Great place! I came from New York for a wedding and they gave fantastic service. Friendly staff. Breakfast and very clean location. Right near downtown Charleston great for going out. Daniel read more

Thank god we stayed at Not So during March and not the summer. Our room had a ceiling fan and a window that was painted shut, so if you have troubles with sleeping in a humid and stale aired room like I did, I'd recommend finding another option for longer stays. The hostel is also in what would be called a transitional neighborhood, and although I felt comfortable going on runs in the direction of downtown, I still wasn't up for walking around at nighttime. As for the extras, Not So has a hammock and a bonfire pit. What I found to be a little odd was of course the two separate buildings for the hostel, but the auxiliary had a restroom and a kitchen so it wasn't an issue of running back and forth. read more

A perfect place for budjet travellers to Charleston. I have stayed in many hostels in both US and Canada, and this place is very different from any other urban hostels. Well maintained, clean, beautiful neighbourhood, friendly staff. Will definitely go back! read more

I wouldn't stay here again. Lots of charm but nothing compensates for the vinyl covered beds. They are majorly uncomfortable and they squeak when you move even the slightest, which you do a lot since you can't fall asleep. So you will keep your roommate awake too. Well, that last point might not be a problem since chances are your roommate won't be sleeping either. And why check-in only at 5 pm and check out already at 10 am when you have to make your beds and clean out the sheets yourself anyway? I thought 65 bucks for a private double room was a good deal in an otherwise expensive city, but no. Maybe I would recommend it to poor students if it was half the price, but not for this money. Simply not worth it. The area is nice though so try to find something else around. read more

Had a really good stay at Not So Hostel. Staff was great. Location was superb. Would stay again. Def recommend.

Cute and clean rooms and a short walk to downtown. Some bulbs in our rooms were out and the windows would not close. Shared bathroom was also difficult to get into at times. The wifi was mediocre. All this plus the fact that it was a typical hostel where you have to bring your own towels and toiletries made it feel like we should have been paying just a bit less for what we got. read more

I visited here with a friend on a random weekend vacation from school. I wasn't sure what to expect from an American hostel after staying at a wide variety of them across Europe and Japan but I was pleasantly surprised. The staff was very friendly and everything was clean, well decorated, and in tip-top order. They are pretty close to all the main Charleston attractions so you don't really need to drive and struggle for parking if you don't mind a little walk. This is a great alternative staying at a pricey hotel! read more

The Not So Hostel is very very very "hostel ish". For anyone that has stayed in a lot of hostels you can stop reading, you already know what to expect. For those that have not gone to a hostel let me begin with the basics. 1) Hostels allow you to meet people and mingle with others traveling in the area. 2) Hostels are far less expensive than hotels/motels and one can stay in an area bit longer or go on more excursions. 3) Hostels are notoriously loud, slightly dilapidated, and crowded Positive Things +The location of the hostel is within walking distance of a good assortment of restaurants and the downtown/historical area. +There is trolly service within a block and a half. +Check in was easy and friendly. +The hostel rents bikes for under $30.00 a day which is a great deal compared to other bike rental options in the city. + The beds themselves were clean and the linens were fresh. +There were some lockers available in the closet for those that wanted to lock up small items. + There were plenty of outlets available to charge devices. + The price was right. 2 nights + taxes was $68.00 Negative Things -The door to my all female dorm refused to close the entire way. No matter which way we tried to deal with it, we eventually just gave up, trusted the hostel gods and left our stuff out. I did mention the door issue to the girl at the counter but her response was, "Yeah, that door has been weird since we had the maintenance guy trim the edges." If security is important to you, you probably won't be in a hostel in the first place, but we dealt with it like champs. -The room was quite dusty and the blinds on one of the windows was falling off. The room itself didn't seem to have been wiped down/dusted in some time though there were definitely people staying in it just before us. - The bathrooms were fairly clean but hand towels in the bathrooms should have been changed MUCH more frequently. 1 or 2 per day isn't nearly enough. - The traffic on Friday night between midnight and 2 a.m. was pretty loud and I woke up frequently, Saturday was much quieter. Take it as you will. If you are used to hostels, you will be fine. If you are expecting a "boutique hostel" (of which I stayed in one, one time and yes, it was amazing) then this is not the place for you. read more

