Jacques Brel Youth Hostel

1. Breakfast consisted of toast, butter, various spreads like jam, chocolate and cream cheese. They also had fresh orange juice, apple juice, coffee, tea, various fruits and yoghurt. Pastries were also handed out by the friendly staff. Overall an alright selection for what you pay for. 2. It is suitable for families as 5 of us stayed in a 6 bed dormitory and it was completely private for us. Bins were changed daily. It is a quiet neighbourhood about a 5 minute walk from Madou station and 20 mins from Brussels Central so it is a convenient location with lovely views onto a statue in the centre of a roundabout. There are many events and the vibe seems nice with an outdoor seating area with a fountain for late night chats or indoors you can play games of pool while having a drink into the late hours. They have a free tour going on every Monday however unfortunately we didn't manage to attend. 1. We had to switch rooms upon discovering a bed bug on one of the curtains (see pictures). We also weren't provided with bedsheets and pillow covers and we had to go downstairs to get some for ourselves. The reception changed our room fairly easily and it was no hassle. In the second room, one of the beds had a used ear plug (see pics). I would say cleanliness and organisation was definitely an issue. 2. On top of all of that, the light in the toilet wasn't working. The bathroom had a bit of an odd layout, with a small but open shower room, 2 sinks and a small room for the toilet. Not the worst but could be seen as inconvenient for some.

The person at the reception desk was friendly and efficient. The breakfast also was on time. The room facilities were orderly and with attention to decorations, it showed well. Bedbug cleaning. I stayed for only one night but this significantly affected me and my companion as we both got dozens of bedbug bites even though only me stayed there (I know I got them because it took one day for my companion to get them and I still kept getting more bites).

Staff were really really nice. After returning home, I started finding bites that were itchy all over my body - bed bugs. I have been trying to contact the hostel for a refund or partial refund and nothing. Unacceptable.

Cleanliness of the room specifically was shocking in my case - we found bed bugs in our room and were not impressed. This seemed like an isolated incident and the staff were extremely helpful in addressing the situation by relocating us and providing us with washing tokens. However, having a clean room is the bare minimum that you pay for and not delivering on that is disappointing.

J’ai mis 1 etoile car nous ne pouvons pas mettre 0, il y’avait des punaises de lit dans les chambres, une personne c’est faite voler ses affaires dans sa chambre le personnel est aller dormir sans l’aider, le barman était sympa

c nul il y a des punaise de lit et des gens qui s’infiltre pour voler

the staff were the nicest people ever, they were really helpful and kind. the hostel is located really close to the centre and metro station, i basically walked everywhere by foot. they did provide some vegan options at the breakfast, which was nice. also the free luggage room was a nice touch, u just had to bring your own padlock, or u could buy one from the front desk or the vending machine. there were some vegan food options in the vending machine aswell. there was a water dispenser in the lobby, but it only had ice cold water, so be careful. there we no bed bugs, ive checked thoroughly. first of all, that was the dirtiest place ive ever stayed at in my entire life, and ive stayed in mountain shelters, and shepherds huts, and im not some kind of a clean freak... there was black mold in the restrooms (esp. the shower room), there were some kind of dark smears of unidentified substance by the window and on the ceiling by my bed (i dont even want to know what that stuff was...), there were hairs and old (i hope) spots on the linens......... i checked two sets, and asked my roomies, they also found hair on theirs. when i went to close the window, i found bird poop (i think thats what it was) on the handle. the toilet seats were sh*t on (i know thats on the guests, but if the cleaning crew comes everyday, and the seats were dirty for 3 last days of my stay and nobody did anything with that, thats just nasty). most of the luggage baskets under the beds were broken, really loud, and one of them was inaccessible, cause the other bed stood in a way that u couldnt open it. the trays, plates, cups and glasses at breakfast were dirty (smeared with food, with fingerprints all over the rims of the glasses). the communal kitchen was so dirty i just peaked inside and left (but that was also the guests fault, have some self respect ppl, clean up after yourselves...). there could be some savoury vegan options at the breakfast if u ask me, some hummus or veggie pastes. ive read the previous reviews, i decided to book it, and give it the benefit of the doubt, but i shouldve listened... its a shame cause they were really nice people....

Avoid! We got bedbugs bites.

Arrived for check in and there was no front desk person in sight for at least 10 minutes. I should have known the rest of the stay would follow suit! The pictures of this place must be extremely old, because it looks much more run-down than this in person. The 4th floor foyer looked like it hadn't seen a mop anytime recently. It even had some weird pipes sticking out of the floor in the hall by the elevator. We had a private room on that floor. The window frame paint in our room was peeling and the furnishings have seen better days, but it's a hostel, so I wasn't too worried about any of this. However when I woke in the middle of the night itching to bed bug bites, that was too much for me. The front desk was supposed to reopen at 8am and at that time we were in the lobby waiting. However, by 8:30am still no front desk person had showed up so we packed our things and got another hotel. (Motel One, a few blocks over- super fabulous!) I sent a message to Jacques Brel through Booking dot com, and eventually he got back to me and said they would "look into it." A few days later he said other people had stayed in the room with no reported bites so they wouldn't refund all my unused nights, only the one night they were required to due to my refundable booking. (I feel so bad for those other people staying in that room that might not know they are taking bugs home!) I've backpacked all over Europe for years and have been bitten by bed bugs a few times- it happens. But I don't particularly enjoy being called a liar, or being lied to about the condition of a property I've paid to stay in. Not everyone reacts to their bites but no one wants to take them home - this property needs to be honest when a room has issues. And for full disclosure, this was the first place we stayed on our Belgium/Luxembourg trip so we didn't bring the bugs with us- they were definitely living at Jacques Brel!

