Amsterdam · Netherlands
Amsterdam Hostel Leidseplein
Suspicious-review evidence
≈318 possibly bought · 944 top-rated reviews scanned
Explain how it works
We compare every 5★ review's word count against the global distribution. Hostels where unusually many top-rated reviews are suspiciously short — way under the typical length — start to look like the staff (or a boost-my-listing service) is padding the score with throwaway praise.
The detector flags reviews that are both top-rated and below a length threshold, then estimates how many of them statistically shouldn't exist. For this hostel we scanned 944 top-rated reviews and 1% were suspiciously short.
Length z-score: 21.76. A z-score measures how far this hostel's distribution of 5★ review lengths sits from the global average, in standard deviations. 0 = perfectly typical. 1–2 = slightly unusual but within normal noise. 3–5 = strongly anomalous. Anything 10+ means the pattern is so far from the global norm that it's effectively impossible to get there organically.
This is a heuristic, not a verdict — it surfaces hostels worth a second look, not proof of fraud. Read the actual reviews below and judge for yourself.
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Confirmed paidSignal trace
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Reward tied to a review
paying a company called Nexxen067 to get people to give them fake 5 start review
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Review-authenticity complaint
fake 5 start reviews
This company are paying a company called Nexxen067 to get people to give them fake 5 start reviews
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Reward tied to a review
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Confirmed paidSignal trace
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Reward tied to a review
review for a discount
I didn’t like anything, except for the hostel staff at the reception which were positive and friendly. Firstly, the hostel itself looks very suspicious. I really regretted that we decided to stay there, which only made my whole impression of Amsterdam worse and worse. By the way, this is the worst hostel I've ever visited. To begin with, check-in takes place after 15:00, which is later than usual. This is taking into account the fact that you need to check out before 10:00 in the morning, otherwise you will not get your deposit refunded. I haven't seen this information about derozite at all, but the penalty was asked to leave 10 euros as a deposit for the key, and the other man's documents were taken away instead of money, which is generally too much. Our room had 12 beds and 4 beds. I had to climb to the 3rd floor, and the stairs were very uncomfortable, which made my feet hurt. You can forget about cleanliness in this hostel. There were garbage bags in the hallways, the bathroom, which had hair everywhere, was also dirty and there were full garbage cans when we first checked in. There are no curtains on the beds, but what's even more outrageous is that you need to bring your own lock if you want to put your stuff in the locker. This is completely absurd. In all other hostels, it has long been possible to close lockers with a pin code. Absolutely everything in this hostel was dirty, and repairs had not been done for a long time and it seems to me that over time it will only get worse there. The big downside was that girls and men were not separated and everyone had to spend the night together. Although they could. The interior of the room felt like we were living in the army. Unfortunately, I do not recommend it. In the end, a man came up to me, as I understand it, it was the owner of the hostel, who persuaded me to write him a good review for a discount. But I don't intend to lie and I don't plan to come back, and I also don't like sycophants, which is what the owner is! Why do they need 5 hours if they can't even clean the rooms from 10:00 to 15:00 and throw out the trash? I think there are no cleaners working in this hostel. Fortunately, there was a kitchen, a kettle and some dishes.
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Reward tied to a review
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Confirmed paidSignal trace
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Reward tied to a review
reviews don't make it seem like it'll be easy to get a refund
I'm traumatized. It shouldn't be legal to run a place infested with bedbugs. The other reviews don't make it seem like it'll be easy to get a refund either.
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Reward tied to a review
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Confirmed paidSignal trace
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Reward tied to a review
pay for. The staff are 10/10
Look. You get what you pay for. The staff are 10/10 amazing, and location is perfect. But the rooms are hot and stinky because no ac and the one window you can open can't really stay open at night due to the loud streets. the lockers are tiny and don't actually lock. there's no storage so everyones bags were all over the floor. bathroom wise, it was clearly renovated but not by someone with brains. When you shower the water goes everywhere and there's no shelving at all. Overall it does the job.
New Zealand FEMALE 18-24 -
Reward tied to a review
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Confirmed paidSignal trace
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Reward tied to a review
review we see on Google is a bed bug complaint. We did not even get a refund
I strongly do not recommend this hostel. After thé second night, we discovered that the whole bedroom was infested with bedbugs. My friend was covered with bed bug bites and had an allergic reaction. We decided to leave the hotel before the end of our stay. We explained the situation to the receptionist and asked for a refund for at least the nights we were not sleeping in the hostel. The hostel management did not even want to discuss the situation with us, kept on postponing the discussion, and said that they had never had any issues with bedbugs before although the first review we see on Google is a bed bug complaint. We did not even get a refund in the end. DONT GO THERE !