I've thought a lot about what rating to give the NotSo Hostel - honestly, it would probably be 2.5 stars if half stars were possible. As others have said, this place has a lot of potential, and some good aspects, but fundamentally I would not stay there again, and I would hesitate to recommend to others. Hotels in Charleston are very expensive - we were looking for an affordable option which would allow us to explore the city on foot. We generally don't choose fancy places to stay while on vacation - we prefer to spend the money on other things, and anyway do not spend a lot of time in wherever were staying. As long as it's clean and comfortable, that's all we're really looking for. NotSo Hostel is pretty clean, but the major problem for us is that the beds were so excruciatingly uncomfortable that it made sleeping a real problem both nights we were there. We initially booked the Hemingway Room in the Annex - FYI this is a tiny room with a very small bed. It's really not suitable for 2 people. We had initially tried to book the Kendall room because we wanted the private bathroom - it turned out not to be available, so they staff suggested Hemingway instead. I would have appreciated if the staff had made it clear how small the bed was when we were emailing, although I should also have double checked this. Anyway - bed aside the room was fine. Small, but clean - also, we never had a problem with access to the bathrooms, and the location of the Annex is stellar. Check in was easy, and all in all we would have been happy here EXCEPT that the bed was so bad. After the first night, we asked to move and the staff were quick to offer a solution. This involved moving to the India room at the Spring Street location. The location is not as good as the Annex, but otherwise the place was fine. We were in the middle house, which was quiet and quite charming. The room and bed were both larger and therefore better for us than the Hemingway. HOWEVER - the bed was still hugely uncomfortable. I woke up in pain both nights, and the beds are also very loud and creaky so I disturbed my husband every time I moved trying to get comfortable. The beds were the main problem with this place, but there are a couple of other things to mention as well. As others have pointed out, the locations are not staffed outside of office hours 5pm-10pm. This means if you have small issues you're stuck with them overnight - for instance, in both rooms, there were spare pillows, but no pillow case. So you either had to use the pillow without a case, or do without. Also, in the middle house at Spring Street, there is no light in the kitchen/communal area - you access the India room through this area so if you're coming back at night, you have to fumble in the dark. It just seemed a bit odd and potentially dangerous. These both seem like they'd be so easily fixed and would make a big difference. This place is not for everyone - as others have said, it's definitely a hostel, not a cheap hotel alternative. For us, the beds made it a bad option and I wish we'd spent a bit more to stay in a hotel. read more

A friend and I stayed for two nights. I would give the first night a one star and the second night a four star. We arrived really late on Friday and the check-in was easy and convenient. It was a bit disconcerting that the code to the door was posted on a post-it when we got there... If the code is written, what is the use of a lock? We stayed in the India room and it was ... filthy. We know we were staying at a hostel, but hair in our (I am assuming newly cleaned) sheets and all over the corners of the room. After taking all of the hair off of the sheets and lying down, the mattress was uncomfortable. It definitely sagged in the middle and creaked at every turn. It would have been an easy vacuum job to fix the excessive hair inside of the room. The bathroom that we shared with another room was clean and much better. The second night, we stayed in the co-ed dorm. This, surprisingly, was a much better experience. The dorms room was much cleaner (maybe because it had a much higher turnover) and it actually had much more comfortable beds. I think it was 7/8 full and the noise was minimal throughout our stay. The only reason I would take a star off is due to the restrooms and because I have a bruise from falling out of my bunk while trying to get down due to a missing rung in the ladder. Partially my fault, but it definitely would help if there was a better ladder for a more petite person to get up and down. The restrooms were pretty clean, but there were TWO for way too many people and rooms. While waiting for a shower wasn't a big deal, there was nowhere to run if one had to use the toilet. It would be great if they had a separate half bath for people to use the toilet since it took me over 25 minutes in the morning which was the longest 25 minutes I have ever spent. Breakfast was simple and pretty good (bagels and spread from Costco it looked like). Parking was an issue the first night since we had two cars, but we wedged ourselves into make shift parking spots and did not have to move our cars until we left. There is a free trolley shuttle about a block away and everything is within walking distance. You can even walk to the Battery if you take your time which is not a problem because there is so much to see along that route. All-in-all, I would like to think that the first night was a bit off for Notso due to the dirty private room. For the dorm room, it was definitely worth it. This is perfect for people who aren't too finicky and are traveling with friends or alone. My favorite was being able to walk everywhere. read more

