Samesun Venice Beach

Hostel

Fantastic location. Great staff. 4/5 stars because they put the coffee away when breakfast finished.

Good value for money, great breakfasts, the main thing is the ocean nearby. For young people, that's it!

We took the private room with shared bathroom. Room was a good size, clean and nicely furnished. Front desk service was really good. Excellent location, right on the beach front near the famous Venice sign. Free luggage storage to help with those late flights etc. Small choice for breakfast, but hey, it's free! Expensive for a hostel compared to other tourist destinations, but one of the cheapest options in Venice. Our experience overall was really positive.

Near the beach. The hostel is clean, good service and you can have a bathroom inside the room.
I put him under a star because at night the area gets pretty ugly.

Good place for couple of days. Location is good, almost on the beach, so if you're lucky you'll be able to see and hear the ocean after your awakening. Clean rooms. Friendly staff)

The staff were uber friendly and the free breakfast was superb value. However, the place is above a bar and they play music till 1am, so not ideal for those wanting to catch a full nights sleep. With only 4 bathrooms, the morning rush can turn into a morning wait. Not ideal for those with stomach conditions or those really needing a pee!

Best location! Rooms just ok but clean. Good breakfast with pancakes.

Clean and cozy place to stay. Very friendly and relaxed atmosphere. Nice complimentary breakfasts!

Super nice people, excellent location, clean, attention in very good.
I don't give him five stars because he lacks more baths. But it is advisable.

Breakfast is good, they had pancakes! Bathrooms are a little dirty, but you’ll survive. Location is awesome, right in front of the Venice Boardwalk. Not a safe area to walk during the night though.

Based on the mixed reviews I read about this hostel I didn't know what to expect. Since the hostel is located in the heart of Venice beach, I went ahead and took a risk booking a night there. Since I was already at the airport hours before check in, I called the hostel to see if it'll alright to come early and leave my luggage while I explored. Was told it was not a problem. I arrived at the hostel around 6a. M. And was allowed to check in early (since they had space) and was invited to the free morning breakfast. I ended up booking another night there with no fuss. Overall the staff was friendly (not overly), accommodating and helpful. Samesum is at a premium location. Everything I needed was within walking distance (Santa Monica, Venice Canal, Venice boardwalk, farmer's market, Subway, grocery store, beach…) I would happily stay here again should I find myself back in Venice.

Great atmosphere Good food great atmosphere will always drive back.

Save your money. Staff here are useless. Jasmine was absolutely useless. I called a week before to change our booking to an earlier date. We turned up after driving from San diego to be told we were not booked regardless of receiving a confirmation email. It took almost 30 minutes for Heather to figure out what to do with us. Which was fine. I had enough when Jasmine was absolutely dumbfounded and did not help us at all. We had to check out and back in, wait. We were treated like we were an in convenience being there and treated like the booking error was our fault. Checked out early and cancelled our remaining stay to stay else where. I work in hospitality also and there is no way I would treat any guest the way we were treated. Absolutely shocking. I suggest this hostel trains their staff in dealing with these situations.

Clean. Good location. Free breakfast. Public transit nearby. Friendly staff. Ocean view room.

Nice and some old hippie houses and great graffiti. But newly build condos and houses are destroying the Venice environment. We rented an electrical bike for 2 hours and that was money well spend.

Excellently located hostel and affordable stay. Spent a few nights here, slept great and enjoyed the free basic breakfast. The staff is friendly and there's also a beach bar under the hostel that has some great food and drinks.

Hotel/Hostel Very well located: at the foot of the Ocean's Edge: VENICE Beach… So you are well located to contemplate this beautiful beach where surfers take the waves, the skaters meet at the legendary skatepark where still the athletes around the basketball courts, Muscle Beach!
In the distance, you can see Santa Monica. If you wish, you can even get there by foot (we took 40 min) by taking our time!
At the level of the Samesun, the place is secure you enter with a badge, the staff is nice and available.
The rooms may not be modern but there is what it takes to get a good night's sleep! Collective bathroom.
Breakfast included and self-service!
To discover Venice Beach the day, as the night I advise you.

