Another hostel review! One of my goals is to start creating a resource of accommodation reviews here on Away With Maja. I love hostels and always prefer to stay in them during trips. Here’s my review of Revolucion Hostel in Minsk, Belarus!

Location: Revolucion Hostel has a great location right in Minsk’s city center. It was within walking distance to almost everything, and about a 20-minute walk from the train/bus stations. It was also very close to all the bars (including my favorite, El Pushka!) on Zybickaja street and the river. The neighborhood felt safe and was a great base for exploring the city.

Room: We stayed in a double bed private room at Revolucion Hostel. The room was quite nice, it had air conditioning as well as a TV and a mini fridge. It was simple but comfortable. My only comment is that the blankets were two single-bed blankets, instead of a large double size blanket.

Price: The room was an excellent value for the price. The private double room cost 61 rubles (BYN) per night (~£25 // $32). As this was split between two of us, it meant we were spending less than £13/$16 per night, for our own room! There are plenty of dorm rooms (12-bed to 4-bed) that range from 16 rubles (BYN) (~£6.50 // $8.30) to 20 rubles (BYN) (~£8 // $10.50) per night.

Bathrooms: The bathrooms at Revolucion Hostel were cleaned regularly, during the afternoon every day. I didn’t really like that the way the showers were set up meant there was no where to change privately besides the shower. Also, apparently the men’s bathrooms only had one stall with a toilet in it, so there was a bit of a wait at times. Besides that I have no other complaints at all!

Staff: Staff members were helpful with offering information and helping us sort bus times to the airport. The hostel was pretty quiet, so to be honest I didn’t spend much time with the staff. The people I spoke with were all nice, and all spoke great English!

Common Areas: The kitchen was very small, and didn’t have an oven. The stove was just a plug-in hob, and cooking things took quite a long time. However, there was a big fridge and there were plenty of dishes for whatever you’d like to cook. The common room was nice and had plenty of seating, including really cozy beanbag chairs. There was also an outdoor terrace that was really nice as well.

Amenities: While the wifi worked really well in the common room, but in our actual room it was really slow and barely worked. This was a bit of a downside, but not a huge issue in the grand scheme of things. While I didn’t need it (as I was visiting Belarus visa-free for 5 days), I believe they also do visa invitations/visa support if you need it. One of the best things about Revolucion Hostel was that they had free bottled water! There was a large jug for guests to help themselves. In a country where you really shouldn’t drink the tap water, this was a huge bonus. I definitely wish more hostels I’d stayed at had done this.

Security: There were regular keys for the rooms, and I believe there was 24/7 reception. There wasn’t any kind of security that was used for the front door, but again I think staff were at the front desk to see who goes in/out. Our private room had a small safe, but I didn’t feel like I needed to use it. There were lockers in the dorm rooms, and just in general I felt quite safe here.

Verdict: Would I return? Yes. Revolucion Hostel is a really nice place, in a great location. The price is excellent and a real bargain for what you get. While there wasn’t much of a social atmosphere (most people there were Russian-speakers, and many seemed to be living there), I thought it was a really good base for exploring Minsk. I would definitely come back here, and I definitely recommend it to any budget travelers visiting Minsk. You can visit their official website here.

What things do you look for in a hostel? Where do you prefer to stay when you travel?

I was not compensated in any way by this hostel—my opinions are always my own.