Better than I expected. Two negatives stand out: (1) the ladder to my top bunk was not secure and came off while I was climbing (2) there's no shared communal space so it's kind of hard to hang out and meet people... which is half of the fun of staying in a hostel. That said the staff and people I met were super friendly. read more

EXCELLENT STAY and a true gem in Charleston. From the staff to the great people you'll meet and the awesome location, you'll never go wrong at Notsohostel. I found the place on blind luck but let me tell you, I'll always remember my stay and I'll look forward to another visit. Thank you everyone @ Notsohostel for a great stay. The entire place is warm and very accommodating to say the least. You can not go wrong with your value for dollar here, DO NOT MISS breakfast, not just for the food but it's a great chance to meet and greet your fellow travelers. I actually miss the vibe...so if you have your choice of places to stay in Charleston make it this place, you won't regret it read more

Stayed here not too long ago. In terms of a hostel, it is one of the nicest places I have stayed at. Personally, I am a more private person, so I really liked having a private room. It was really clean and had a really nice bathroom. The bed was really comfortable. It was super easy to check in and out. Thanks for the stay :) Yay! The only problem I had was that the doorbell is audible in the rooms and might wake you up if you are sleeping. They have earplugs, but I didn't notice this before I went to bed. read more

I've stayed at the NotSo Hostel twice. Both times enjoyed my stay. I was a little concerned as check in is after 5pm but a day or two before my stay I received an email telling me all the info I would need to park my car, get into the hostel, find my way around. Communal breakfast in the morning is not only tasty but a great way to met other travellers/get tips for cool things to do in town. A little bit of a walk to down town (15-20 minutes) but there is a free trolley car just a few blocks away. Staff were helpful and any questions/queries I had were answered. I would stay there again and happily recommend it to others. read more

Wonderful, charming hostel! This is the perfect place for people who want to visit Charleston on a budget. We stayed in a private room in the main house in late April. The staff was very friendly and provided excellent suggestions about where to eat in Charleston. We loved the large porches, general ambiance, and accessibility to downtown Charleston. The room did get a little hot because there's no AC, just a few fans. Because we were there in April, the heat was manageable. read more

Best way to see Charleston, hands down, is with a stay at the notso hostel. Beautiful old town houses with character, friendly staff and friendly fellow guests make this a great experience. Both staff members are knowledgeable about the town and helpful with suggestions for cool things to do. A special thanks to Bailey for her help renting the bikes and great advice about fun places to go in town. If you're looking for a super ritzy place, or are an old grouch unwilling to meet some cool fellow travelers, perhaps you should stay elsewhere. But if you're looking for an economical way to see charleston while staying at a down to earth place and meet some cool people from all over the world, this is the spot read more

Great place to sleep for cheap. I've stayed twice. Friendly staff and a cozy atmosphere. its clean and they provide a simple breakfast. Close to downtown Charleston for entertainment. Bikes are available for use while you are staying there. read more

So this was my first hostel experience. My husband and I stayed in the Kendall room which is at the annex on Cannon Street. We had our own bathroom, small fridge, and microwave. The dedicated (free!) parking space was a bonus. The room is very small but we were not there too much so that didn't matter. There is a kitchen and a living space but on our short visit we didn't utilize the space. We could have gone to the Spring Street site for breakfast but didn't as there are great bakeries very close by! Nicole was very helpful when we checked in and offered some suggestions on places to eat. We were easily able to walk to all the things we wanted to do. This worked for us on this trip. I don't know if we would utilize the hostel again but that is more because we would be traveling with our children in the future rather than by ourselves. read more

