Our stay at Coco Beach Hostel in Kuta

Update: This hostel doesn’t seem to exist anymore. Check out these other accommodation options in Kuta.

We arrived in Kuta by plane and had booked a hostel close to the airport, so we were set on walking there. You probably know how it is when you leave the arrival section and enter the lobby of some airports though. Every taxi driver in the city seems to be there, trying to convince you to let them drive you where you need to be. That’s how celebrities must feel when making their way through a swarm of press. We managed to discourage them all, except for one. The guy followed us all the way to the parking, making his case. Eventually we bent, when he said we would have to make a grand detour to get off the grounds of the airport (which did seem to be true in the end). We let him drive us to our home for the next five nights: Coco Beach Hostel ($82.85 in total).

Our room was nice, equipped with an airconditioning system (with remote), a fridge, a television and a private bathroom (without soap dispenser). Only disadvantage was the annoying ticking sound the aircon (constantly) made. The WiFi connection was OK though. Could have been faster, but we’ve had a lot worse!

The staff was friendly; we got a nice welcome (but unfortunately no map). They cleaned our room every day, but when we wanted fresh towels or more toilet paper, we had to ask at the reception. Breakfast was included and decent: two toasts served with some butter and strawberry jam and a plate of fruit (mostly watermelon and one or two pieces of pineapple). Tea, coffee and water are free and available all day.

The hostel not in the backpackers’ area, but it’s close to the airport, close to a quiet part of the beach (5 minutes) and close to Lippo Mall (2 minutes) where there’s a hypermarket. The part of the beach with a lot of tourists, and therefore a lot of surf instructors, is about a 20 minute walk. If you want to stay outside of the hectic part of Kuta but still close enough to be able to walk there, then this might be the place for you.

Overall we were satisfied with our stay at Coco Beach Hostel in Kuta. The room was clean, the staff friendly and the breakfast decent. There were some nice restaurants in the neighborhood as well. After five nights we moved to another hostel that was closer to our surf instructor, but more on that later!