekend. I thought to myself «Oh boy! If an unorganized Indian guy that reeked of curry recommends it, it must be legit!» Little did I realize what I got myself into.
We pulled into this wonderful ghetto-​themed alley, complete with a bum with a security jacket digging in the trash. (I’m sure he obtained it in a legit way) As we parked and stepped out onto the street, the sweet smell of urine and feces greeted our nostrils. What a pleasant surprise! After such a great initial impression, I had nothing but high hopes for European Guest House.
Two things caught my eye the moment I walked in.
1. A high quality piece of printer paper that stated «No Visitors Beyond This Point»
2. The lack of a lobby
These guys at European Guest House were really going for the homeless shelter theme! How unique! The friendly young chaps charged us $ 100 for a room for 3 people. I figured it was a bargain for the quality we were getting.
As we moved our luggage through the halls of our new temporary home, I noticed many things I wasn’t expecting. A poorly maintained kitchen that smelled of the mythical African American race, a consistent feeling of being on a horror movie, and the need to keep my eyes close on my possessions were a few of the things I experienced as we walked towards room number 7 on the second floor.
Our floor was pretty cool! It had some nice lockers with nonfunctional locks, lights with no lightbulbs, and even the smell of marijuana next door. A.W.E.S.O.M.E. I took our the cheaply made key and slipped it into the fragile lock and proceeded to turn the key and open the door to our destiny — for the night…
What was inside was incredible. Something so fantastic, words wouldn’t do it justice so I’m going to draw a diagram of the room instead.
— — — — — — — — — — — — -
l bunk bunk l
l bed bed l
l l
— — — — –door — — — — — –
It was truly awe-​inspiring. Never have I seen a room with absolutely nothing but a bed but once again European Guest House succeeds in surprising. There was one window in the room that gave us a fabulous view of our neighbors window. The sheets that were included also seemed very sticky; this could be due to countless things such as humidity or high quality sticky cotton. The floor was obviously unclean. (They probably did it on purpose to stick to their homeless shelter theme.) There was also something dark red splattered on the ceiling. It was most likely blood but I couldn’t reach it to give it a proper taste test.
The bathroom was down the hall and each were surprisingly clean. Add some toilet paper and a functional shower and it could pass as the Ritz Carlton down in Union Square. The shower room resembled something you would see in classic movies such as Texas Chainsaw Massacre or House of a Thousand Corpses. The tiles to the shower were stained black from disease and fungus was clearly growing in the corner. Classy.
Moving onto the rest of the building. The roof is accessible and is quite relaxing. It seemed like it would be a great gathering place for heroin addicts and clan members alike. Theres actually a room up there with a sign in the window that said something like «Do not knock on this door. If you do, you are only asking for death. I am not kidding. You will die.» What a nice touch!
The night went on and not long after, it was bedtime. I passed out on the bed that probably held homage to fluids such as vomit, blood, and semen in a past life. I woke up to many voices in the halls and the room next to me. The walls it seems are paper thin and if you really wanted to, you could probably listen to your neighbors entire private conversation from the comfort of your bunk bed. Nice touch.
Checking out was painless and quite fun actually. The process involved giving whoevers at the front desk your room key and leaving. Quite unique. We packed up our things and left the place that had once given us shelter.
I will never forget you, European Guest House.