Nothing, the place is great.

Spacious room with even a more spacious bed. Very friendly host. Incredible breakfast included. Drinks are available at a fair price in a help-yourself-bar. The common area had many comfortable chil spots with an astonishing view. Everything on walking distance and the town feels safe to wonder about even after sunset.

Stayed in February 2022

Nothing

We like the accomodation really. It's beautiful to stay there - everything is perfect. The rooms are clean and comfortable, the common area with kitchen is great and is equipped with everything you need (kitchen stuff, hammocks and couch, billiard table,...). The breakfast is really delicious and made with love. The owners are very friendly and helpful and create a place to feel good. Thanks a lot!

Stayed in January 2022

It can get pretty noisy at night in the neigherhood (dogs & roosters), so just make sure to bring some ear plugs. However, this will be the same all over San Juan ;)

Everything! Baba and Celine are extremly friendly and explain everything you need to know about San Juan del Sur and its surroundings. The breakfast (different every day) was soo delicious. And on top of that, Celine even drove us to the ferry port in San Jorge! The hostel is just a 3-minute walk outside of the center of town and has stunning views from its balcony/kitchen/common area. There are always some cute cats and dogs to cuddle :) Our room was also very spacious, had a big bed, nice bathroom and was nicely decorated/furnished. We loved our stay and can definitely recommend the hostel and haven't seen any other hostel in town that could even come close to what you get at Buena Onda! Thank you so much! :)

Stayed in January 2022

Great View about San Juan del Sur. Amazing homemade breakfast!

Stayed in January 2022

Baba is a great host. Rooms are big, comfy, stylish and very clean (the whole place is perfectly clean and well-maintained). The breakfast is amazing as well. The common area is huge, with a great view and very chilled vibes. We can highly recommend Buena Onda, definitely a 10/10! Thanks Baba and Celine :)

Stayed in December 2021

The only minor issue we experienced was that it is not very quiet at night in San Juan del Sur as dogs and roosters make a lot of noise all night long: bring proper earplugs! This, of course, is out of their hands, so still a 10 for Buena Onda!

For our first impression of Nicaragua, Buena Onda was all we could have asked for! The rooms are tasteful and have large, comfy beds, the magnificent view from the common space reaches all over the Bay of San Juan del Sur, every day changing homemade, delicious breakfast is included, there are hammocks to chill in, adorable dogs and cats to chill with, they sell cold beers, sodas, and water, and the host and hostess are just too kind.

Stayed in January 2022

Super friendly owners, best breakfast in Nicaragua, stunning views

Stayed in January 2022

not a criticism - but if your a light sleeper I would suggest some ear plugs particularly over new year. music and animals carry up the valley so it can we quite noisy, but we didn’t have any real issues with it.

Baba and his partner are what make this place extra special, they got the extra mile to help with recommendations and helped us stay an extra 5 nights. The communal area is awesome, pool table and hammocks make a great place to chill, and a well equipped kitchen if you want to make your own food. the breakfast is varied everyday and so delicious with the best homemade jam. :) they even put on a New Years dinner which I think I will always be sad we missed- it sounded amazing. beds were comfy and we were offered fresh towels when needed, and the whole space is always very clean and tidy.

Stayed in December 2021

It is a tie between the breakfast and the craftsmanship of the place.

Stayed in January 2022

nada

best place to stay at SJDS!!! wonderful accommodation, lovely hosts, delicious included breakfast!! the view over the bay is stunning and the rooms are cosy. thanks again

Stayed in December 2021

The only thing we didn’t like were the noisy animals in the neighbourhood, mostly at night. But that’s not the fault of the hostel itself.

We can only say positive things about our stay. We spent 3 nights here and we would have loved to stay more because we felt at home. Baba and Celine (the owners) are very nice. They prepare an incredible breakfast that changes every morning. Location is great, few minutes from the center and the beach and you can enjoy a fantastic view from the hostel, directly on the sea. There is a billiard and books to read, even a shared kitchen. The room was huge. Our double bed was one of the biggest I’ve ever seen and the wifi worked perfectly.

Stayed in December 2021

Buena Onda is the perfect hostel. Baba is sweet and very helpful, rooms are large and really nice (!), the view is AMAZING and the common area with hammocks and outdoor kitchen is the perfect place to hang out and talk to other travellers. 10/10 would go here again

Stayed in December 2021

the location, the hotel, the room the breakfast and the people everything was perfect

Stayed in November 2021

Warning: Do Not Stay Here! I cannot stress enough how terrible our experience was at this hostel and I would have been happy if I would have more realistic reviews about this place in advance. 

Despite the seemingly good view of the city and the overall good rating here it turned out that this place is a nightmare. The cleanliness and management of this place are horrendous. Here’s why: 1. Unhygienic Conditions: The owner Charly keeps four stray dogs on the property. These dogs sleep, play, pee, and poop in guest areas. The entire place reeks like a dog shelter, especially in the hallways. The so-called barefoot area is littered with dog feces until the owner decides to clean it, which is sporadic at best. One morning, we saw the couch in the common area covered in wormy dog vomit, which wasn’t cleaned until after 8 a.m. Sitting on this couch is not only disgusting but also hazardous to human health. 2. Terrible Management: When we arrived, the owner Charly didn’t even greet us properly. Surrounded by his dogs, he just opened the door. We had to pay in cash upfront for six nights, including A/C and breakfast, but the room wasn’t even ready. He cleaned it himself as we waited. The owner had personal issues to attend to and gave three different excuses to three different people about why there was no breakfast at 10 a.m., even though he coordinated with us at 8 a.m. Eventually, he admitted there was no food for breakfast and there wouldn’t be any. He was rude and acted like we were bothering him for simply being there. 3. Unsafe and Incompetent: We were forced to leave after one night because the hostel lost power (while the rest of the neighborhood had power), making it unsafe to navigate or enter our rooms. When we knocked on the owner’s door to ask about it, he ignored us and only came out after the third attempt, claiming he couldn’t hear the knocking.

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Stayed in June 2024

Overall we had a poor experience with this hostel. The location has such potential, but the cleanliness and management were well below average. There was dog poop on the floor every day because the dogs that live on the property poop in the same spot. Even after the owner cleaned up the obvious mess, there was the smell of pee throughout the hallways. We also paid for breakfast but only got it 1/3 days because the owner had personal issues to attend to (there was a sickness in the family, which I sympathize with, but at the same time as a business, you should have someone cover the responsibilities if you cannot be there to attend to the hostel). Also, it took the owner 2 days to give me my change that he owed me. My friends also had a very bad experience. The hostel lost power (the rest of the neighborhood had power), meaning there was no way to see anything or enter your rooms safely. They went to knock on the owners door to ask what happened, and the owner pretended he wasn’t home and did not answer the door. Finally, after the third time knocking, the owner finally came out and said “he couldn’t hear the knocking”. Basically he avoided taking any responsibility for the running of the hostel. When my friends asked for their money back for the remaining 5 nights so they could go stay somewhere else with power, the owner refused to give their money back. He was very rude to the guests. They paid their whole stay in advance. The owner cancelled their booking on booking.com so they could not write a review for him. So basically they paid and he said they never even checked in…. Very unprofessional. Overall, I hope that the management improves because I really liked the actual building and location. It could be such a nice place if the owners were attentive to guests. I am sorry to leave a poor review, but after our experience, it has to be done.

The location has a good view of the city below. I also got to see some monkeys from the window!

Stayed in June 2024

This review has been hidden because it doesn't meet our guidelines.

I wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone ! Recommendation to the reader! If you ever go to Charlie’s place make sure to sake pictures of everything that is broken / malfunctioning. Because he will charge you at the end! So keep your back clean. I had an absolutely horrible stay at Buena Onda Backpackers run by Charlie, which was marked by a series of unacceptable incidents and unprofessional conduct from the host. Major Issues: * Charlie's dogs destroyed my flip-flops that I left in the common area per the hostel's rules. He only offered a $10 discount instead of replacing them. After a longer discussion we made Charlie understand that he had to pay the full cost of a new pair which was $24. * Our room's toilet was broken, and a plumber entered without notice and had to leave him and Charlie there while we were out. * Charlie ripped open the mosquito net without permission to unlock our room when we got locked out due to lack of a spare key. * Upon return one evening, our room was infested with insects and ants all over, making it uninhabitable. Charlie blamed us for leaving the lights on despite evidence to the contrary. We did spend the night in another room but demanded a compensation on our last night as we spent 1.5 hours getting insects out of our stuff. * Charlie refused to provide any compensation and tried to shortchange us even for the $24 he owed for the flip-flops. * Charlie tried to wrongly charge us $111 for: * A new fan * Using the spare room * And mosquito net damage he caused himself. We ended up getting $4 back… Charlie was extremely unprofessional, dishonest, and showed no regard for guest experience. This was by far the worst hostel experience I've had while traveling. I strongly caution others from staying at Buena Onda Backpackers.

Stayed in May 2024

Strange customer policy - you book via booking, need to pay him the money via PayPal and then he cancels the booking. Interesting business attitude to save commission. Not enough water tank - we had no water since midnight- no shower etc possible. All other places in town have water tanks in order to ensure enough water supply when the city cuts the water of. No breakfast available due to the lack of water.. 15% discount ok thanks for this - would have appreciated water and breakfast more. Just for the view you don’t need to stay in this place. Rankings seem to be much better than it is in reality. Had construction works on the afternoon of our arrival. Value for money is elsewhere better - avoid this place.

Nice view towards the Bay

Stayed in April 2024

Kitchen could use some newer cutlery and some more basics like oil. Had to ask for new toilet roll several times before getting any. Owners of the hostel were a bit evasive and could have been more welcoming/friendly.

The breakfasts were very yummy although quite small, rooms and facilities were clean and view from the communal area was great

Stayed in April 2024

Could be cleaner (floors, bathroom and especially under the bed etc.). Many guests mention the breakfast as a big plus, however for us it was more like a “snack”. Yes, it was interesting and different every day, at some point tasty. But the portion size was not adequate enough to call it a “breakfast”. Maybe for a kid it would work but definitely not for an adult person. Sorry for that.

Very beautiful place in a lovely area. Very nice view and friendly staff.

Stayed in March 2024

Incredibly noisy especially through the night with cockerels and dogs barking, very difficult to sleep even with earplugs. There are large gaps between the roof and walls so although offers a breeze there is no barrier to the noise. The water is cold but that seems general in the area. You are not allowed to bring beer in and the beer is $1.75 for a small bottle. The terraces are beautiful but the lower terrace gets used for massages which limits the seating area. The rooms are not cleaned regularly enough even after asking and leaving a key. We stayed 8 nights and the sheets and towels were not changed. Although a very beautiful vista we would not stay again and feel it is overpriced for what is on offer.

The view from the communal terraces. The breakfasts were varied and plentiful. Large beds.

Stayed in March 2024

Please consider that it’s normally NOT possible to arrive at any time before 4pm to drop off your bags. Usually no one is home before that. We would not have booked the place if that had been made clear in the description. That breakfast is only served at a random time between 8 and 9, when the manager has it ready, doesn’t give you any flexibility for making plans in the morning like going to the beach early. There is also no choice of breakfasts, although it changes daily and it tastes great. The manager was late for our checkin at 4pm, and the rooms had not been cleaned, so we had to wait for that. We did get two free beers on the house. Other guests also had to wait outside until 4.30 the day before.

Great views and nice, large common space with hammocks to relax. It’s also nice that there is a small kitchen and a fridge with soft drinks and cheap beers for sale. Rooms are also clean and spacious.

Stayed in December 2023

No one was at the hostel to let us in when we arrived at 3pm. We waited half an hour before paying the local family next door to look after our heavy bags for us so we could head into town and refresh ourselves with a drink, after a 10hr bus ride from Costa Rica. Definitely not ideal when exhausted and we felt this should have been made clear that no one would be in. Secondly, there was no WiFi the whole two nights/three days we were there. The owner informed us after we had checked in that a tree had just fallen and stopped the WiFi from working. We explained this would be an issue for us as my partner was on call for work that night and I needed to book our next steps, as travellers do. We said unfortunately we'd need to leave and go to another hostel with WiFi, at which point the owner promised it would be fixed in two hours. I explained WiFi was very important for us and we didn't want to depend on a promise (especially not a promise of "two hours..or tomorrow..or the fay after") so would have to leave. At which point the owner said it is non refundable (two nights for 90USD). We argued that this is unfair, considering a service is not being fulfilled. The owner then appeared to react to this and said it was being fulfilled because he has wifi in his apartment downstairs and we can access it by sitting outside his house. We explained this would not be appropriate but were exhausted after a 10hr bus ride so didnt push it further. He later came back and offered us 15% off which was appreciated. It was just strange to see the owner going off for the day with his surfboard on his motorbike, when his hostel guests were without WiFi. You'd think it would be his priority to have it fixed rather than going out and about for the day doing other things.

The overall appearance and structure of the hostel is pleasing. The view from the terrace is truly lovely and it was great to sit on the sofa and have a coffee up there, or snooze in the hammock. The owners facilitate a quiet and respectful space for guests to relax and rest. We certainly don't like noisy hostels and this was as peaceful as they come. The breakfast was very tasty, a little on the small side and you cannot choose what to have or when you have it (they bring it straight to you as soon as they see you upstairs in the morning, between 8 and 9am) but it was lovely nevertheless.

Stayed in December 2023

Generally I must say it was not really clean and does not live up to such a high rating at booking (toilet smelled really bad, trashcan in bathroom did not get emptied on a regular basis, maggots in the kitchen, there’s a barefoot area but the puppy is peeing constantly on the floor but not properly cleaned afterwards (sometimes not at all), dog poop was for days laying around under the stairs, generally we felt like no one really cleaned the common area during our stay). Additionally, basic things like soap in the bathrooms, trashcans in the rooms or free water/ filter system which you basically get in any other hostel with even lower ratings does not exist. I hope that the place will live up to the rating with the new owners soon as currently I do not see a justification for such a high rating even though it generally has the potential

Nice view from the terrace, good location 5min walk to center, good breakfast, generally the hostel has a good and quite vibe (not really backpacking vibes though, more couples), the common area is great to chill with beautiful view, place got taken over by new owners who are currently settling in

Stayed in November 2023