Che Tulum Hostel & Bar | Tulum, Mexico

I booked myself a birthday trip this year and after weighing down all my options, Mexico seemed to be the perfect fit for the kind of experience I was in the mood for. So, on the 7^th of February I set off to Tulum which, in my opinion, is the best city to go if you want to go to Mexico, judging from the research I have done and the experience I personally had in Tulum.

For the 3^rd time now, I stayed in a hostel and if I am being honest, staying in a hostel is the best way to travel – alone, with friends or even with a partner if you are down for a funny trip. With that said, it was without a doubt that I was going to stay in a hostel in Tulum and there were so many to choose from but the moment I saw Che Tulum Hostel & Bar, I knew I had found the one and I was not wrong.

I was there with a friend and we checked in pretty late because we arrived in Cancun late and had to take the bus to Tulum. The hostel wasn’t so far from the bus station so we dragged our suitcases all the way there and as we were getting closer and closer to the hostel, all we could hear was just music. It was the loudest place around but for some odd reason that re-energized us when we realized that we really booked to stay at a hostel-bar.

The checking in process is fairly quick and easy and when you arrive you get a complimentary drink at the bar and my friend and I couldn’t pass up that opportunity or leave it to the next day, we dropped my bags in the room we were assigned to and headed back downstairs to party with the rest of them. There are parties every night at the hostel except for Sunday (and I was a little bummed about that because that was my actual birthday) and what also makes the games fun are the ‘Spin the wheel’ games. I had to do a body shot and strip on the bar on 2 nights – watch video. The parties end at 1-1.30 am so if you are not good at falling asleep with loud music playing like right outside your door, you might not have the best time here.

The staff who work at the desk, bar, kitchen and organize tours are the friendliest people you will ever come across, they are there to help and they prioritize making your trip everything you ever wanted. The cleaning staff keeps to themselves and pretty much do not want to be bothered but they are also friendly.

The room that we got was an 8-bed female dorm. Sleeping on the top bunk bed is an extreme sport, every time I went up or down felt like a suicide attempt but the good thing is that the bed was comfortable. The room had an air-conditioner and a fan but we mainly used the fan which kept the room cool during the day and night. Downstairs, right by the bar, there’s a swimming pool, which honestly isn’t much of a swimming pool because it was tiny and shallow but it is a nice feature to have because it’s refreshing and relaxing.

Every day at the hostel, they have something happening, there are tours to go to the cenotes and the ancient ruins, there is a breakfast buffet every morning which is not included but it’s only 80 pesos per morning and they have different dinners every night too. There are also bicycles to rent on the property so you do not have to walk around looking for them and you can get them for 150 pesos for a day. There is an ATM and drink vending machine too by the common kitchen area. The hostel in right in the city center so you are surrounded by good restaurants, shops and public transportation.

The downside of this accommodation is that the Wi-Fi was so bad. It was either not working or taking too long to load and this was frustrating but at least Verizon (USA network) worked just fine so I was kind of covered but I still needed Wi-Fi. Another downside was the bathroom of the room I was in. It was sort of a bummer because one day the shower water is nice and hot, the next it’s freezing cold and the next there’s no water at all. There would always be a puddle of water on the floor because the toilet was leaking from the back and there was no possible way to open the sink tap and let the water run.

Besides those two let-downs this hostel completely beat my expectations, yes I had high expectations but didn’t expect them to actually defeat what I had in mind. If you haven’t yet blessed yourself with the experience of staying in a hostel, Che Tulum is the perfect place to start. But don’t take my word for it, check it out yourself and come back to thank me later.