Charleston's hottest hostel is Notso Hostel! I couldn't have enjoyed my stay more. The staff was friendly. Bailey was so helpful and sweet. She was very thorough in her explanations of the maps and gave great suggestions. The Annex facilities were clean (I stayed in the Kingsoliver room). Free breakfast, parking in a private lot, and wifi were included - what more could you need?! The location was within walking distance of lots of nightlife and shopping. I would definitely return and recommend to all my friends. read more

The most homey hostel I've stayed in. The hosts are the coolest people, making a great introduction to the friendly culture of Charleston. The two houses (I stayed a couple nights in each) feel like real homes where you could stay for years, furnished with comfortable and elegant furniture. For ~$30/night for a dorm bed, the price is right. The breakfast features local and organic coffee, toast, and jam. Can't complain about gettin' your day off to a good start. The vibe in the winter time was just right -- social, but quiet and relaxing. read more

Wonderful staff, excellent rooms and accommodations, free breakfast, wi-fi, laundry service, this place is awesome. You can make friends here from all over the world (and I did). I will definitely be back here! Until we meet again read more

Initially, I was going to give this hostel a raving review. The bed was comfortable, the rooms were clean and quiet, the girls I was sharing the dorm with were friendly, and the bathroom was modern and spotless. One of the hostel staff kindly showed me around when I arrived prior to check in and gave me tips on where to go. I had no trouble checking in and all in all, everything I needed from a hostel in a price range I could afford. However, the next night I had the harrowing experience of a drunken guest and the drunken hostel staff member stumbling into the room at 3am, loud and boisterous. I don't really care what people do after hours, but this was a woman's dorm, and it was the middle of the night (as middle as it gets) that they had bombarded into the dorm. Nonetheless, after I posted this review regarding this incident, the hostel management reached out to me and acknowledged the blunder, and tried to make amends. In retrospect, I had a great stay notwithstanding that incident, and the hostel management's response has been professional and proactive. read more

Only two bathrooms are available to the entire hostel, so you'd better enjoy standing in long lines to use them. Even better is that the bathrooms are directly connected to the kitchens...so every smell from the bathroom floods into the kitchen and vice versa. Disgusting. Additionally when I woke up this morning and was about to take the sheets off as per their instructions (yes, the hostel asks you to do your own laundry, like they were paying you to stay there...not like you were overpaying 70 dollars to share 2 bathrooms with 14 random people) there was a unidentified 10 inch in diameter stain under my pillow from a previous guest, your guess is as good as mine what I was breathing in all night. This place is overpriced and ill equipped to accommodate the bathroom needs of full occupancy. Gross experience. read more

I really enjoyed my time at NotSo Hostel! The houses are beautiful upkept pre-war homes turned hostel, kitchens stocked with everything you need to cook, and a great social environment. The staff were helpful and made recommendations for what to do in the area. Overall loved the hostel and will definitely return in the future! read more

This hostel is one of the best American hostels I have ever encountered. The staff is extremely caring and the hostel has tons of character. Between the VHS player, the fire pit, and the historic porches the NotSo Hostel really has a way of bringing the traveling community together. You'll find nothing but love and kindness here. I had a great time meeting people from all over the world. read more

This was some of the best and most genuine hospitality I have experienced in quite some time (and I work in the hospitality industry). There was a small mix up in the reservation booking that double booked the room and I did not end up getting it for the night I had hoped. Vikki contacted me immediately, apologized, and started working on finding me a new place. With a couple of phone calls I was set for my time in Charleston. They took care of my reservation for me, in a hotel in an awesome location. While I can't remark on the comfort of the beds or space, I'm sure they are nice considering the kind people taking care of the hostel. Next time I'm going to book them sooner so I'm sure to get a spot, this place fills up quick! Thanks Vikki, for being so accommodating read more

Nice hostel at a good location and at a nice price. I got a bed in a twobunkbed room and had no problems at all. Clean and nice bathrooms and kitchens too. All in all a very nice place for a night or two in beautiful Chaleston read more

