This is a review of the Spoton Hostel and Sportsbar in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Accommodation type: Hostel
Accommodation has the feel of a hostel, hotel, or somewhere in between:
Hostel
This review is based on an expectation of:
Shared rooms with basic or medium-level facilities, and hostel service (optional breakfast, otherwise self-catered, no room service).
Approximate price per night at the time of publication:
£20 for one adult in a dormitory room, or twin rooms cost £40-50 for one night. Larger, pricier rooms are also available for families or groups.
Adventures, Planned Stars:
| Rooms | Bathrooms | Kitchens | Staff | Location | Food | Social |
| ** | **** | **** | **** | ***** | **** | **** |
Total: ****
The low-down
Rooms: 2 stars
Not the best I’ve been in of late.
++ Beds are comfy, rooms are clean and there are good lockers.
++ Noise isolation protects your room from the noise of other rooms and the outside.
— The standards of other hostels are what I’m comparing this to. There are no curtains on the beds, no windows, and I struggled to get my phone to charge with the extension cable by my bed. This might have been the brand new European plug I had just bought, but I’m tempted to think it was the socket/extension cable. My phone charged with no issues via my battery pack.
— Like in most hostels, I’d suggest having a jumper or an extra blanket to protect you from the air-conditioning. Rooms tend to be slightly chilly.
Still worth it? It’s still a nice hostel, it’s just lacking a few comforts.
Bathrooms: ****
++ There seem to be enough of them during quiet season, but I can imagine queues form during busier periods. Showers are fairly powerful, with hot water. All facilities are mixed sex which may not appeal to everyone, but each bathroom has spacious cubicles for showers and toilets.
— I noticed a leaky sink in one of the smaller bathrooms.
Kitchens: ****
++ The kitchen is spacious enough at this time of year. Sofas are in the same room and the area itself feels welcoming. I wasn’t there long enough to cook, but the facilities appear modern and there are basic utensils in the cupboards.
General area of the hostel: Good.
Corridors are clean, lined with art (and their price tags). All rooms are upstairs, accessible via electronic keycard.
Staff: ****
++ Staff, when they are about, are helpful. The chef at breakfast was kind and allowed me to eat while they were closing.
— Reception isn’t 24-7 but you can have a late check in via the restaurant downstairs. Just don’t lose your keycard.
Location: *****
++ Opposite Liseberg amusement park, and opposite a tram stop where you can get to the city centre within 10 minutes. You can also walk about half an hour to the city. A supermarket is within walking distance.
The majority of the restaurants are in the city centre (£££), but you have the hostel restaurant/bar, and you can eat at Liseberg if you’re attending the park.
Food: ****
++ The restaurant itself has a charming cafe-style area, which feels welcoming.
— Breakfast costs £7-8 extra
++ Breakfast is a buffet which includes hot food. Gluten free toast is available on request. For veggies, pancakes and salads are available. I didn’t see any cereals. Not all hostels offer hot food as part of their breakfast, hence the extra star. Despite having to pay extra to eat, it’s not extortionate compared to what some other European hostels charge.
I didn’t try the restaurant/bar options for dinner and can’t comment on the quality.
Social: ****
I visited Gothenburg in low season, arriving on a weekday in December. My first night in the hostel, it was just myself in the room. I saw one other group. On my second night, there were three of us in the room. On my third and final night – a Saturday – the room was full. If you want to be social in Gothenburg in December, it might be best to visit on a weekend. Saying that, Liseberg had enough liveliness without being crowded when I visited on a Friday. I heard it was too busy on the Saturday.
Like any hostel, it’s easy to meet people if they are in your room. By Saturday night, there were people of four different nationalities staying in the same room.
The second best place to meet people is in the kitchen/living room area.
The best social hostels offer larger, multiple communal areas, and optional hostel day trips and events.
All-in-All
Everything else feels about as easy as a hostel should, I just missed some of the creature comforts that are associated with new hostels, and the lack of windows made it difficult to wake up in the mornings!
An itinerary for Gothenburg in winter will be published soon.
