Hostel Stay: The Container Hotel
If you have been reading my blog over the past 2 months you know that I lived out the experiencing of staying in a capsule hostel in Cebu City, Philippines. It’s an experience I enjoyed so much that this will likely be my preferred accommodation type for my trip. It’s cheap, you get privacy, but you also get to meet and interact with other travelers and locals. Capsule hostels I’m learning are becoming more and more common and are pretty easy to find.
On my recent trip to George Town, Penang, Malaysia I found “The Container Hotel” and immediately booked my “pod” in a mixed dormitory. The hostel is new and consisted of several rooms with 8-10 beds inside. While there are light colored wood walls on the side, the back of the pod is evidence of an old shipping container. The pod was equip with a light, fan, and power plug. You really get a sense by walking around that this place is really eco friendly.
I had minimal conversations with the staff. They weren’t the friendliest, but they weren’t rude either. On the plus side the wifi was some of the fastest I have had in my trip throughout Asia so far. The mattress was also one of the most comfortable. The bathrooms were nice and constantly cleaned.
There’s not much to say about it, since it really is a no frills hostel. But the staff did give me a toothbrush, water bottle, and towel (you have to return this one to get your deposit back), which is a nice upgrade for those staying in normal hostels.
IPOH
The Container Hotel is actually a chain throughout Malaysia with a couple different locations. I also stayed at their location in Ipoh, just blocks from the train station, and situated next to several cafes. Again the pod was comfortable and served me great.
The dorm room I stayed in was a much larger containing between 30-40 pods. I’m normally turned off by so many people in one room, but because you have a pod, you have privacy, and I really didn’t feel like it was that big.
The staff not the most friendly, but again, not rude. The wi-fi was horrifically slow, but I somehow managed to upload a video to Youtube while I slept.
The biggest feature about the Ipoh location is there is a slide from the second story down to the lobby. While I didn’t take a ride down (although, now as I write this I am regretting that decision), it was certainly a cool aspect.
I also booked my stay in Ipoh directly through the companies website where they had a promotion and I ended up saving 25 % of the lowest price I found on Agoda or Booking.com. I think in the end, it was somewhere around $6.50 USD a night. #STEAL
Would I stay here again? Yes. 4 out of 5 stars.