Did the pub crawl they have on Thursdays and had a great time meeting some awesome people.

Really liked this place right on the beach. Friendly helpful staff & quiet to sleep comfortably. Will definitely return if I'm back to Venice Beach.

Decent rooms for a hostel. Front desk people let any randoms in. They have a don't care attitude about everything.

Visit this place and met great people, the attention was very good, the dining room and the kitchen a little small, the rooms very comfortable above all.

We canceled the stay. Price/performance is not right for private rooms. We were housed in an internal room, the only "window" of which ended up in a ventilation shaft. Staff, however, very friendly and helpful.

Location is everything here! booked a private room. The room was ok except for the mattress which was super old and uncomfortable. The bathrooms on the lower level are rarely vacant since there are no separate shower rooms. 5$ beer at the surfside bar underneath.

Friendly staff and ideally located. Good price value.

The hostel itself is very well located and is located right on the beach. The accommodation, however, is not for people who want to sleep. We had a room over the weekend and did not come to sleep because right under the hostel is a bar with disco. The sound insulation is so bad that you get to know everything and it appears like on the dance floor. From 04:00 pm It also works with sleeping.

Booked one night in a private room at Samesun Hostel en route on my travels and was most pleasantly surprised! Hostel is easy to find and located right on the heart of the beach / boardwalk. Walking distance to just about all the Venice Beach hot spots, bars and eateries. With a super chill vibe and 24/7 reception, the hostel itself is very clean and secure. The private room is simple and spacious, with a television, good lighting, powerpoints, a sink / mini wash area and a very comfortable bed. From what I have seen of the dorm rooms and restrooms, they are more than acceptable for the backpacking traveller. Top notch in comparison to some of the dive hostels in Europe! Hostel also has a kitchen, free breakfast, reliable Wi-Fi and a lounge area upstairs overlooking the beach. Did I mention you get a card for 24/7 happy hour at the bar next door? $5 cocktails and beers! If you're looking to do Venice Beach on a shoestring budget, you really can't go wrong with Samesun! 10/10 would stay again.

Best Hostel in Best Location! You really can't beat the location of this place-Right next to the beach, boardwalk and great bars. I was lucky when I was staying here because they had just opened the restaurant downstairs and the discount is awesome. The beds are usual bunk-beds with a comfty mattress! The staff was really helpful with recommending me with activities to do-including their "Friday Night Limo Party" which was a great time. Also they offer free breakfast (eggs, pancakes, fruit and OJ) which saved me some money while traveling. Will definitely be staying here again when I come back to Venice! Thanks Samesun!

Fantastic hostel. Nice clean rooms, with the nice feature of having a little shelf with a lamp and outlet by each bed. Plenty of activities each night. Location is right by the beach. The lounge is nice and spacious, and the kitchen is decent as well. The people who stay here is a great crowd as well.

Clean and comfortable rooms, friendly staff, and awesome location a block from lively Venice Beach strip. I loved it as an overnight stopover on my way to an early morning flight at nearby LAX. They enforce quiet hours at night, too. (I'd bring earplugs for the weekend, just in case. Rappers on PA's like to perform outside the building).

An amazing hostel: placed right on the beach at the entrance of the Venice Market it's the perfect place to visit LA while living the Venice Beach nightlife. Thanks to the staff's work (especially Dominick's work) you won't need to worry about finding things to do, because there will be plenty of activities at the hostel.

So TSA is perfectly fine with my California driver's license at airport security checkin, but this hostel requires an American passport?

Really well situated, friendly staff and decent dorms. Would have preferred a private room but can't really commplain given we were right on the beach! Need to go careful after dark as it gets a bit dodgy.

Okay, the staff are great, activities to participate in are fun.

