ITH Zoo Hostel

Ill have to say this is hands down the best hostel experience ive had. Since checking in, both Rachel and Julia make you feel welcomed and you can feel the positive enviroment. The rest of the staff is awesome and friendly. I loved how they had various activities throughout the week to choose from. Lastly, ive got to say how much i appreciated the ITH meals! You can def see staff makes an effort with their meal ideas. I personally appreciated that as a traveler away from home! Overall i had an amazing experience and would totally recommend anyone to stay ! Not to mention the amazing and diverse amount of people you get to meet!

I’m not sure where I want to start. I was here from July until December. It was the worst experience I have ever had. This is not a place of business, it is however it was run like a frat house. They claim there are quiet hours. That is not existent. People talking in the halls drunk out of their minds. They were drinking 7 days a week. This place also has a atmosphere of condoning the sale and use of various illicit drugs such as marijuana, cocaine and Molly. The residents, if you want to call them that, are rude, clicky, and are never going to be your friends ever. Also, this place condones the unwritten consent of others to have sex in their rooms while they are sleeping. This behavior is uncalled for. There is never a manager available. There are two: Julia and Rachel. I have seen them rarely in the course of 6 months. I have had nothing but problems. They also have a policy of putting males and females in the same rooms. As a rising professional, I think that it is highly inappropriate and I would have no recourse if something were to happen. This issue was addressed to the managers and they did not respect my wishes. The other resident was there for 2 weeks. This frat house also condones under-​age drinking. Several people who are 18 – 20 have been provided alcohol by the managers and other staff and residents on more than 20 occasions. The hostel purchases the alcohol and distributes to under-​aged individuals. This practice is highly illegal and feel this place is on the verge of a major lawsuit if it doesn’t stop. 1 star is being generous.

This hostel is such a great place to stay. Everyone here is super chill, especially the managers Julia & Rachel :) including the other visitors. There are so many free trips to sign up for, free breakfasts and dinner, really nice staff, and very clean rooms. I would definitely recommend staying here. The surrounding area is beautiful, as well. Countless places to eat and drink nearby. I had a great time!

This was my first hostel experience, and I loved it. The place is so pretty, with wonderful, positive paintings on the walls. The people are friendly, but also are very respectful of your space. It was clean, the food was good, and I felt very comfortable at the Zoo hostel. Thank you for providing a great place for me to stay while in San Diego!

I stayed here from June 24−28^th. It was my first time staying at a hostel, and it was one of the best experiences I’ve had. Everyone from management t volunteers there are very polite and helpful and just good people to be around. Everyone there including guests/​students were also very friendly and chill. This is a very clean and organized hostel. Great facilities and free activities/​trips which is a plus. Located in a nice area, not too far from the beach and very close to the San Diego zoo. I would definitely go back, and even want to volunteer there.
Thanks for this experience
Brendan

This place is dope. They have a sweet common room complete with a pool table, kitchen, and couches for lounging. They even let me set up my ps4 to play fifa! The staff is super cool and the activities are consistently solid. A must stay if you’re rollin through San Diaaaago!

This was the first hostel I’ve ever been to and it turned out to be the best traveling experience ever! Julia & Rachel are the chillest managers I’ve ever met, the volunteer staff are good people, and everyone is clearly dedicated to making it an enjoyable environment for their guests. During the day, they coordinate daily adventures and provide free home-​cooked dinners which they participate in just like everyone else and yet they somehow still manage to make sure bedrooms/​bathrooms/​social rooms are clean at all times. It can’t get much better than that so I would totally recommend any young, fun-​loving traveler to stay the ITH Zoo location.

Rachel, Julia, and the rest of the ITH Zoo Hostel staff made my stay incredibly pleasant. They are very knowledgeable of the area, take groups on daily and nightly adventures, and are just very friendly people. I stayed for 10 weeks as a student while on an internship at a nearby hospital. The ITH Zoo Hostel was the perfect place to stay and the rent was extremely reasonable for the San Diego area. The staff is so incredible: I forgot some things when I moved out and they mailed it all back to me! Would definitely recommend staying here if you will be in the area!

This is the first hostel that I stayed in the U.S. and I had such an awesome time here. All the guests and the staff were very nice. Everyone always had a smile on their face and I easily made friends with my roommates and other guests there as well. The daily activities were definitely worthwhile and I got to interact with travelers from all over the world. The free breakfast and dinner was also great.

The zoo was my second hostel that i have stayed in and it was amazing, everyone was kind and accepting and the place was clean and tidy as the pictures show. the hostel even gives you free meals as some charge but this was included, thanks zoo hostel for a nice evening and wish you had more openings for tonight lol

Super-​friendly staff, good people, and very welcoming environment. Parking was a nightmare, but everything is withing walking distance thereafter. One of the employees took everyone out surfboarding which was a blast. Of the two hostels I stayed at in San Diego, I would very highly recommend this one!!!

One of the best hostels I’ve ever been to! Really decent prices, free (and delicious) home-​cooked breakfasts and dinners almost every night, free activites including a trip on their sailboat, pub crawls around town and down to TJ, and just a really great vibe — everyone who works there is so welcomig and makes you feel like part of the family. You will never want to leave this wonderful hostel!

