Casa Vida Verde

Location:
Gonzalo Noriega N39-221 y Gaspar de Villaroel
Northern Quito - the "New Town", Quito, Ecuador

Hotel

V!VA User‘s Description

Casa Vida Verde is an attractive fully furnished residential hostel. It was created to provide a safe and comfortable residence for foreign students, workers and tourists who would like both independence and the opportunity to socialise with others. Nightly and long term stays available. Both English and Spanish are spoken. The hostel has a great view of Quito and the mountains from the roof-top terrace and a huge kitchen with all essential items. All bills are included in the cost of a room, and all cleaning costs are included with the exception of your dish washing, which you are expected to do yourself.

The following facilities are offered: comfortable beds (no bunks), security guards outside 24/7, laundry service (for an extra charge), TV, DVD player and many DVDs, garden, airport pickup, information service and volunteer work information, Spanish lessons arranged and wireless internet. The hostel has 3 large private rooms with bathroom, desk and wardrobe that can sleep 1-2 persons ($14 nightly or $220 monthly), one shared room with 4 beds, a walk-in wardrobe, desk and large bathroom ($4 pp nightly or $90 monthly), a rooftop cabana with a desk, wardrobe and bathroom (for 1-2 persons, $14 nightly or $200 monthly), a private room with an outside bathroom (for 1 person - $7 nightly or $140 monthly) and a single room with a private bathroom for one person ($9 nightly or $165 monthly) 

English Teaching

If you have experience teaching English or a teaching certificate, we can help arrange work. Often we have teachers staying with us and we have contacts with nearby English schools and institutions that are always looking for teachers who can commit for at least a few months. Pay is between $5 and $10 an hour.

This Hotel is: Budget

Hotel Amenities, Services and Facilities Community Kitchen, Laundry Service, Internet Facilities - Charge, Travel Info Desk, Lounge, Book Exchange - Free, Luggage Storage, Non-Smoking Rooms, 24-Hour Hot Water

Getting There:
Near Quicentro Shopping Centre (10 min walk), 10-15 ecovia bus ride from Mariscal Area. Get off at Los Sauces stop near dominos pizza. Walk up Villaroel 3 blocks, Noriega is on the right.

Room Prices:
Lower:$7
Higher:$14
Price Description:Price includes tax

Contact Information:
Phone: 02 2260471
E-mail: info(at)remove-this.vidaverde.com
URL: www.hosteltimes.com

Traveler Reviews of Casa Vida Verde

Awesome value

Rating: 100%

I have stayed at Vida Verde for the last two months and have had a great time. The rooms are all spacious and the people really cool and friendly, and there are always people moving in and out which makes it a social place to live- I have made some really good friends there. Removed from the bustle of the Mariscal, the house offers a different experience to the gringo party nightlife you might get elsewhere, but it is homely and safe and a warm place to come home to at night with great views of the city- particularly from the roof terrace.

By V!VA User from London, UK, Aug 30, 2006

Great place to stay.

Rating: 100%

I have been at Casa Vida Verde for 3 months while working in Quito. It's cheap and easy living. I pay my fees by the month and I dont have to worry about the utility bills. There are always new people moving in and out so it's a great place to meet new folks. The management are responsible, flexable and easy and to deal with. Also having the wirless internet in the hostel has been a big plus for me. One draw back is the lack of a party atmosphere, if your looking for a place to stay where people are up all hours of the night then Vida Verde is not for you. Otherwise, I have really enjoyed my stay here and would gladly recomend it anyone visiting Quito.

By V!VA User from Tampa, United States, Sep 14, 2006

Casa Vida Verde - some good & bad

Rating: 50%

I had an approximate two-month stay at Casa Vida Verde around the later part of 2006. I have to say that in general I was pleased with my experience there and whatever criticisms I write here are long overdue but also outdated and possibly inaccurate (as of November 2007). The location had a much safer feeling to it while walking about day or night. That can't be said for other areas of Quito, especially the most popular Mariscal (Gringolandia) or Centro Histórico (Old Town). The other small streets around it are tranquil with security guard booths almost block by block. The main boulevards within just a block or two are busy, noisy, air polluted (mostly by buses), and very dangerous vehicular traffic. Pedestrians are clearly second-class citizens. What is lacking in the immediate area are the many cheap eateries to explore outside your doorstep like other hostels are likely to have. Quicentro which is an upscale shopping center roughly a 15 minute walk away has KFC, TGIF, etc. as well as a not-so-cheap food court. Inside, the big house of Casa Vida Verde is overall good with nice views from the rooftop and some rental rooms. The management/owners appeared to be friendly and certainly helpful. My biggest complaint would be the kitchen facilities and the Internet service. The kitchen size was adequate with 2 refrigerators, enough counter space, lots of cabinets, and a nice view of the western neighborhoods, mountains, and low-flying aircrafts descending towards the airport. Kitchen supplies were poor in general. The pots and pans for cooking were usually broken and of lower quality. Kitchen necessities which did exist were mostly donated by various long-term guests who found it more convenient to buy particular items than complain about what should be expected in a hostel's accommodation. I actually started to wonder if the owners were expecting to stock the kitchen in this manner. Kitchen counters as well as utensils would often go unwashed after use for the better part of a day (or longer). I was quite surprised there wasn't a cockroach problem I experienced at a seemingly cleaner hostel. Occasionally there had been feeble half-hearted attempts by the management to improve the situation. The original live-in manager appeared to have put a decent effort into the improving the establishment until he left to pursue opening his own hostel. The replacement manager was family of the business's owners with little experience or devotion to the facility since (I believe) she already had a full-time job during the day as a Spanish teacher. In turn they hired an outside person (likely a low-paid person who most the guests or tenants didn't know) to come in periodically to sweep, clean, vacuum, wash, resupply, etc. Regarding the Internet service, I realize that it was a newer perk at the time (Oct-Dec '06) offered by fewer hotels and hostels. That of course should be rapidly changing as the competition will otherwise get the business of the foreigners who want it. This service was first introduced to Casa Vida Verde by a long term guest who sought to cut his own expenses by sharing his wireless broadband with other supportive household members. When that guest left (taking his wireless router with him), many of the others wanted to have that service carried onwards, including the new manager. While giving lip service to continuing the household internet policy, the management didn't appear committed to it as they left the guests to have to figure out the various problems (frequent down times, inadequate bandwidth for the up to 7 or more household users at a time, promptly finding service representatives & communicating with them as needed, installing equipment, configuring access, etc). In fairness though, I can't say that at that time if internet access was advertised as one of the hostel's selling points. To one of the later guests, it clearly was a promised service. There wasn't likely to be any complaints since almost all of the longer term guests were busy in school, working, or out and about doing other things. They were mostly between 18 and 30 years of age without the experience of what to expect nor having the know how to demand that services could or need to be better. Of course, who am I to complain ? Truthfully though and aside from my own inhibitions, I didn't feel I was there "long term enough" to merit such assertiveness nor had I really intended to stay there as long as I did. It is very possible that by now (almost a year later), some or all of these complaints, criticisms, or concerns have been addressed and alleviated. I hope others will follow-up a report to this saying the items I pointed out have indeed changed for the better. If and when I return there, I will try to be more prompt with a report. I would like to know that this place has improved because I did like it and knew it had decent potential.

By V!VA User from USA, Nov 19, 2007