INTERNATIONAL STUDENT CENTER

I stayed here when i was just 18, summer of '96. Amazing to see that it is still there. Cost me $12,50 a night back then :)

Fabulous hostel! We loved our home away from home. Staff were so friendly, everything was super clean and the vibe was great. Plenty of hot water even though it took a while to come through, kitchen was well equiped and lounge area was lovely with TV, games and lots of books. We were on the top floor so there were a few stairs to climb but no drama for us. A bit noisy at times but that is to be expected in a hostel, most travellers were very polite. We stayed for 9 nights and overall thought it was great, especially the price for NYC.

This is by far the worst hostel I have stayed in, and I can only advise you to look elsewhere. I was booked in for ten nights as I had business in NYC but left after two in order to find somewhere less awful.

To begin this review, the hostel is deeply unsanitary: there were two bathrooms on my floor (four rooms). This is by no means adequate and on my first morning in the hostel I had to get dressed in a laundry closet. The bathrooms are falling apart, with decrepit fixtures and frankly disgusting furniture (see pictures). There was no hot water on my three attempts to shower. The staff make the claim that there is, in fact, hot water, and that there isn't hot water is a charming quirk inherent to the building being a historic brownstone – a poor excuse. Judging by the quantity of detritus in my dorm, they are cleaned infrequently if ever.

Second, the rooms are insecure to the point where I felt unsafe. The dorms do not lock, and so anyone who can make it into the building can access any dorm. The only secure place to store valuables, etc. are small and flimsy key lockers, and even then the hostel does not give out keys willingly: I had to argue with the receptionist to get one. Judging by if ever. Beyond the bunks and lockers, the dorms are furnished only with a few items of bric-a-brac in various states of disrepair (my bunk had a broken CD tower that I guess was meant to be a bedside table) meaning that the top bunks do not have access to amenities such as dedicated plug sockets, reading lights, or shelves. For some reason, there is not Wi-Fi on the upper floors, meaning that if you need to look something up then you have a long climb ahead of you.

While the hostel has tried to make the common areas nice, and have succeeded in part, the reception area doubles as a man-cave of sorts for the staff with their XBox and drum kit, and the kitchen in the basement, though new, is ill-equipped.

As I said, I left over a week early. When I told the member of staff on reception that I was leaving and why, he tried to get into an argument that left me feeling more than a little gaslit. Apparently, the bathrooms pictured aren't an issue because it's an old building, but also the only reason I was leaving was because I had to ask for a locker key – and a guest feeling fearful that someone might walk off with their passport, etc., was not an issue for him. Out of politeness I had taken my sheets downstairs in order to check out as per the hostel's request. Apparently this was the wrong thing to do as he then yelled out as I walked down the street, asking me to climb back up to the top floor to deposit my sheets back in the dorm – truly a masterclass in reading the room.

Since leaving, I have received multiple emails from the hostel management, the last of which was 500+ words and cc'd in Hostelworld (through whom I'd booked). Each of these emails has been defensive to the point of passive-aggression, attempting to exculpate the hostel. Apparently, the hostel has decrepit, non-functioning bathrooms, etc., because it is a "historic 1915 brownstone [which] has a lot of classic charm with a few quirks." And apparently I was the one who was at fault as "many concerns were not voiced until your decision to depart early." Bizarre behaviour.

Do not, under any circumstance, book this hostel.

I´m so happy I got to stay at the International Student Center Youth Hostel. Great service, incredibly nice people and ideal location. Will definitely come back.

Was on a budget trip to NYC with my partner and decided to stay here— I’m so glad we did! It was our home away from home. The staff were friendly, the street was quiet, and the overall location was superb. Would stay again!