I had an amazing time here. The place was clean and really secure, they only let you in if you have a reservation. I could go on about the building and amenities, but here's the short and sweet: the staff are amazing. They are very eager to help you with what they can and it is apparent that they love working here. They have planned events every night that change week to week. This is easily one of the best hostel cultures I've seen in the US.

We did not enjoy to stay at this hostel. They did not say that there were renovations going on when we booked the Hostel. There was no Wi-Fi for part of our time, it was loud, and dirty. Workers were everywhere and started to work at 8-9 am, no time to sleep in! Because of all the work going on there was dust everywhere and bc of that the bathroom was full of mud! Just one bathroom could be used of the two on the 1st floor, bc one cannot be locked. So not enough bathrooms for everyone. Also our room was so warm, we had 3 fans turned on and the window was open in the night but it didn't get cooler. We complained and the guy at the front desk said, that our room was the worst and that the Ace's not working! Not what we paid for! So, too much money for such a horrible experience.

I really enjoyed my stayed at this hostel. I was staying in a room with wonderful people from all over the world. The room was clean and the staff was very helpful. I would definitely stay here again just to enjoy Venice Beach. The room had a great view of the ocean and the beach. I am so in love with the beach and the hostel.

Absolutely fabulous place. Got to meet a lotta new friends from different countries. The hostel has a lot of events to keep you occupied and interact with many people. It's a fun place to be if you are alone and travelling to LA.

Plus: Close to beach, cafes and shops. There is a Breakfast. Minus: the Area with drug addicts and homeless people. Few showers and toilets on the floor. Have too long to wait because the toilet in the bathroom! Or box to do their business or to endure.

I love hanging out here. The surf is pretty consistently good at the jetty but the crowds are not fun.

Stayed here for 11 nights. The place was good but the Internet sucks big time…

The hostel was in a great location with views over the beach.

Love this hostel, it is in the best location.

Like the 4br suite great view of all the beautiful half drunk blonds in skimpy clothes off the balcony!

The location is the only thing this place has going for it. The actual experience of (attempting) to sleep there was pretty bad. Dirty carpets, dank bedding, and I literally had mattress-spring marks dug into my back after a couple of hours of trying to sleep. I attempted to check out early but could not get a refund for my second night, so I just didn't go back. Maybe they can keep the $50 and buy three more mattresses, as I doubt they paid more than $10 for each. I really wish I hadn't wasted a night at this place.

Amazing place really loved it.

Met the owner. What a awful person.

I stayed here one night. I was in a 4 bed room with an in-suite bath. The view was prime, I could observe venice beach boardwalk from my room. The staff was helpful and friendly. It's an older building so it has it's charm to it. I would stay here again.

I have stayed at The Cotel hostel now Samesun brand many times over the years and the thing which stands out the most apart from being a fun, clean and easy going hostel is the personalized service you receive. One staff member who has been there for as long as I can remember is Abby, her warm smile greets you as you walk up the stairs and she accommodates all your travel needs, from finding the best place to eat in the local area, to the hottest nightlife hot spots, Abby effortlessly ensures your stay is as enjoyable and hassle free as it can be, so you can enjoy your vacation the way its meant to be enjoyed. Abby is among the best staff I have encountered at Hostels and I have frequented these institutions all around the world. I will definitely be back. Soon. Gavin.

There are renovations in progress but the place was still tidy. The staff are friendly and helpful. The room we stayed in had a newly renovated bathroom and an amazing view of the beach and it only cost us $45. Pretty good in my opinion.

Didn't even end up staying here as after they failed to inform us they were taking a $150 deposit on our credit card before we even arrived our card was declined and they then cancelled our reservation, told us not to come and said our room had been given away. After we then found alternate accommodation they charged us for our full stay and denied having cancelled the reservation, not only are we out of pocket but we also had to find somewhere else to stay on the day we were supposed to check in. Incredibly unfriendly staff who refuse to admit their mistake OR refund our money, definitely would never stay there now.