Arrived for check in and there was no front desk person in sight for at least 10 minutes. I should have known the rest of the stay would follow suit! The pictures of this place must be extremely old, because it looks much more run-down than this in person. The 4th floor foyer looked like it hadn't seen a mop anytime recently. It even had some weird pipes sticking out of the floor in the hall by the elevator. We had a private room on that floor. The window frame paint in our room was peeling and the furnishings have seen better days, but it's a hostel, so I wasn't too worried about any of this. However when I woke in the middle of the night itching to bed bug bites, that was too much for me. The front desk was supposed to reopen at 8am and at that time we were in the lobby waiting. However, by 8:30am still no front desk person had showed up so we packed our things and got another hotel. (Motel One, a few blocks over- super fabulous!) I sent a message to Jacques Brel through Booking dot com, and eventually he got back to me and said they would "look into it." A few days later he said other people had stayed in the room with no reported bites so they wouldn't refund all my unused nights, only the one night they were required to due to my refundable booking. (I feel so bad for those other people staying in that room that might not know they are taking bugs home!) I've backpacked all over Europe for years and have been bitten by bed bugs a few times- it happens. But I don't particularly enjoy being called a liar, or being lied to about the condition of a property I've paid to stay in. Not everyone reacts to their bites but no one wants to take them home - this property needs to be honest when a room has issues. And for full disclosure, this was the first place we stayed on our Belgium/Luxembourg trip so we didn't bring the bugs with us- they were definitely living at Jacques Brel!

The breakfast was good and the staff was helpful. It is close to the city center in a quiet neighborhood. On my second night in the female dorm, my roommate and I found bed bugs; first in her bed, but then the bugs moved to mine too. The reception was closed from 1-7am, so until then we couldn't ask for help. In the morning they provided laundry service and a clean shower with towels for us, but in a case like this that is the bare minimum... In the beginning everything was good, but because of this experience I wouldn't recommend the hostel to anyone. We both got a refund, but still, I wouldn't want anyone else to suffer from a situation like this. I hope that the staff will do an extra deep cleaning to get rid of the bed bugs...

There was a nice courtyard at the front, and I saw one of the staff sweeping the ground and wiping the tables down. Breakfast was okay, although the toaster is hidden! There are toilets in the corridors in case the one in your room is occupied. Saw a bedbug on my last morning crawling along the wall next to my head. Surprised as the beds are so uncomfortable, I'd expect bedbugs to want to stay somewhere nicer. It can be quite noisy at night, and the room would get stuffy and hot with the window closed. Lots of noise from the corridor. Also, there was a school trip staying at the time and I also saw a mother and young daughter, so it's not a great place to meet people. The bathroom was nice, with a fresh bathmat towel every day (dorm), although the toilet smelled really bad. Also, over the three days I was there, both soap dispensers were empty, so you had to reach into the shower to use soap.

BED BUGS!!! After the first night in the room 31 me and all my friends started feeling itchy and then we noticed them. I immediately notified the hostel staff but they were absolutely indifferent to the situation. It looks for me as they don't have bug-free rooms. It's unacceptable to neglect such a basic aspect of hygiene.

I was a big fan of the luggage storage room, It's bring your own lock or buy one but they were big enough to fit everything and they had a variety of cage sizes for your stuff, even a bike if you have one. The breakfast was simple but it's free what do you expect? I was more than happy with it. You do have to make your own bed but the sheets were folded, clean(no stains), and ready on the mattress. Getting there from the airport bus is quick (4-6 minute walk up a small hill) and moving around the town with public transportation is easy from the hostel location. The front desk stay weren't rude but they weren't friendly either. I read a lot of reviews that there were bed bugs at this hostel. If they did have them whatever wing I was in I didn't experience that. They had mattress protectors on the beds and everything was tidy. It still made me extremely paranoid though. The ensuite shower wasn't cleaned that well but it wasn't horrible.

Emplacements Punaise de lits inacceptable ! Et ne rentre même pas en matières pour un dédommagement. C'est vraiment n'importe quoi à éviter absolument

Avoid at all costs. Upon staying here, my room was invested with bed bugs. When I told the reception staff they laughed in my face and replied with « so ? », I demanded them to resolve the issue where he said that the room could maybe be changed if he had a new room - when I arrived in my new room there was blood on the fresh bed sheets, most likely from the bed bugs and silverfish infesting the bathroom. AVOID.

This place is absolutely disgusting! I tried to stay positive and think on the bright side of being in this hostel. However, If I could give it 0 stars I would. The 4 bedroom share we stayed in had bed bugs in, to which the bar tender responded with “and what?” And laughed at us, and didn’t bother to take us seriously. After telling him that we won’t be staying in that room, he decided to give us a room out of good gesture, to which we found loads of silver fish insects in, and used cotton buds along with tissue and food under the beds. I’m pretty sure these beds don’t get cleaned, and yet they’re charging such a price for what? The bedsheets in the new room were all covered in blood, to which we had to go down and change ourselves. The staff member was not helpful and laughed at us along that he was pointing at us and saying something to another person at the bar in another language. Just think that’s a bit disrespectful, considering we were distressed regarding the insect situation. I do not recommend this stay, unless you want to bring bed bugs back with you! Absolutely not worth any money! I think this place needs a inspection as it is absolutely messy and not cleaned at all!