Nice location, large bedroom (for the india room). Breakfast a 9am is a little too late Good price. read more

LIKED IT A LOT! I stayed in NotSoHostel at the end of June 2012, in the Cyprus Room in the middle house. The bedroom, bathroom and kitchen were just lovely, BATHROOM was about twice as big as I have at home! :-) What I appreciated was big mirror in there - not everywhere! Overall very clean and simple and just gorgeous. You can also borrow towel for 1 buck. In the KITCHEN there was everything you needed for cooking (well, somebody was all the time stealing matches, so I had to run to the main house every single time I wanted to cook or heat something to get more matches - you are welcome, unknown smoker! :-)). BEDROOM was really neat, clean and nice, beds were comfy, I just loved their sheets, very colourful and fun! I always left too early to try their breakfast (bagels and muffins), but I heard it was pretty good. The hostel is in nice neighberhood, you can walk to close Piggly Wiggly (10 min) or to King Street very easily and there is also pretty decent bus system to take you downtown. read more

We stayed at the Not So Hostel Annex for two nights, about a week ago. The best thing about the Annex was the location, two blocks from King Street. Our room was named 'Kingsolver' and the bed was just awful. Paper thin mattress with no box spring, and the frame was super squeaky. You couldn't move a touch without being woken up from the noise. The room was in the front of the house, on a loud and busy street. If you choose to stay here, request a room in the back. Sadly, the toilet was unreliable, and wouldn't flush on more than one occasion. The man who checked us in at the main building was extremely friendly and welcoming, but we did not receive the same treatment from the woman working in the Annex. Upon our arrival, we opened the door to an adorable little dog greeting us, just as the woman came up, grabbed the dog, and shut her bedroom door behind her. Not a word passed between us. Very strange. While a bit further off of King Street, maybe the experience at the main building is better for guests than ours was at the Annex. read more

This place was disgusting, once we got to our room the sheets and pillow covers smelled terrible, so we decided to wash them, BUT there was already bedding in the washing machine sitting wet, unattended. So after finishing THEIR laundry and folding it for them, we were able to wash our stuff. We swept our room and the kitchen and got piles of dirt that looked like the place hadn't been swept in months. My wife pulled a ball of hair out of the KITCHEN sink. Coffee was spilled all over the kitchen as well. It was very clear the restrooms had not been clean in a very long time as well. We were told there would be bagels for breakfast, but there was 1/2 a bagel for the entire house. I understand it's a hostel and you're staying there because it's cheap but you can occasionally clean the place! read more

They made it LOOK and SOUND like you were getting a nice comfy room and meeting great friends. Instead it seemed more like a prison cell. NOT exaggerating here. Incredibly tight quarters, staff was really unhelpful and when I tried to bring it up the manager lady, she blew it off. Tip: go elsewhere! Place was disgusting read more

I've stayed at hostels overseas and some of the franchised ones in Chicago, plus a few independent hostels around the U.S.. The Not So Hostel is, in some ways, the best experience I've had at an American hostel. First off, the place draws an eclectic crowd -- multiple nationalities and age groups represented during my 3-night stay. That turns into robust discussion around the kitchen table. But the place also draws some (emphasize SOME) clients who are just looking for cheap accommodations and don't really get what a hostel is. I'm not going to be dramatic and say they ruin the experience for others, but the truth is these people (or other guests) can be loud or somehow annoying. Now, maybe that just sounds like any hostel anywhere, right? No. The Not So Hostel is in an old house. The floors creak like crazy. The metal bunkbeds rattle like crazy. So you really have to exercise a degree of courtesy to your fellow guest. If you sleep lightly, absolutely bring your best ear plugs. Now... breakfast is good -- bagels and coffee -- and free. Showers are hot. Two laundry stations are available. WiFi is great on first floor, barely reaches the second floor. Lockers in closets are a little hard to access due to the closet door, etc. The people who work here, though, are the best! I met Bailey on Day 1. Nice, if a little cool (as in cool to warming up to people). But Victoria (the manager) knows what she's doing in terms of customer service. As does Terra, an absolute gem who is lovely to talk to and truly brightened up one of my mornings just by being herself (super wide smiles and bubbly personality). The neighborhood looks super-sketchy when you arrive, but nothing odd happened. Very close to very good food, grocery, etc. Basically, look forward to your Euro-style hostel stay while in Charleston. read more

