Backpacking in Warsaw, Poland: My Stay at the Famous Oki Doki Hostel

Readers of my blog will be extremely surprised to hear that I didn’t stay in a hostel in Warsaw until November 2016. It was my fourth visit to the city (fifth if you count a train change) and on all previous visits, I had stayed in hotels, nurses quarters or with friends. I honed in on the best hostel in the city because of this and was delighted to connect online with the Oki Doki Hostel. The Oki Doki Hostel is named among “Europe’s Famous Hostels“, a group which I have experience sleeping in and writing about – including Cat’s Hostel in Madrid and Abraham Hostel in Jerusalem.

Oki Doki is a hostel brimming in history, textbook hostel culture and with a young, enthusiastic manager who enjoyed my story and was willing to meet up at a time when not every hostel manager would find the time. It was Magdalena who helped organise my stay at this quirky hostel – this is where you must stay if you are backpacking in Warsaw, Poland’s hugely under-rated capital.

A city of pure fire charm, a destructive history, Chopin’s pianos and an up and coming pub and café scene away from the horrors of American capitalism. Warsaw could be your city. Remember that self penned song? This a present from Stalin’s reign…

Top 5 Reasons to book your stay here at the Oki Doki Hostel when you are backpacking in Warsaw!!!

1.Quirky Themed Rooms
Wow just wow is what you will say when you learn that each room has a different theme! A great idea. I had the pleasure of staying in rooms of different themes. Including the cool Newspaper (Gazetka) Dorm.

I won’t spoil all the surprises for you but there is a football themed room, a newspaper themed room, a Danish room. It’s a cool idea, something similar to the 10 Coins Hostel in Sofia, Bulgaria.

2.Great Staff
With manager Magdalena welcoming me to the hostel and great staff Ola, Ania and Ilona always happy to help, the staff make you feel at home here and they want to help you enjoy Warsaw. The staff are also mostly Polish, so if you want a chance to practice the language or learn more about the culture, you can also chat to them.

3.Four Floors of History
The History of the Oki Doki Hostel is interesting. If you have time, you should read up on it. The building dates back to 1920s and later this place became Warsaw’s first backpackers hostel after the fall of communism of course.

4.Backpackers Bar
Most decent hostels have their own bar and when you find out that a draught beer is only 5 zloty on Happy Hour (£1), you’ll be hard pushed to leave. After a few of these with your new mates, you will be ready to hit the town and Warsaw is brimming with bars, restaurants, cafes and clubs to suit all tastes. As a bonus, showing your wristband from Oki Doki Hostel gets you discount in some of the venues in and around the city – pick up a map at reception for details.

The backpackers bar is also the venue for the breakfast, which is worth it – all you can eat for 15 zloty (£3).

5.Social Events
Due to the fact that the hostel has lots of beds, and a lively bar, the place gets busy and there is always something happening. From themed nights in the bar, to tours of the city to pub crawls, check out the social events and meet some new people.

As well as all this, there is laundry on the top floor, a kitchen, fast WiFi which even worked in the dorms, clean toilets and just a feel good vibe. Make this your choice when you are a cheap backpacker in Warsaw.

Here are the details for booking the Oki Doki Hostel, Warsaw:
http://www.okidoki.pl/
Facebook Page Oki Doki Hostel
Hostel OkiDoki
Plac Dąbrowskiego 3, 00-057 Warszawa
tel.: 0048 22 826 51 12
[email protected]

Here are some of my other articles from Backpacking in Poland, not just this trip but previous visits:
– Cycling with Mika in Gdańsk and Sopot
– Visiting the Polish Post Office where World War II began
– Touring the Murals of Zaspa in Gdansk
– Pub Crawl in Gdansk
– Visiting Westerplatte Where World War II Began
– Visiting Stutthof
– Food Tour with Eat Polska in Gdynia
– Backpacking in Starogard Gdański
– Backpacking in Tczew
– Backpacking in Pelplin
– Backpacking in Bydgoszcz
– This A Present from Stalin’s Reign
– Warsaw Skies They Won’t Rain on You
– Auschwitz Part 1 – Auschwitz
– Auschwitz Part 2 – Birkenau
– Backpacking in Krakow
– Backpacking in Poznan
– My Stay at Mosquito Hostel, Krakow
– My Stay at Poco Loco Hostel, Poznan
– Night train from Krakow to Lviv, Ukraine
– Touring the Sand Dunes at Łeba

Here are some videos of my stay at the Oki Doki Hostel, Warsaw: