Hostel Review: Silver Gate Hostel

I know you’re sick of hearing about Croatia, but this is different…sort of. I haven’t reviewed a hostel in a while (mostly because I hadn’t stayed in one in a while), so I thought I would assess my summer hostel stays.

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Part of what I loved about Split was the people I met at my hostel. Now this says absolutely nothing about a hostel because you could meet people at the nicest or dumpiest hostel anywhere in the world. I chose the Silver Gate Hostel because it was recommended on the BusAbout website and it said it was close to Diocletian’s Palace. It doesn’t however, tell you that you might wander the streets looking for a small sign pointing you to an upstairs hostel. Yes, it made me cranky when I was pulling my cursed duffel bag up 4 flights of stairs in the heat of Croatian summer, but thank God they had the AC on when I got there. That said, location is everything. I had a friend who stayed near the beach and it was such a pain in the ass to get back to the main part of town. Silver Gate definitely has the advantage of being close to the Riva and all the bars inside the palace.

[photo]I was placed in a room with 2 British boys and 2 Kiwi girls. I was on the bottom, so I didn’t have to worry about climbing up the ladderless bunks. There was a window that allowed for noise of the early morning markets, but was preferable to no window at all.

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There are 3 rooms available, with 6 or 7 beds. All rooms have shared bathrooms, but are very clean. Private rooms are available downstairs at Hostel Ana, which is run by the same group. I had a great experience there but it was definitely the basics. If you get the chance, go on the Split Pub Crawl, which starts right across the street in the palace. And if you’re not going on one of the dozens of BusAbout, Travel Talk, or Sail Croatia cruises, you can do the A Shore Thing day cruise through the hostel.

Caroline in the City Rating:

Location: steps away from Diocletian’s Palace and bus stop *****
Price: $30 US/night ***
Character: cheap Ikea furniture **
Security: staff on desk until 10 pm and security code after *****
Staff: Aussies, Croatian and American ****
Fun: cool people, booze cruise available ****
Cleanliness: cleaned every day by staff ****
Extras: Lockers, computer, mini fridge, linens, towels, washer/dryer ***
TOTAL: 30/40

Don’t believe me? Check out the Hostel World rating here.

About Caroline

Caroline Eubanks is the founder of Caroline in the City. She's a freelance writer based in Atlanta, Georgia but also considers Charleston and Sydney home. Her past writing credits include work for Uptake, Matador, the Charleston City Paper and she is a contributor to Her Packing List.

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