During our first couple of days in La Paz, we were hoping to find a place that checked two boxes for us: 1) had hot showers, and 2) was within walking distance to the city’s malecon. After looking at another RV campground that had initially looked promising online, we decided to try staying at a hostel instead. I know — the title of this post says it’s campground review. Well, it is! Hang with me for a minute.
The Campground
While you could say that Peace Hostel doesn’t quite fit the bill as a campground, we still wanted to give it a try given that it wasn’t too far from the malecon and had pretty good reviews. When we arrived, I wasn’t quite sure what to think. It’s a tiny property, without a ton of room for a big ol’ van like ours. Fortunately, appearances can be deceiving, and we were assured that the Beast would fit perfectly fine in the hostel’s parking area. Tucked into the corner of the lot is a gravel area for tents, or you can stay in a private room or the shared dorm rooms.
As I mentioned in our La Paz post, we weren’t at the hostel for very long when the owner Silvia came in with a litter of stray puppies she had found earlier in the day. Our hearts melted instantly! Many of the tourists staying at the hostel pulled together things for the pups — a cardboard box, blankets, dog food and bowls. Levi and Harvey had the best time playing with the puppies and getting to know some of the ladies helping behind the scenes.
Speaking of the people here — they’re fantastic! All of the staff were super friendly and fun to talk to. The owner Silvia is also amazing! We had some good laughs over dirty Mexican sayings while enjoying a few of the beers from the cold fridge. It’s evident that Silvia really cares about more than the hostel itself — she’s incredibly warmhearted and sociable with every one who stays there!
Amenities
The open-air common area is one of the best features of this hostel. There’s plenty of space to dine or get some work done on the tables next to the kitchen, or you can play ping pong on the table nearby. On the other side, Peace Hostel has a large, comfy couch area complete with a TV, a suitcase full of gently used books and even a guitar for anyone to use. Probably one of Steven’s favorite features in the common area was the beer fridge, where you could help yourself to a cold Mexican beer for $25 pesos.
While we didn’t take advantage of this offering, the property can help arrange private diving and snorkeling tours to Espíritu Santo Island, as well as a swimming excursion with whale sharks (only during season). In hindsight, I should have signed up and taken the whale shark tour. There’s always next time…
The bathroom area is also open air, and had several bathroom and shower stalls. I’m pleased to report that the water was hot! WOOHOO!
Beyond the basics, a stay at Peace Hostel also includes breakfast every morning, along with hot coffee and tea. There’s a common kitchen area for those who want to prepare their own food too. We also had stellar WiFi here, which is a total anomaly at most Baja campgrounds.
Finally, the parking area is towards the back of the property. Upon arrival, each guest with a vehicle receives a key to the front gate, which is locked in the evenings. We had zero issues staying in our van. In fact, our last night there were two other van campers staying there as well. I always laughed during the day when someone would need access to their car, as we were all packed in there like sardines! It was like watching tetris in real life as guests would move their vehicles back and forth to let others out. And all with a good attitude!
Cost
The cost to stay at Peace Hostel — at least for a family of 4 staying in their van — was $500 pesos per night, which was about $25/night at the time. For us, this was a pretty good deal as it included the amenities listed above, like breakfast every day and solid WiFi.
Overall, we really loved our time at Peace Hostel. It’s just close enough to the action in La Paz to be convenient and far enough away to be quiet, cozy and peaceful. We highly recommend this spot for anyone traveling to La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico!