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Reward tied to a review
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Confirmed paidSignal trace
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Reward tied to a review
pay for, so don’t expect 5 star
This place was exactly what I was looking for. With lowest prices in the area at the time (I’m a young budget traveler) and a great location this place was really good. It’s located 30 seconds from a tram line that takes you everywhere, the main area, central station, a museum area and more. There is every type of cuisine close to it, and a great night life in walking distance so it’s super fun if you want to go out! In this place you get what you pay for, so don’t expect 5 star rooms and beds changed every day, but for a good price I’d say the slight grungy nature of the place is 100% worth it, and adds to the areas charm. The staff were really great, super helpful and friendly, but are dead sick of people not reading their confirmation email 😂 (check in is at 3, no body seemed to have read that) Overall, I thought this place was good, and a perfect stay if you’re not nit picky about the hostels quirks.
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Reward tied to a review
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Confirmed paidSignal trace
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Reward tied to a review
review for a discount
I didn’t like anything, except for the hostel staff at the reception which were positive and friendly. Firstly, the hostel itself looks very suspicious. I really regretted that we decided to stay there, which only made my whole impression of Amsterdam worse and worse. By the way, this is the worst hostel I've ever visited. To begin with, check-in takes place after 15:00, which is later than usual. This is taking into account the fact that you need to check out before 10:00 in the morning, otherwise you will not get your deposit refunded. I haven't seen this information about derozite at all, but the penalty was asked to leave 10 euros as a deposit for the key, and the other man's documents were taken away instead of money, which is generally too much. Our room had 12 beds and 4 beds. I had to climb to the 3rd floor, and the stairs were very uncomfortable, which made my feet hurt. You can forget about cleanliness in this hostel. There were garbage bags in the hallways, the bathroom, which had hair everywhere, was also dirty and there were full garbage cans when we first checked in. There are no curtains on the beds, but what's even more outrageous is that you need to bring your own lock if you want to put your stuff in the locker. This is completely absurd. In all other hostels, it has long been possible to close lockers with a pin code. Absolutely everything in this hostel was dirty, and repairs had not been done for a long time and it seems to me that over time it will only get worse there. The big downside was that the girls and men were not separated and everyone had to spend the night together. Although they could. The interior of the room felt like we were living in the army. Unfortunately, I do not recommend it. In the end, a man came up to me, as I understand it, it was the owner of the hostel, who persuaded me to write him a good review for a discount. But I don't intend to lie and I don't plan to come back, and I also don't like sycophants, which is what the owner is!
Russia -
Reward tied to a review
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Suspiciously shortSignal trace
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Pressure to leave a review
asked before check-in if they had sanitized, since we saw a review
Disgusting hostel with bed bugs. Do not go here!! We asked before check-in if they had sanitized, since we saw a review saying there were bed bugs, and they told us they had sanitized. It turned out they had just washed the sheets.
Sweden FEMALE 18-24 -
Pressure to leave a review
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Suspiciously shortSignal trace
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Review-authenticity complaint
fake reviews
Eh, this place surely has a lot of fake reviews they are buying. This hostel sits rights above a crazy party street that downstairs outside that legitimately don’t start to begin to be quite until 5:30 am or so. Rooms were quite hot as well with no AC, Arab staff was super nice and professional when they were on clock
USA MALE 25-30 -
Review-authenticity complaint
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Suspiciously short
Excellent
Germany -
Suspiciously short
Staff
Netherlands -
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Perfect
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Clean
Netherlands -
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Everything.
United Arab Emirates -
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Good
France -
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wonderful
Italy MALE 18-24 -
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Good
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👍👍👍
Germany COUPLE 18-24 -
Suspiciously short
behulpzaam
Netherlands -
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perfect
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Facilidades
Spain -
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👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
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Like
Netherlands -
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10/10
Belgium -
Suspiciously short
Everything!:)
Lithuania
HostelPunk native reviews
First-party field notes
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Vibe Analysis
Amsterdam Hostel Leidseplein is a very central, bare-bones option near bars, restaurants, museums, shopping, and tram links. It works best as a cheap crash pad for nightlife plans, not as a calm place to sleep. The hostel has free coffee or tea, and snacks such as muffins or madeleines may be available at reception. There is also a resident cat, Luna, which gives the place one small cozy detail amid an otherwise rough setup. Rooms can be cramped, hot, and loud, with triple bunks, small beds, limited privacy, and tiny lockers. Larger dorms may have only one combined toilet and shower, so mornings can get backed up fast. Cleanliness and comfort are major weak spots. Bed bugs, dirty bathrooms, bad smells, theft concerns, cash-first payment, and uneven staff interactions are serious risks here.
Signals to check
- Street and club noise can run until 4 or 5 in the morning.
- Bed bugs are a repeated serious concern.
- Cash payment is commonly required, and card payment may cost extra.
- Rooms can be hot, cramped, and short on secure storage.
- Bathrooms and dorms may be dirty or poorly maintained.