I stayed here with a friend (we are both 21) for a week in early September. We had a private twin room. Although the rooms are not supposed to be lockable by guests, the manager gave us the key because we were a single party in there. This made me feel very secure, although I later became sure that the hostel itself was a very safe place and our belongings would have been safe anyway. The building itself is beautiful.

The bedroom had no window, which was a drawback as it was very small and felt like a cave. But who goes to a hostel and spends lots of time in their room anyway? The bed linen was clean, but I recommend bringing an extra pillow or two as they are about an inch thick. There was no mirror in our room which made blow-drying our hair awkward.

The girls bathrooms are adequate, there are aprox. 5 toilets and three showers (two of which have no temperature control so you have to toggle between freezing and scalding), and a bank of sinks and mirrors. They were basically clean enough.

In the kitchen, there is masses of shared dishes etc, space in teh fridge and all the cooking equipment I could want. There is a big dining room table. The courtyard is where you will have a chance to meet lots of people, there are sofas and chairs under a covered area, washing lines to dry your beach towels and a dilapidated looking barbecue. There is also a surfboard store.

The advertised 'chill out room' and the laundry facilities are only for people staying longer than 2 weeks (longtermers), they also get their own fridge and dorms. However there is a laundrette about 3 buildings away.

Upstairs, there is a massive lounge with pool table that no one seems to use, ping pong, a telly, large video library and lots of sofas and armchairs. It all has the feel of a boarding school common room, and doesn't feel disgustingly dirty (although maybe a little grubby). The bar is never open, I don't think they use it and I suspect it doesn't have an alcohol licence anyway.

The staff are all very friendly and helpful, and there is a lovely dog who belongs to the deputy manager - a big wolf-type dog - who is friendly and well behaved. However, this would have been a drawback if we had been allergic or scared of dogs as they didn't mention it to us before. To access the building, you need a code for the front door (which changes regularly, and then you have to cross a covered bridge over the courtyard and go past reception. It all seems very secure.

The location is perfect - 2 mins from Fore St and the harbour, 5 from the train station and right next door to a Chinese, a chippie, several pubs and the cinema. On Thursday mornings, they hold a farmers market in the building next door.

I would definitely stay again!

I really enjoyed my stay at Backpackers in St Ives!!
The hostel has great facilities and really friendly and helpful staff! It has a relaxed vibe and you really feel at home! :)
Its the perfect place to stay in St Ives. Excellent location- just a short walk to the beach and in the centre of town.

I stayed at the backpackers when I came to scout out a place to live and work in st.ives. The staff we're very friendly and the place had a really relaxed atmosphere. They were finishing off some renevations to the building so it was looking fresh and clean. It was a bit cold sometimes, but being such a big building it must be hard to keep warm. The hostel dog was loads of fun! It'll be an amazing place in the summer, right in the centre of town and really close to great pubs and beachs. Will be back for sure!

Me and my wife traveled from Bristol to Lands end and decided to stop in st ives after seeing it on the tv show called coast . we decided to stay at the st ives backbackers as money was tight , Upon entering the hostel we were greeted and then shown to are room . The hostel was nice and claen with some lovely people their althoigh a little cold at night we had a great time , thanks st ives