San Francisco International Hostel

Location location! Lovely affordable hostel very central to city centre, two min walk away from amtrak stop, Bart, muni.
Pros: Friendly desk staff ‚(in particular Jeff at front desk), comfy beds, variety of sofas and common areas, free coffee &pancakes!, lots of fridge space, more of a hostel and less of a «business», lots of international folk and I felt safe leaving belongings out, relaxed atmosphere!
Cons: Building is a bit old, (but for $ 29/​night…), don’t go on an adventure looking for sinks on second floor cause there are none???
Having been to three other hostels on my travels through SF, this one is my favourite :)

This place seems to be the least hostel like hostel in the city, the front desk staff is super rude, they don’t allow any drinking/​smoking what so ever and they’ll kick you out if you complain.
They also have a stupid policy that you have to bring proof of travel (flight ticket etc) which I threw away as soon as I left the airport at which their respond was «too bad».
Rooms are mediocre, found a used condom under my bed, don’t go unless you have no other option.
PS check out Orange Village hostel, two blocks away and 5-​star quality. (No I’m not affiliated)

Very cheap and friendly staff. The facility, however, is very run down and everything is broken. The rooms smell awful and everything is dirty. I don’t even feel comfortable showering here. If you have a car, expect to pay a minimum of $ 25 a day to store it in a nearby parking garage. Good location, but I don’t think I would stay here again unless I had no other option.

Horrible place. Really dirty and everything is broken. We had to pay for our full stay up front and when we only stayed 1 of the 3 nights because of the quality of the place they refused to refund our money for the second 2 nights. Definite stay-​away

Good 1 night dwelling spot in the middle of downtown, close to the Powell Bart, rail and bus lines. Close to the historic market street. Cheap dorms available. Free pancake and drip coffee breakfast, 6 story building, old elevator goes only to 5^th etc. Lockers available.
Stayed in this hostel for 3 nights, didn’t like it. No sinks on 3^rd and 6^th floors, no towels, bedsheets suck, tiny 10×10 dorms, paid laundry from 5−11pm for guests which is sometimes occupied by the staff. Not many activities at this hostel. Front desk staff was rude, never greet guests. Noise all night because of its downtown location. Kitchen stinks, all old junk frozen food inside refrigerators. Poor Internet speed, connectivity issue all the time. Hope they spend something on renovation.

Well it was a very good experience staying here some of the desk people seemed friendly, but a couple others didn’t seem to want to give much information when I asked some questions. It was pretty cheap to stay here compare to other locations really close to market street one of the main streets that has public transportation that can take you anywhere.
Things to bring:
-$ 10 for room key deposit you’ll get back when you check out.
— your own towel.
— if you’re insecure of leaving your luggage in a room where anyone can go in and look through them buy small locks for them and you’ll feel safer, even though the door has a lock number code to get in anyone can see the code if they pass by the front desk.
–tooth paste, hand soap, shampoo, body wash etc. they do provide you with toilet paper in your room.
I also bought the 4 person room with bathroom included and didn’t really have a problem with the roommates I had. Didn’t really spend much of my time in the hostel just used it to sleep. I did not also experience their night life because I was tired. I give it one less Star because it could be a little bit cleaner or place a rug in the bathroom so no one can slip and fall if the floor becomes wet.

I have no idea why people are complaining about this place. Do people expect a 4 star hotel for $ 30 per night? I paid $ 2 extra for an attached bathroom to my dorm, and it was very clean and convenient!
Lounge area very social and good for parties. No complaints, great location right at Powell st station as well!

My friend and I were in San Francisco for Outside Lands so we basically just needed a place to put our stuff in the day time and sleep at night. There was a complimentary valet and we decided to leave the car in the garage for the weekend and basically rely on public trans or walking since everything is so close. When we left, they guy pulled our car around and as we were loading everything into the car, I noticed that my friend’s brake light had been cracked and taped back together with red tape. I asked her if it had always been that way AND IT HADN’T. If we hadn’t had noticed it, they wouldn’t have mentioned it at all. After that, it took her about a year to resolve the issue with them.
As for the room, it WAS just a place to put our stuff and sleep for a few hours. We stayed here during a time when bed bugs was a big deal everywhere so I slept in my sleeping bag on top of the sheets. At least we didn’t get bed bugs…

