The Kitchen Hostel Ao

The location

Yes, I had bed 40 the first time I stayed and was able to sleep. This last time I had bed 46, it was awful - I could hear the toilets flushing, upstairs neighbors, outside noise and it was miserable. Repeat guests should be treated to the better bunks.

Relaxing and chill

The environment is different from most hostels - nothing I did not like.

they gave me a refund for my second night when I left on day one

They keep the lights on all night in the dorms was super bright and loud. I booked two nights and left after the first night

It was very clean, staff were really nice, great location in Naha, comfy atmosphere and quiet!

Not as social but depends on preference, I enjoyed it!

Location, walkable from 2 monorail stations :)

No free Coffee or Sugar ;)

Everything was good, clean facilities, great location, extremely helpful staff

Nice location. Clean space. Comfortable amenities.

Second time to stay here! Very close to the areas I wanna go to! Not hassle to go to at all! Just walking distance to the bus station and train station too! Staff here are generally nice and attentive despite the language barrier for some! I speak enough Japanese to survive so it wasn’t a problem for me. The staff were patient enough! I love how I can meet friends easily around Kokusai dori and just ride along with them to places I wanna go to that are outside of Naha! It felt amazing to be there that time cause I was able to see a cultural parade in the middle of Kokusai Dori that time I was there!

At times it can be hot and the aircon isn’t cold. But it’s not too hassle for me since I don’t stay long at the hostel. Breakfast is separate pay but I didn’t avail it since I wanted other things like the spam onigiri or taco rice! Also, sometimes the toilets are not as clean, but I think that has more to do with the guests leaving it messy than the staff’s fault.

Good location, shared facilities were kept clean. Although the room is massive with lots of beds, it was fairly comfortable and clean.

There are only small areas to socialize so it’s not super easy to meet people

super close to public transit! While no free breakfast have an amazing deal that’s under 500 yen for a drink egg salad and toast! lots of people in one room however it feels like a 4 person room the way it’s layed out is really great and spacious and having a whole room for lockers really helped keep things clean and tidy. They ask you to give your locker key to the front desk when you leave for the day to help prevent its loss & I hated this at first until i realized how smart it is, prevents the stress of keeping track of another thing and the staff always is there to warmly greet you and give it to you when you come back.

the lock for the rooms changes each day - although I find the safety of this great - I personally prefer a key system- but totally not something that would prevent me from booking again. if your female and stay in the mixed room you have to leave the area connected to the rooms and lockers and enter another code to get to the female area - there is one toliet on the mixed side for females but because it’s closest men where constantly using it… Id prefer the men’s toilets maybe just be mixed ? but I do understand why the separation

It's fancy, clean and quiet place, all nice except the light on the bed is kind of dim. The location is great.

All the stuff are friendly and polite except the lady with headscarf, she is more like a strict and serious Director of teaching and discipline rather than a receptionist, The hostel needs a kind and friendly person to do the job

This place was a great location and was very clean. Loved that they also had the cafe downstairs. Everyone was quiet in the rooms so it was nice and relaxing and the showers were spotless as well as great necessities. Lockers were also huge which was nice with bags and suitcases.

The free space was always filled with people clothes or bags when they didn’t need to which resulted in not being able to relax outside my bunk. The staff were okay. They seem kind of cold like they didn’t want to deal with me even when I spoke Japanese which felt a little odd at times, I think I only got a smile or thank you when I checked out not even when I checked in but I might have just been the persons resting face. Also the day I checked out they stated that cleaning started at 11 when checkout was but after I ate breakfast around 10 they already went up and stripped my bed so it felt as if I was being pushed out when I still had an hour. Not a big deal at all but it left me feeling kind of odd.

Wow! I didn't expect I would love this hostel this much.It looked pretty in the pictures, but I didn't know it was so comfortable, clean and spacious. I was in the female dorm, and even though there were a lot of girls I could sleep like a baby because the dorm is huge, and the lockers are located outside of the dorm. There was one spare room to be there when you don't want to sleep. The bathroom was also spacious and very clean! I loved the energy of the place too, and I think it's because of the stuff and no unnecessary rules. Everybody was so kind.They have breakfast for a little money, different types of toasted bread, I liked it too.The location - top notch, close to the station, close to the airport, close to the city, next to convenience stores.There wasn't a single thing that I didn't like. The price was unbeatable.

Perfect location to go out and explore Naha and go to the port to take the ferries to the smaller islands. The facilities were clean, and in general, the whole stay was really good. The staff was friendly. Overall I definitely recommend it if it's your first time in Naha or you want to live mostly the nightlife in Kokusai-dori

The bed was not very comfy, even having the light and power sockets at the end of the bed. I read reviews about this hostel having a sort of "community' vibe to meet people, but I did not feel like that.

Location is perfect. Most of the staff. Excellent for socializing with other travelers.

The tall skinny female staff was the only rude japanese person I met in a month in all of Japan. Rude to me, ride to many other travelers. Also it took a week for them to shift beds as I requested. Get a bed in mix dorm that is not along the same wall as the toilets. Get a bed that is on the bottom because as they did not bother to put more than a piece of plywood between the toilets they also did not put a full capsule on the top bunks so you had with lot of noise from other travelers.

It was in a dope area about a 7 minutes walking away from the main area and vibes. There’s A LOT of people in a room which can make it a bit difficult to have space. I did like the lockers, there was ample shower and bathroom space. Overall, nice and good for a few days of my trip.

I genuinely hate paying for towels. I paid to stay here, so I feel like it’s not a stretch to have a towel included.

Comfortable, quiet and clean! Loved the atmosphere. Convenient location close to train and convenience stores.

Nice and clean, excellent shared space, 24h reception was great.

The mixed room is usually full of men, so if a woman gets there, some people may be surprised.

The dorms area is pretty packed, but it's also ok, you have good privacy, and for the price it's definitely worth it.The overall facilities of the hostel were pretty good, the staff was nice, and the location is very convenient.It's a nice budget option in Naha, and a great option.

Way better than my first visit there months ago. This time around, it was much cleaner, despite there being more people. The lockers are nice size, and the laundry machines work well, there's enough sinks and showers, and the beds are firm (which I prefer). The location is decent, and the price is the best bang for the buck. People aren't really sociable there, however I bought some special kitkats and started handing them out to some guests and I used that as a way to socialize.

The towels to rent are incredibly thin, and although the mattresses are good, the pillows aren't, and the beds make a lot of noise.