The floor at The Overstay. All photos by Greg Goodman
A dorm bed at The Overstay in Bangkok currently racks at $0.62 a night on Hostelworld. How bad could it be?
“Please Do Overstay!” exclaims the website for one of the cheapest guest houses we’ve seen in a while. A tour around their site makes this seem like the smartest spot in BKK, a real find for people who are “into exchanging ideas, languages, music, art and love.” The space includes a bar, a music studio, free language classes and nightly dinners. The catch?
It turns out that the dormitory, according to The Overstay site, “has the feel of a hippie refugee camp with mosquito nets and big backpack brought by people from all around the world.” Photos from past guests would suggest that it’s more of a pigsty than anything else.
Turning up at The Overstay could be a shock for anyone booking on hostelworld, who make no mention of the dorm conditions.
Mariaborland6641: “Ended up on the floor of a dirty and windowless cell on an unwashed sheet…lay awake sweating profusely. Also no running water anywhere.” (7/7/09, Hostelworld)
“The cleanest at The Overstay.”
Ariana From Canada: “We did not stay at The Overstay because when we arrived there were only drunk men in the ‘lobby’ if that’s what you would even call it and no reception area to check in… I would not recommend any females to stay there and i really do not think it should even be on hostels.com as the check in counter was a bar and they didn’t even have our reservation when we got there.” (9/13/09, hostels.com)
These two wouldn’t be the first to turn up at a guesthouse that has glossed over some of its flaws. But it also doesn’t sound like a fair shake for these guests, who might have looked at The Overstay’s website and expected to enter “Bangkok’s number one chillout spot”, which they further describe as a “six tiered cake of fun and living.”
The question raised is not a new one. Just how much credence should you give booking sites? What does it mean that The Overstay is listed on Lonely Planet’s site, via a re-run of the Hostelworld review?
The same page suggests that booking with LP gives “expert advice from Lonely Planet authors.” Would Lonely Planet list The Overstay if they sent someone to see it? Or is re-running another site’s review simply enough for them, since they’ll pick up a commission on bookings? Either way, somebody’s daughter is spending the night in a squat.
To be fair, many people seem to dig the bohemian squat space, presumably because they’re sure of what they are getting into. For the right person, The Overstay may be heaven.
Juanluckey writes on The Overstay’s site, “I encourage this place to promote positivity, love, and if you have some creative art talent, that is even better.” TheLostNY describes it as a “diamond in the rough.”
So, we ask. When does spin become mistruth? Do booking sites have the responsibility to do any investigating, beyond what information the hostel provides them? Or does a person expecting clean sheets for $0.62 per night have it coming to them?
The Overstay. Charan Sanit Wong, Number 80-82 next to the Soi 40 in Pinklao, Bangkok. Phone : 028834836
We have since posted a follow up interview with The Overstay’s owner here.
Matador Is Hostel Happy
For a Bangkok hostel of different ilk, check out our review of the badly-named (but nevertheless-blissful) Lub*d. Our ever-popular guide to hostel sex is also out there, waiting for you to take it into a quiet corner. For some completely different crash-space, lend an eyeball to some of the coolest campers around.
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11 Comments... join the discussion!
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You get what you pay for, obviously, but I think LP takes the biggest hit on this.
“Would Lonely Planet list The Overstay if they sent someone to see it?” Surely not.
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Wow.
Remind me not to take any travel advice from Juanluckey.↵ -
what a bizarre find! i am completely repulsed, and yet somehow wildly intrigued. from the pictures here it just looks like a squat house, or a punk house, so the idea that people are being charged to stay in it is flatly absurd, which makes me even more intrigued. i may have to stop by for a drink the next time i’m in bangkok, but as for staying there, i had enough of drunken artist squats in my teens.
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It is not $0.62 to stay, that’s just the booking price, if you turn up it is free, they offer a free language course it says on their website too, I considered going there to save some money but never got round to it in the end, don’t think I’d want to leave my stuff there overnight that’s for sure.
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I love the tent that someone set up, to establish his/her space. I’d never stay in a place like this willingly, but would enjoy reading a few tales from the place. From the comfort of, you know, furniture.
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What I found was kinda interesting was how there was no pictures/reviews in regards to the hostel. I know there are a lot of people who are against planning anything trip, but sometimes it’s a good idea to do a little research before booking a hostel. And I think it’s obvious to go to more than just the booking site, which will more than likely show the accommodation is a favorable light. But to play devil advocate you can’t trust every review good or bad review of some place online. But in any case I have to hope that people who pay 0 to 62cents a night would have an idea of what they’re getting themselves into. I can do hostels, but I don’t think I could do that.
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Hello, i m the founder of the Overstay, I found your site by chance. I would like to take my right to answer after all the bad things you said about the overstay. First off i’d like to say that you obviously didn’t click with the place, and it happens but your whole article is misguidded. Rome wasn’t build in a day and so was not the overstay but you seem to take pleasure in showing only the bad side of the place where are the photos of the paintings, the bar, the chilled roof top, people awake and having a good time ? We have plenty of good toilet and clean showers. One more precision the people that you see sleeping on the floor are couchsurfers that we let stay for free in the house so they can travel longer we do not charge them. We are not a guest house as it says on hostel world we are closer to a squat than anything else (1st line) if you want to travel and see interesting thing don’t come to bitch because it s not what you expected, i hope you ll spend more creative time writing and not bitching
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COMPLETELY OUT-OF-DATE.
When does spin become mistruth?
Maybe when 4 photographs are atleast 8 months old and yet there is no mention of the last time you were actually there letting readers assume it was as recent as when you wrote your review.
Or maybe when out 6 floors/rooftop, tons of rooms, there are only 4 pictures to be had…and 2 of them are of the 3rd floor (which today has been completely remodeled.)
Maybe.
There have been major overhauls since these pictures were taken and those quoted travellers passed by. I wouldn’t expect you to know just how much its evolved because of how long it’s been since you were actually there. This must be noted my friend. (9/18/09) why not give people a heads up on your time-lapse.
Running water- check Clean sheets- check (washer machine available, nice eh?
Reception check ups- check
Free Internet- check Mosquitos- c’mon people, it’s THAILAND! ; )
That toilet- uncheck Occasional crazy cats- umm, can I still say “Duh”?
Cinema room and rooms with fans & visual motifs, huge variety of played music/ themed parties…. oh wait- that’s not mentioned.
http://www.theoverstay.com/ Travellers looking for an alternative to khao san… watch out for this article.
It’s a spin ball (only a matter of it being completely OUT-OF-DATE and posing as something as recent as September- GEESH!)↵ -
Yuval – I’m glad to hear that things are different at The Overstay. I just emailed family@theoverstay.com to see if you’d like to provide new pictures and do an interview about the property.
Santiago – You seem surprised that articles have a shelf life on the internet. It’s comments that keep things up to date, not the original piece. Imagine how much worse things would be if a review to this tune had been published in a guidebook, which aren’t edited again for years in some case.
Tom
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