BUS Hostel is the partner accommodations for SADcars, the awesome car rental service I used to get around Iceland. I’m not much a hostel person these days, as lately I migrate more towards Airbnb or Couchsurfing when I travel longterm, but I kinda wanted the whole backpacking experience. And it was totally worth it.
Apparently some hostels aren’t all that hostel-y at all. Weird.
The crowd hanging around BUS Hotel Reykjavik was quiet, respectful, friendly, and wonderful. There were no late night drunken party sessions and no loud roommates slamming doors shut at all hours of the day. It WAS the off-season when I visited, but the atmosphere at BUS tends to appeal to a more, er…mature crowd.
That’s not to say they don’t know how to have fun. I think my favourite memory is the evening I was working away at my computer in the common area, and I looked up to see a dozen dancers slinking their way across the floor towards me. I tried not to giggle. They were practicing for a performance in the hostel the following weekend. I loved the camaraderie of it all: the whole gang were strangers until they came together for the love of dance. Even a local Icelander joined in.
The hostel itself is sharply dressed. The rooms are minimally decorated, but the common area was one of the coolest I’ve ever seen: ultra-kitsch, vintage, quirky, and fun. The kind of place with neon pink candlesticks and a working record player.
The hostel itself is located about a 20 minute walk from the city centre. And if the owner ever reads this blog post, high-five Diego for me. He was an incredible host.
Accommodations: Both dorm style and private rooms are available. In the dorms, you have to pay extra for bedding, so save yourself some dough and bring a sleeping bag.
Prices: Between $25CAD and $35CAD for dorms in the off-season, and between $42CAD and $60CAD in the on-season. Private rooms start are $92 off-season and $135CAD on-season.
