Hostal El Cielo - 68000 Oaxaca de Juárez

Ive been traveling through México for over a year now and this hostel by far Is my favourite out of every hostel ive been too. This place feels like home. The staff members aré all so pleasant. The vibes here aré absolute mágic. Everytime i come to Oaxaca city i end up at this beautiful place. I always recomend my friends to stay here and they tell me that this hostel Is their favourite. I have returned múltiple Times to el cielo. The pool here Is clean and fantástic. The kitchen Is clean and welcoming. The rooms aré comfortable with curtains and lockers. An absolute gem. If youre looking for a home away from home this Is the place to be.

The price for a private room was very good and its right in the centre. (Room near the street is pretty noisy, wear earpluggs and the bed is not that good) There was a bit of a stoner vibe we were not so into and (beside nice backpackers) also weird old people ??

We wanted to go to the bar in the pool area, and hang out there for a couple of hours with some friends who are staying in there. We ring the doorbell and the staff opened and let us go in. After a couple of hours we were about to leave, and at the exit, apparently the owner of the hostel, told us that we had to pay 100 MXN each!!!! The reason was that we were not staying in the hostel and we were using the facilities. We said that they should tell us this when we went in, and then we could decide if we want to go in or not. But she said that we had to pay and if we don’t pay she will reduce the amount to the salary of the receptionist to let us go in ?? She was so rude and really unkind with the receptionist who was also there. We felt a bit cheated, cause going into a hostel to hang out with friends (who we’re staying there) is a normal practice, they didn’t tell us anything about the price, and when we were leaving the owner put us in a really uncomfortable situation saying that she will reduce the money from the receptionist salary.

Great Location and helpful Staff. Unfortunately the dorms are super crowded u cant even properly put you backpack away. My mattress was also really uncomfortable. Also it was really loud at night an staff couldnt care less of keeping it down.

Pros: -heated pool is fun -bar is decently priced & convenient -cool little garden -a few of the staff (the locals) were nice and friendly Cons: -my room was dirty upon arrival. There were hairs in the shower and hair trimmings on the sink. -I got the room w/2 beds. One of them felt like something was broken? Good thing I only needed one since I was by myself. -Some of the staff looked and acted like they’d rather be anywhere else. -Had problems paying with card here & had to pay cash (they’ve worked everywhere else & haven’t had any problems using them at other places) -Not good for remote working. No desk in room and the communal areas didn’t have enough outlets to charge. -Terrace looks nowhere near as nice as it does in the photos Overall: had a few pros but I wouldn’t stay here again. General sidenote: Don’t bother booking through Hostelworld: the up-charge is ridiculous. For the same price I ended up paying per night here, I could’ve booked a much nicer room elsewhere.

This hostel was one of the worst I ever stayed in! It was cold at night, rather dirty and smelled like urine all the time, the showers were freezing cold and always full of hair and shared men and women. I was in a four bed "dorm" that was so cramped, we could not all stand up together at the same time (especially not with our backpacks!). There was only one electric socket for all of us, and the noise of the doorbell kept waking all of us up at night. there was also a safe storage box built into my bed near my feet!!! so at night the sharp edges kept scraping my legs!! I spoke to the staff but got no reply other than if I left I would not get my money back. it was so bad that I did leave even though I had already paid. Also, the WiFi rarely worked :( if you want a decent hostel in Oaxaca centre, go to Paulina Youth hostel, cheaper and way better, its clean and has great WiFi and free breakfast too. Plus plenty of space in the rooms.

I had an amazing stay in El Cielo. Our original plan was staying only for 2 nights but me and my friends ended up staying for 7 days. Very friendly staff,especially manager Dayana went beyond and above to make sure we have a nice stay. Rooms were cozy and clean. Beautiful swimming pool along with table tenis and darts was nice addition to our stay. I would highly recommend everyone to stay here!!

Incredibly helpful, warm staff. Very responsive. The rooms were comfortable and clean and the overall vibe was fun but not too crazy. Dayana was especially helpful and had a wealth of information and advice about things to do in both the city and around the state of Oaxaca!