Hostels w: Pest, Hungary

I stayed at Marco Polo Hostel for one week after reading many positive reviews. Here’s my honest take: 📍 Location (10/10): The location is perfect—right in the city center. It’s just a 5–8 minute walk from both Metro 2 (where the hostel is) and Metro 3 / Deak Ferenc Ter (for the 100E airport bus). Couldn’t ask for better. 👋 First Impression & Check-in: I arrived early at 9 AM on Christmas Day (Dec 25), well before the 2 PM check-in. A friendly staff member (chubby, helpful) allowed me to leave my luggage in the storage room—a very kind gesture that started my stay on a positive note. When I returned to check in, there was a small confusion about my booking (I accidentally booked for 2 people in a 12-bed dorm instead of 1), but the staff handled it calmly and professionally. They also helped sort out a postal code issue for my Hong Kong details—thank you! 🛏 Room & Sleep: I was assigned beds 3 & 4 in a 2nd-floor dorm. The bunk beds are subdivided, offering decent privacy. Noise was minimal—maybe 10–15 minutes of understandable movement here and there, but nothing disruptive. Most guests were European ( students, southeast Asians and Europeans) staying short-term. Male and female dorms are separate. 🚿 Bathrooms & Facilities: All showers worked perfectly—good hot/cold water. Remember to bring your own towel and toiletries. As a backpacker, I was prepared, but it’s worth noting. 🍞 Breakfast: Available for 3200 HUF. Simple but satisfying—fresh, hand-made bread was delicious. I’ve never eaten so much bread in my life, and I mean that in a good way! 💧 Water & Extras: Bottled water is available for 500 HUF. The friendly slim staff even gave me a discount when I bought five bottles. Tap water in Hungary is drinkable, so you can refill if you prefer. I also appreciated the staff’s fluency in English—communication was never an issue. 🔑 Small Issues Handled Well: Once I locked myself out of my room, and they promptly lent me a spare key. My key card occasionally failed, but they fixed it in under a minute. The team is flexible and quick to help. ❤ Nice Touch: During check-in, the staff introduced a charity donation for kids in Hungary. I donated for the first time here—felt good to contribute. 📌 Final Tips: Read the house rules posted near the counter. Bring your own toiletries and towel. The hostel is well-run, clean, and staffed by helpful, English-speaking professionals. ✅ Overall: Great value for money, excellent location, and genuinely helpful staff. I’d happily stay again and recommend it to fellow travelers. I will definitely come back here for my solo travel!

I had a great stay. The staff is very friendly and check-in is quick. Rooms & bathrooms are very clean. Housekeeping is doing a good job. The internet speed is very satisfying. I enjoy the kitchen, which offers plenty of space, well equipped and it even has an oven. I stayed there several times and like it very much. Location is also great, very central and you have all you need just nearby (supermarket, restaurants, snacks/fast-food...) There could be some more activities initiated by the hostel to get people connected. Like cooking, boardgame night, etc...There is a WhatsApp Group, but at the moment I joined the group there were no activities/ chats in the 5 days I've been there.

Very chaotic and confusing check-in process. Arrived before check-in and got registered, just needed to get my key at check-in time. So far so good. At check-in time I am directed to an iPad terminal to register with with my name and my booking number from the accommodation, not then one on the booking portal, which I've no clue which it is. After me struggling to look-up this number out of countless CRM-emails I received from the Hostel the friendly staff member, looked up my name in the guest list, went back to the receptionist desk to check my check-in amd got my key card to my room. Arrived in the room it didn't matched with the category and pictures I booked. Went back down to the reception, who fixed it. All this took a lot of time and not to mention all the Welcoming and Info-e-mails you receive from Maverick's at any occasion of the ”customer journey” process. To the management and marketing folks there: Keep your check-in process simple. Your visitors are offered to pre-check-in online or at an iPad terminal in the lobby, just to end up queuing again at the reception to identify yourself again, pay the tourist tax or get their key card. It's nonsense. Have a vending machine spitting out the keycard for those cases. Just keep the regular check-in process as anywhere else directly at the reception with showing your passport etc... Stop these insane amount of email at every step of the customer journey, no-one needs this ot also makes it difficult to find one's relevant booking information. Let's come to the positive part. Staff is friendly and helpful. My room was very nice, clean and comfortable, it was a good deal to. Good internet. The kitchen is great, well equipped and a nice place to connect with people. Free coffee and tea, also a water dispenser in the lobby - great! There are many free activities organized by the hostel, we had a wine tasting for free and it was nice to talk to other guest there. Location is central, where you'll find all you need, even mini marts open 24/7. Free locker before and after check-in.