Our stay here was very mixed so I'll just stick with the pros and cons: Pros: * We were told we could drop off bags off as early as we liked and use the hostel's living room and bathrooms while we waited for check in time, which we took full advantage of. * Breakfast was really nice. * We were disturbed after quiet hours and the group respectfully moved straight away when they realised we were trying to sleep. Cons: * The check-in time is ludicrously late. After waiting for hours (we arrived on a 5:30am train, dropped our bags, went into the city and came back at about noon) we asked the staff member, Tara, at 4:30 if we could have our key and she informed us that she'd lost the key to the manager's house so she couldn't get the room key for us. We ended up not being able to get into our room until 6pm. But the most galling part was that we were sitting on the veranda waiting for her to find and bring the key up to us, and both Tara and the manager walked past us TWICE and completely ignored us. Assuming that this meant they hadn't found the key we waited for another 20 minutes before going ask what was happening. Turns out they'd found it and just hadn't bothered to tell us! * The room - the India room - was filthy. * You have to make your own bed. * We got an early night because we'd had no sleep on the train and were woken up to a group having a gathering in the kitchen right outside our room at 10:30. Not that late, but after "Quiet Time" which all the many posters claim is strictly enforced. I walked out of the room and saw that Tara, the staff member we'd encountered earlier, was one of the group! I'd thought they were being noisy because they didn't realise there were people in our room but Tara obviously did. Give that girl a medal for worst customer service ever! Ultimately, I would never stay here again. We've travelled around the world for 3 years and stayed in countless hostels, and I've come to the conclusion that the only thing that makes this hostel special is that its the only one in town. Other than that its identical to every hostel you'll encounter in South America/East Asia, but with unfriendly staff and more expensive rates. read more

SKETCHY. AS. HELL. We were only there for about 15 minutes and felt SUPER uncomfortable and left and will NEVER come back. Felt like a meth house. read more

Great place to stay. Stayed 2 nights for the Cooper Bridge Run. Great price. Hailey was great.

Best hostel I've ever been to. The staff is friendly and accommodating and the location is perfect! There are also adorable cats named Luna and Leo who roam around the hostel welcoming people. Thanks! Will definitely be back! read more

Staying at the Not So Hostel was one of the best experiences of my life. The location, the atmosphere, the staff, the accommodations - it was all fantastic. There was a friendly vibe among guests and the town's history, all within walking distance, was amazing. I recommend walking to King Street, the marketplace, and waterfront park, where we saw dolphins in the wild. The hostel itself is clean, comfortable, and cozy. I highly recommend the Not So Hostel! read more

I visited Notso Hostel while in town for a conference. They have 2 locations, the main one on Spring and an 'annex' on Cannon. I stayed in both. The main house has all the rooms upstairs with two kitchens and 3 baths downstairs. There's also another building with dorms as well and a nice fire pit in the back. The annex is all private rooms and has a bed and breakfast feel. The room I had was upstairs and it was very comfortable and especially quiet which I much appreciated. There's a living room and kitchen downstairs making it easy to prep your own meal or just hang out or work. There was oatmeal and coffee/tea available. I don't drink coffee but other guests said it was very good. Both locations are convenient with the Cannon one have a number of nearby places to eat and/or drink. The hostel owner, Vikki, is full of energy as is her "#1" (star trek reference..) Bailey. They were great hostesses and made the place comfy. If you're looking for budget-friendly lodging and a relaxed atmosphere, then check Notso Hostel out. read more

For the price you pay here, you get a decent place to stay in a really perfect location. Given how expensive hotels in charleston are and the fact that I was only looking for a clean place to sleep and shower that was in walking distance to all of downtown, the location was amazing. It's nothing fancy and you really shouldn't expect too much, but that's what all hostels are like, so I'm not sure why so many people have been giving this place such negative reviews. You get what you pay for. read more