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Old Jaffa Hostel and Guest House – reviews, photos

8 Olei Zion St, Jaffa, Israel
Hotel amenities
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38 reviews from our community

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Traveller rating
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Date Rating
Southampton, United Kingdom
1 review
1 helpful vote 1 helpful vote
“Trading on out of date reviews”
2 of 5 stars Reviewed 24 October 2011
1
person found this review helpful

There are some very enthusiastic reviews of this hostel in various travel books. I can only think that no-one from these publications has visited this hostel for many years. It is in a great location and the building is "authentic" but...
It is dirty; the reception staff are not only rude, but incompetent; the communal women's showers are simply disgraceful (shabby, grubby, tiny cubicals, door to landing did not shut properly); the sheets on our bed did not smell clean; the pillows were soiled; breakfast was non existent; the kitchen area on the roof terrrace and the cooking equipment were filthy. The general impression was that the staff/management could not care less about the quality of the guests' stay.
When we arrived for a one night stay we were told that there would be a small breakfast served betwen 8 am and 11 am. In fact, nothing at all was provided and when we left at about 10 a.m, no staff had been in the building since about 7 p.m the previous evening, except a cleaner. We could not find anything to drink from except a mug with no handle. I had asked the receptionist about getting to the airport by bus the following day and was abruptly directed to the notice board which gave information about buses and a train to the airport. Neither the receptionist or the notice gave any indication that this information did not apply to a Saturday which was the day we were leaving. A very disappointing end to our stay in Isreal.

  • Stayed October 2011, travelled as a couple
    • 3 of 5 stars Value
    • 4 of 5 stars Location
    • 2 of 5 stars Sleep Quality
    • 2 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 1 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 1 of 5 stars Service
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Ask intrepidtraveller316 about Old Jaffa Hostel and Guest House
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC
Solihull, UK
Senior Contributor
29 reviews 29 reviews
Reviews in 20 cities Reviews in 20 cities
35 helpful votes 35 helpful votes
“Good budget choice for Jaffa/Tel Aviv”
3 of 5 stars Reviewed 15 August 2011
1
person found this review helpful

Plus points first - the hostel is in a lovely old bulding with lots of interesting features and objects; we found the staff, contrary to some of the comments made here, helpful and professional; the rooftop garden is really nice; the light breakfast is adequate and coffee was available until midday; and the location is very good, right in the heart of Jaffa a two minute walk from the clock tower and a minute or two more to the beach. It felt safe.

On the downside, our rooms were rather cramped - and in the height of summer, one of our two rooms had no external windows and was very airless and stuffy making sleep hard to come by. Dormitories looked rather crowded. There again, you can always sleep on the roof.

Price represented decent value. Recommended to budget travellers.

Stayed August 2011, travelled with family
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Ask 5onholiday about Old Jaffa Hostel and Guest House
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC
Jerusalem, Israel
1 review
“Unique, romantic hostel”
5 of 5 stars Reviewed 17 June 2011

We stayed in a private double room "back to the womb". The hostel was very beautiful and uniquely decorated. It included a rooftop dining and socializing area with a kitchen. The hostel was in a very good location, near the beach, restaurants, and all the attractions in Jaffa. The only bad part of the hostel was the bed. Our double bed was two twins pushed together, and we had no top sheet. We loved the old Jaffa Hostel and would recommend it!

  • Stayed May 2011, travelled as a couple
    • 5 of 5 stars Value
    • 2 of 5 stars Sleep Quality
    • 4 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 4 of 5 stars Service
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Ask likescats about Old Jaffa Hostel and Guest House
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC
St. Petersburg, Russia
2 reviews
Reviews in 2 cities Reviews in 2 cities
1 helpful vote 1 helpful vote
“Good location beats poor service”
3 of 5 stars Reviewed 17 June 2011

I ended up in this hostel by a happy accident, when I was on a derive walk along the coast and suddenly realized I have no place to sleep and the beach is not an option. Luckily, my outdated LP guide strongly recommended this place, and since I'd been to Jaffa before and really loved the area I decided to go for it. Well, it could never come into my mind that a reception may be closed after 6 or 7 pm, but the entrance door was open, and a person staying there told me to go to a place next door and ask a man called Zohar to let me in. Zohar was very surprized I had no reservation, but made a few calls and at last checked me in. And I loved the place so much that I stayed there for 3 nights. many other people I've met at the hostel told me it was their umpf-teenth time staying in Tel Aviv and they prefered to come back to Old Jaffa and preferred it over other hostels, so it's a good sign

Likes: a beautiful roof top with plants, a fountain and many couches (as if straight from a flee market, but I like that) - the place is great for hanging out at night, meeting people, eating together (there's a kitchenette there too). A nice view and you can smell the sea and hear the evening azans from a nearby mosque - that's unforgettable.
-a 10-minutes walk from the beach.

Not-so-likes:
- they provide bed linen, but no towels
-bring ear plugs if you hope to get some sleep. Our dorm windows faced a street bar area, pretty noisy one. And there are no curtains on the windows either.
-one of the staff members, a punky girl, was really nice, showed me a few places of interest on the map by my request and helped me book a bus tour to Haifa.(Btw: if you go with United Tours, then present your passport when you pay, then you're extempt from the VAT - the girl was unaware of that). The older lady who checked me out was pretty boorish. When I told her that maybe I come back in the end of the week and asked if she can book 1 night for me, she answered that when I'm 100% sure then I should call them, in a pretty rude way. So, well, after that I wasn't longing to come back.

Anyways, if I ever happen to return to Tel Aviv, I'd stay at Old Jaffa hostel again. Great location, nice old building, nice atmosphere of Old Jaffa at night... But I was happy I brought my ear plugs along).

  • Stayed May 2011, travelled solo
    • 2 of 5 stars Value
    • 2 of 5 stars Sleep Quality
    • 2 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 2 of 5 stars Service
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Ask Katia_spb about Old Jaffa Hostel and Guest House
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC
Seattle, Washington
2 reviews
Reviews in 2 cities Reviews in 2 cities
3 helpful votes 3 helpful votes
“Extremely Aggressive Staff”
1 of 5 stars Reviewed 16 May 2011
3
people found this review helpful

I stayed in a dorm. The mattress is too thin and it's quite noisy due to the restaurants and bars outside. BUT, my biggest issue is with the staff. 1) Since the rooftop kitchen had no cups, I came down to the reception area's kitchen and asked for a cup. The older male staff member just started yelling at me. Really. Obviously this must have been a major inconvenience for him. 2) During check in, I was told to pay later since the girl working the reception was busy. Later that evening, I went to the reception window to pay for my bunk and the new reception girl accused me of being a cheat for not paying earlier. WTF? I also asked her to repeat her rapid explanation of the "amenities" and she responded with a curt, " you don't understand English?" WTF?
Spend your money elsewhere. Jaffa is an easy walk from Tel Aviv and its numerous hostels. I walked it the next day.

  • Stayed November 2010, travelled solo
    • 1 of 5 stars Value
    • 2 of 5 stars Location
    • 1 of 5 stars Sleep Quality
    • 1 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 2 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 1 of 5 stars Service
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Ask bazaarmind about Old Jaffa Hostel and Guest House
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