Each bed in the dorm is equipped with a fan and central air conditioning, making it very cool in the summer. The bathroom is clean and odor-free, and the facilities are well-maintained. The location is also easy to find, with several restaurants downstairs for convenient dining. It's only a few minutes' walk to the airport shuttle bus stop, which is great for catching early morning flights.

This is the best hostel I've ever stayed in! It's clean, tidy, has a self-service kitchen, and excellent hygiene, having been renovated a few years ago. The location is superb, right next to the central market and several large supermarkets. The front desk staff are warm and friendly, and I'm truly satisfied – it really enhanced my European trip. My daughter also loved it; there's a huge common area where she could play games without bothering anyone. When she got tired, she'd just crash on a beanbag and fall right asleep 💤. Highly recommend! Especially the six-person female dorms; they're very spacious and come with their own private toilet and shower. And the oversized key card from reception is super cute! 😄😄😄

When I booked this hostel, there weren't many photos or reviews to go by, so I decided to write a detailed one this time, complete with lots of pictures! First off, the hostel's location is truly excellent. It's very close to both the light rail and the subway. Downstairs, there's a McDonald's and a Starbucks, and a supermarket is just a short walk away. The room layout is really cool, almost like a loft. All beds have curtains, so privacy is excellent. There's actually a kitchen right in the room! It's fully equipped with pots, pans, a microwave, a fridge, and an induction cooktop. There's one shower room and one toilet. The room offers plenty of storage space. Each bed has a standard power outlet and a night light. There are also a table and chairs in the room. While it's quite basic, it has everything you need. The color scheme always gives me a cozy, grandma's house kind of vibe. Breakfast is provided, usually from 7 AM to 11 AM. I think the timing is very flexible, so both early risers and late sleepers can enjoy it. I personally found the breakfast quite good, with tea, coffee, juice, milk, and some bread, vegetables, and hard-boiled eggs. You can store your luggage, and a €5 cash deposit is required at check-in. The bathroom has a hairdryer, and 2-in-1 shower gel/shampoo is also provided.

This is a chain hotel with a consistent style, suitable for all ages. We were allowed to check in before 2 PM, which was a nice touch. Our room was on the top floor and the window could be adjusted for ventilation. There's a restaurant, and I saw a buffet in the evening. The front desk staff were very welcoming.

The location is very good and convenient. There are many restaurants, fast food and Lidl is just round the corner. Metro and bus stops are in front of the hostel. On the contrary to the good things, the hostel doesn't provide any toiletries. Not even a small piece of soap. The most inconvenient is that the bathroom is outside the room, and there's only one toilet! When checkout, the visitor has to clear the bedsheet and bring it down to the reception. With all the pros and cons, it really depends on what one needs. If it's just to have a place for a short stay, it's not bad at all.

Cons: Not so great initially - strong smell on the room, noise on the street but sorted out quickly. Thanks to prompt action by the management. In most of my stay, floor on the shared bathroom is always wet and no proper ventilation. Lockers are outside the bedrooms so it’s worth having a spare bag for some essential items that you need to keep next to you. Duvet slightly short for tall person. My roommate’s bed was creaking loudly even with simple movement. Pros: Near bus stop and metro station. Near to the popular thermal bath - Széchenyi, and tourist spots Heroes’ Square. Accommodating reception. Things to improve: Proper ventilation and floor rug in the bathroom. Long duvet, cleaner bedsheets and duvet cover and pillow. Overall: If you stay most of the time outside and it’s okay. Main gate always open, occupants got a key for main door but most of time it’s also open. I guess for the price, you get what you paid for.

I stayed for two nights, but the prices are three times more expensive than usual, because of the Championship. This hostel has okay facilities and the staff are nice, but no blankets/ towel/ shampoo, so you shoudl come prepared. Many supermarkets nearby is also a good point.