Hostel Wonderous World, Playa Del Carmen, Mexico – Review

Hostel Wonderous World has had some really great reviews on both TripAdvisor and Hostelworld – which is why I stayed there in the first place. However, my experience at Hostel Wonderous World with bed bugs was really horrible and left me with scars on my legs and arms that still haven’t healed. In saying that, I am not totally ruling this place out – hostels go through peaks and ruts, I may just have caught this place in a rut when whoever was in charge of the cleaning wasn’t working very hard. If you do decide to stay at Hostel Wonderous World search thoroughly for bed bugs first.

My only other complaint was that due to the setup there was no place I could just go to meet other guests. I was very lonely at this hostel and very glad to be able to cut my stay short – bed bugs or no.

Due to how little time I ended up spending at this hostel the only photos I got were of the hostel cat – who was lovely!

The Details

• Where: Playa Del Carmen, Mexico
• How Long: 1 Night (booked for 3, left early)
• Number of persons: 1 Female
• Cost: $15 US Dollars per night
• Link: http://wwhostelplayadelcarmen.com/

Location

At the end of the Playa Del Carmen shopping strip – which means it is quieter, if a little scary to walk home to at night as a solo female. It is super close to the more authentic Mexican end of town for some delicious budget friendly meals. If you are walking from the bus station or the ferry it is a VERY long walk and nothing like the short 20 minute walk that Hostel Wonderous World describe in the directions you get upon booking. It took me 40 minutes with my pack on.

Accommodation/Rooms

Room Size: Large with little to no natural lighting.

Comfort: The beds were large and built into the wall in solid structures… in theory very comfortable

Cleanliness: BED BUGS – you may have read recently on my blog about the time I got bed bugs… well that was at this “wonderous” hostel. However, even if you decided to ignore the bed bug factor my room was really dirty and smelly. There were a couple of long-term travellers who had turned the place into their own cess-pit of filth. It also made me feel like an outsider and really isolated.

Noise: It was quiet which was nice

Security: The locks didn’t feel safe and weren’t used on the dorm rooms, mainly only on the main compound gate. I didn’t really feel safe here.

Bathrooms

Size/amount: I only saw one bathroom which was attached to my dorm room. It was large.

Water pressure/temperature: The pressure was a joke and you had to turn the toilet on and off at the main due to a plumbing problem they were currently having fixed. Hostel Wonderous World’s water came from a water tank that was clearly emptying really quickly due to the issues with the toilet, which meant there was pretty much no water for showers.

Useability: As the long-term travellers had moved in their stuff was all over the bathroom making it hard to use and place my own toiletries.

Cleanliness: Hair balls in the drains and chunks of soap dried onto the walls in-between the mould. I felt like the bathroom hadn’t been cleaned properly in months.

Kitchen

Equipment:  I didn’t end up using the kitchen, however some of the other guests cooked up a huge feast that they invited me to. To do this, the kitchen would have been very well stocked on the essentials

Size: A generous sized kitchen though not much room for eating.

Cleanliness: Once again I think the whole place needed a serious scrub and bleach!

Staff

The manager of Hostel Wonderous World  who I met, was very friendly and helpful. He helped me to arrange a tour and showed me some great places to eat. When I ended up being covered in bed bugs he refunded my money and paid for me to have all of my belongings dry cleaned. He also got a fumigator in straight away which made me feel better.

Facilities

Internet: Was patchy and didn’t work too well in the dorms

Tour Desk: The manager was able to get some good rates on tours – I do recommend booking through him instead of the strip if you stay there.

Breakfast: I left for a tour, crying, covered in bed bugs before morning so I don’t know what or if there was a good breakfast.

Extra’s: None that I could discern at Hostel Wonderous World

Note: all thoughts are my own and my accommodation reviews are not sponsored unless otherwise stated.

For other accommodation options in Playa Del Carmen, Mexico see my review on Hostel Rio.