This was my 3^rd hostel in San Diego and I wished it had been my 1^st!
It’s my favorite hostel of ALL-​TIME!!! and I had my fair share of them while in AU. This is the ONLY place in SD to stay IF u can get a room.
Rooms were clean. Layout felt very dorm-​like since most of the people in there were students but It was never noisy or crowded.
They go above and beyond any hostel in terms of making sure you see and enjoy SD. There’s an outing everyday!!! I had such a blast… went to a clay shooting range, pacific beach to surf, bar for taco tuesday while I was there! Meg the mgr is such a sweetheart! They cook U breakfast and dinner most days. I had the pleasure of eating Rachel’s bombdiggity «take over the world» eggs!!! So Delicious! Entire staff/​volunteers were super nice & friendly. It truly felt like Cheers bar where everyone knew your name!!!
I coulda crashed at my friends crib downtown but I knew I had to check out this AMAZING hostel b4 I left San Diego and I’m So glad I did! ITH Zoo ROCKS!!!

Best place I’ve ever stayed. Moved to San Diego not knowing anyone, left knowing tons of quality people, went out experienced San Diego in so many different ways, and had an overall great time. I don’t think there is anything to dislike about this hostel; I stayed at another hostel before this one that was terrible compared to this one. Everything here was done professionally, done right, and done to make the people staying here enjoy every second.

Stayed here because I was attending a conference with little funding. It is in a very convenient location, with lots to do. Overall, the hostel was very clean, but it was a bit noisy. I did like that they had a library room for working, Parking situation is ok if you intend to leave early in the morning, which was the case for me. The staff was also incredibly friendly.

Now I found the perfect excuse to give to all those third degree cousins who want to come for a full catered visit to San Diego… go to this International Travelers House in Hillcrest! Fun, young people eager to learn English await for you! I found this place last night because it was just next door to Jake’s on 6^th. My friend Cecilia and I were curious about this hostel around this area, as we have never seen one. She has been in many hostels in her Mexico and myself in so many others in Europe as well, and this one is just ok as compared with the others I have seen. I found very interesting that we entered there like if we were guests or friends of someone and no questions asked… after a while of taking pics and enjoying spontaneous conversations with young girls from my country. They were all excited because they paid 600 euros for a month and they go to English school. It seems like a great deal. I met other 2 girls from Barcelona, smoking at the entrance (they don’t know how California is so strict with smokers yet, i would say!) and they were volunteers who work for 4 hours a day doing all types of chores, from bathroom cleaning to cooking, and they don’t get paid but don’t have to pay either. And then they hang around town and the beaches taking buses. This is a big deal if you come from Europe: bus system in San Diego sucks. It is difficult to find ‘normal people’ in the buses like everywhere else in the world, and I am sorry to say that can be very disappointing. Besides this city is very spread out and you need a car or know very well all the buses combinations and have the patience to go in 2 hours from point A to point B. That said. the hostel itself is funnily decorated, bright colors, The whole thing screams I am young and I want to enjoy life. Well, the bathrooms smells bad, more bleach would not hurt.

I was hesitating to give this place 2 stars (because, as Unilocal suggests, «I’ve experienced better»). But since this is a new place, I guess the guys need some time to get things right.
Ok, first thing, you should know that the age average here is very, very, VERY low. Probably mid-​20s. For good and for bad. For bad and for good. Whatever suits you.
On the plus side were price (very affordable) and amazing location, given the fact that it was SD Pride and celebrations were all around. Parking in the area was relatively easy to find.
My room did not look half as good as the one in the picture. The bedroom was an old student room, where all they have done is take out all furniture and replace them with berths. Literally. There is one wall wardrobe (please get some hangers… only 1 available), one desk (it’s one of these ones integrated onto the wall), and a small table with two stools. Also (sorry guys, I need to say it), I found a roach in the wardrobe… from that moment on I was wary of leaving anything on the floor.
There are no lockers in the rooms, but there are some small ones on the corridors. No such things as individual lights, A/​C power or similar for each bed as it seems to be increasingly common in other hostels. Shame, for this kind of things are what makes a difference between «OK» and «great».
The common areas were reasonably clean, but messy.
What I found unacceptable is the meals issue: we read, when booking, that breakfast and dinner were included in the price. But the reality is, only on a «first comes first gets served», and food is VERY scarce. All I got in 2 full days here was some white rice. This is not acceptable. Either don’t advertise the food, or make sure that everyone gets some if they come during the hours that you guys announce as «eating hours».
Service was friendly. A bit unorganized maybe. But I guess it will get better once they get more experience.
Another thing that bothered me was that we had to pay 2 dollars for towels. I’d prefer if they just charged that within the booking price.
I would come here again if I were a budget-​traveler and wanted to stay in the neighborhood. But I hope that by then a few improvements would have been made.

If you are looking for a One of a Kind culturally diverse communal living experience in San Diego, this is the place for you!
International Students, Young Professionals, well traveled adventurers and artists have come together to reside at the new happenin’ Hillcrest pad.
The staff are awesome! Bobby, Eric and Jimmy run such a hospitable humble abode.
Volunteers also pitch in around here to make sure things run smooth… everything from cleaning bathrooms and common areas to painting murals and fixing things. many people join together to pitch in and help to provide a nice environment for residents.
Got Amenities? This place has a great number of added perks that are included in room and board costs such as:
— Free Meals … not only are they included, but are occasionally prepared by an experienced Italian chef most nights. (Luca and Ursela are amazing!)
— Wifi
— Bike Storage
— Social Outings and Activities
— Cable tv
— Mini fridges
— Pool table and commons area where people come together to eat, socialize and have fun
I think they are in the process of offering even more, but from where I’m standing, this isn’t a bad start at all.
Location, Location, Location! — This hostel is centrally located on 6^th Ave between Pennsylvania and Robinson in Hillcrest. Lots of local spots and attractions nearby that are fun and within walking distance which is a big plus.
I’ve met some pretty amazing people from all over the world through this place, and I am so glad that I found such a unique place to call home.