Mexiqui Zocalo

Athena and Yael at the reception were super nice!

Noisy at night because the hostel has a party. Very very loud, untill 2 at night. Non guest arrived to the party and used the facilities of the hostel while drunk. The stairs to the party smelled like pee. The door man was drunk and left me outside at the middle of the night because he went to party on the roof. You don't get a key to the main door. The toilets were full with vomit and pee on the floor and the cleaning lady arrived only at 10AM. the beds were very uncomfortable.

Fantastic location on city's main square and just to the side of the old cathedral. If you're into local history, it would be hard to find a better location especially for the price. Great views from the front. Spectacular building. I mean, really. Historical. Artistic. Very high ceilings. Custom fixtures, furniture, tiling, appointments, etc. This is a designer hostel but also deeply embedded in the local history, if that makes sense to you. Great-looking bathrooms with hot water(!) for the sinks not just the showers. Comfortable mattresses. Big lockers and a security locker over every bed. Most beds also had reading lights. The security lockers had an outlet. Really nice kitchen. Breakfast included freshly made pancakes by a friendly cook on-site. Unlimited coffee. The staff in general were fine but distant or indifferent. The guy at receptionist who checked me in was like a zombie. He mumbled and never met my eye. He just gave me a key and looked away. I hope he feels better! His colleague however, a friendly, slightly older guy, showed me to my room since the receptionist couldn't be bothered to even point a finger. However, there was a super cool young woman whose name I've forgotten — Ate? Sorry for forgetting! After I complained about the constant noise at night, she moved me into an interior room with less noise and fewer beds — basically an upgrade — and didn't charge me more. I had the room to myself for most of my stay. She also spoke respectable English and shared her cigarettes with me. She's the sort of receptionist every traveler hopes to meet.

EXTREMELY noisy. The Zócalo is right outside the hostel, after all, and there's usually drumming every single day until midnight. But the worst is the weekend disco on the roof and the restaurants next door. Impossible for me to sleep. Thankfully the disco shuts down at midnight but on Sunday the party thumpa-thumpa-ed from about 5pm, still daylight, until a little after midnight. For this reason alone, I would not stay here again, no matter what the deal. The disco catered to very young locals and they were all over the building on the party nights. Since the doors to dorm rooms could be easily forced, security is minimal. These visitors also basically trashed the toilets on the weekend. Speaking of which, all through the week, the men's toilet on the second floor reeked of urine. Like a neglected rest-stop toilet. Too bad, since the bathrooms themselves looked like they belonged in a three-star hotel. I stayed seven nights and no one ever checked my bracelet or asked who I was as I entered the building, although most hadn't seen me before. The custom-made door bunks were three-beds high. Although they didn't shake, I'm old-ish with bad knees and ankles and this made me anxious about slipping and falling on the slick metal rungs. I didn't but a well-trained staff person would have asked me if the top bed was OK. I'm guessing the bottom beds counted as an upgrade because few people occupied them.