If you have a car you will likely spend more money on parking your car across the street than actually sleeping here. The location is prime — conveniently located near Union Square and a bit too close to the Tenderloin (do NOT go out at night alone, even if it is 200 feet away to a convenience store). Upon arrival, you will have to give them $ 10 for the key which you will get back at checkout unless you lose your key obviously.
The beds are only a few inches thick and already dressed in a (hopefully) clean fitted sheet. The top sheet and pillowcase are abnormally soft, but I suggest bringing your own pillow. The bunk beads are very noisy and there is a lot of noisy activity on the streets late at night.
Free make your own pancakes are very limited and offered early so really no promises. The free coffee seemed to be always brewing, so I also did not try that. Also, free wifi is provided but only reliably works on the street level and in the first floor lounge.
Towels are not provided and the water is not the best temperature wise. In the 8 girls dorm, we had our own bathroom which was not the cleanest. Smaller rooms do not have their own bathroom and finding a shower seemed to be a problem for the guys we were traveling with.
The building itself is very interesting and the people staying there — being an international hostel — added to the interesting experience. There was constant activity in the lounge downstairs with people drinking and talking so never a boring moment.
Despite the hostel being kinda gross and difficult to sleep in, I gave it 3 and would give it 3.5 because it was fun. Basically, it is a unique experience and that is as good of an explanation as I can give to justify my rating.

The old adage «you get what you pay for» rings especially true when it comes to SF International Hostel. Yes, it is very affordable. Yes, it is centrally located. However, it is hard to think of other pros when it comes to staying in this hostel. The dated building feels like it is falling apart, the carpeting around the hostel is unclean which gives it a distinct smell, and the matresses/​shetets/​pillows show sings of heavy use. The bathrooms are clean, but the rooms not so much. The social programming is okay– there is free beer some nights and some activities, — but nothing special. I actually found the staff to be relatively friendly; they handled the problems that came their way (which seemed to be quite a lot) with ease and composure. A lot of the problems with this hostel can be easily improved if the owner invested a little bit in the building and its amenities as well as internal management. The hostel certainly has potential!
If you’re a budget traveler with low expectations for lodging, then this place may do the trick. Otherwise, you should look into the various other options around the area.

This place is not a deal. It may be cheap, but it is definitely not something I would ever want to repeat again.
To start, the gal in the reception area was about as welcoming as the signs of physical decay visible throughout the building. You’re handed bedsheets and a pillowcase, then you proceed into a rickety old elevator that holds a maximum of too little a number of people. When you enter your room, you think, «at least we don’t sleep on the ground. At least there is one little sink for the pigeons. Oh wait. That’s for us? Well, at least the blankets don’t smell like human decay. On second thought…» The beds creak with every minuscule movement.
The bathrooms. Don’t even get me started on the bathrooms. I walked up and down 4 floors one night searching for an available restroom. I believe there are 2 toilets on each floor. One shoe-​closet sized. The other shared with a bathtub shower that only sprinkles and only has burning hot or freezing cold water.
Being in SF was fun. But staying there was not. This place is a dump.

Wow, I’m amazed at all the negative reviews, my experience was nothing like that. Maybe I dodged a bullet? It’s a budget hostel, so I wasn’t expecting much, other than a bed and plumbing.
A great value and price for San Francisco! Also I love the location, close to EVERYTHING. And the staff are super nice. Lots of amenities and social activities, for those who like to partake in such things.
The only complaint I have is that my mattress had a dip in the middle, and I could feel the bars of the bed frame. I noticed the bunk above me had plywood between the mattress and the bars, consider doing this for all the beds.

I have stayed in this hostel three times in the past and loved my experience there. It was usually clean with friendly staff and just a general good time. I have recently stayed at this hostel after a year from my last visit and it has gone to the dogs; doors don’t lock properly and are unsafe, most private showers on the levels are «down for maintenance», which resulted in us walking in on a man showering in the «female only bathroom» and said staff had told him to use it. There are no hand basins in the toilets, more often than not no toilet paper and have stopped supplying the «free beer» but still continue to advertise and wifi range is poor on all levels.
Upon arriving at 12am with a reservation made 4 months prior for a 4 female dorm, we were told there was no availability for us unless we were to stay in a male dorm. They did not offer any form of compensation if we were to stay in that room and were told to go elsewhere. Naturally I fought it now being 12.30am and then was told miraculously that the female dorm had become available. When we got to our room there was another spare bed (so much for being «fully booked out», not sure what was going on. Very unprofessional and suspicious. Staff were rude and not accommodating. Everyone we have spoken to had the same issue when checking in with a reservation.
Don’t even bother with this place, save yourself the money and effort.

