HI Beja - Pousada de Juventude

Wasn't sure what to expect as we had made the booking through a third party site & it was pay on arrival but the hostel asked for payment beforehand & said they would cancel the booking if the payment wasn't made. I gave them my credit card number but they said it didn't work and in the meantime the third party agency intervened so the hostel agreed to collect the payment when we arrived. Wasn't a great start and we weren't sure what the issue was as it was non-refundable so they would have got the payment anyway. We stayed for 2 nights. Check-in is only at 6pm which is pretty late but we arrived early and were able to check in which was much appreciated. There was free parking on site, and also seemed to be on the streets nearby. Room was basic, but spacious and clean with ample storage space. We were given nice & soft towels as well as two small bars of soap & two rolls of toilet paper. There was a good-sized balcony so we could hang our washing out. No TV in the room but there is a living room near the kitchen where people can watch TV if they want. The mattresses were the old spring variety so not the most comfortable but we were so tired the first night, we were just knocked out! There was aircon in the room but we just slept with the balcony door ajar. It was pretty quiet when we were there so there weren't kids running up and down the corridor as we had feared! Breakfast was included in the price & started at 830 till 1030. There were 2 kinds of bread - a white bread roll & sliced rye (?) bread - 3 cereals, ham, cheese, peach & strawberry jams and honey. There were also fruit (apples and pears) and muffins. The toaster takes a while to brown the bread so it's a long wait but other than that the breakfast, while simple, was good enough to start the day with & the coffee was pretty good. Location of the hostel was good. It's in a quiet residential area near the coach station and a short walk into town. There were a few eateries at the station though most places were closed on Sunday, both at the station and in town, so foodie options were kinda limited. The municipal swimming pool is nearby which is convenient. Overall, we liked the stay as it was a good base for us. We spent some time in Beja & also did a day trip and visited Serpa, Moura & the Alqueva Dam. If you're visiting Beja, give the youth hostel a try and relive your backpacking days 😁😁😁😁 We would not hesitate to return should we visit Beja again in future!