I spent there two hours and they told me that they couldnt guarantee the room.
Why? I asked.
They didnt know
Wouldnt recommend this place. Please look for another option if you want to save yourself some trouble.
Totally unhappy

Please read this before booking a bed/​room in this hotel.
We booked 3 beds for 3 nights there and paid them on
a couple of days before getting to this place.
After 6 hours driving from Santa Barbara, we finally reached the destination to be told that no room were available anymore. The receptionist just left us on the street at 11PM without any more explanation and reasons why we couldn’t stay there. Moreover, she even didn’t want to help us calling a hotel to find another room.
If you don’t want to be left on the street the night after booking and paid for a room, I would highly recommend you to book a room in another hostel in SF.

I am absolutely disappointed with this hostel! firstly, the stuff wasn’t friendly all the time. secondly, can you imagine our astonishment when yesterday in our female dorm we saw a guy! And they said that it is fine. We didn’t sleep at all because he came drunk, loud talking and began to snore. And the last thing is that hot water was only at 3 cabins. So all in all it was awful experience and I really do not suggest this hostel. Amsterdam on tailor street is much!!! better!

Worst Hostel I’ve ever stayed so far.
The only good thing:
Great Location (right behind Powell Station)
The bad:
Staff doesn’t know what they are doing: It was over booked, two boys before us got kicked out even with reservation and me and my friends ended up getting rooms totally different from what we reserved without a proper explanation. We reserved a private 4 bed dorm but we ended up getting split into 3 rooms.
Don’t trust their words because they don’t know what they are talking about.
Old building: you can tell by the noise made by people walking around the room, leaking from restroom ceiling and the mold on the walls.
The blanket smells like dog hasn’t been washed for 2 months.
Very damp environment: the smells of mold will stay on your cloths and follow you until you get home.
Think twice before taking a number 2: you might need to deal with it for the following 30 minutes.
A place for you to stay up all night and have fun, people singing Karaōke all night long until 5:00 in the morning. Not a good place for people who wants to get their sleep after a long travel day.

I have not been in many hostels before, but this one is the worst.
I just skip the positive thing (very central) and come straight to the negative’s: my room was in the 6^th floor. The elevator worked the first 2 days (but was about to break down), and actually broke down on the 3^rd day, so I had to walk up the stairs.
The room-​size is ok. The bed was very uncomfortable.
My room had a bathroom, which qas ‘t usuall. But I didn’t really wanted to use it. There was no soap, and the shower was terrible.
I didn’t use the kitchen so I can’t tell anything about it.
The coffee was free and tasted ok.
So, i definitely won’t come here again if I come to SF.

Wow.
I consider myself to be a pretty flexible traveler. I have stayed in hostels all over this and other countries. I have slept in cars, RV sites, camped and done couch surfing. This is easily the worst place I have ever stayed in my life. Yeah, maybe you get what you pay for, but you couldn’t pay me short of $ 1000 a night to stay at this place again.
I find myself short of words when thinking about this lodging experience, but I’ll try to recap some of the highlights of my stay at the San Francisco International Hostel:
When my friend and I checked in, we were given keys to a trashed room. We found a half-​eaten sandwich under the bed, a bottle of pepto bismol by the other and an assorted trash pile in the corner. When we went back to the lobby (that smelled faintly of urine) to ask for a refund and be on our way, the young lady at the front desk said that she would not refund our stay and refused to let us speak to the manager. She did switch us to another room which was much cleaner on the surface, but nothing could mask the underlying grunginess that defines this place.
As bedding, we were given lone flat sheets and a Delta Airlines-​issued blanket (if you can call it that). You could smell people smoking in neighboring rooms and, more amazingly, could hear them having a boisterously good time, which is almost unimaginable in a place like that.
Check out is at 10:00am, but another guest was given a key and allowed to check in to our private room around 8:00am, which was a startling way to be interrupted from getting dressed.
So, it is a terrible, slummy, dirty place, but let’s not neglect to address the neighborhood. During our two day stay, there was a drive-​by shooting a block away (seven people shot, none killed), we witnessed many people smoking crack on the streets of the surround blocks and we felt generally unsafe.
Bottom line: it is cheap, but supporting the terrible business practices, dirty accommodations and dodgy surroundings do not make up for this fact.

This place costs a lot compared to what it has to offer. Everything stinks. The «free breakfast» is pancakes (which you need to cook). There is hair everywhere in the shower. The reception is slow. The elevator takes forever. The bed sheets stink.