Hostel Review – Yoho International Youth Hotel – Salzburg, Austria

Dan Frommer — August 10, 2006
Yoho International Youth Hotel
Paracelsusstrasse 9
Salzburg, Austria
+43 (0)662879649

Map and Directions

 Overall Rating:
9
(10 Maximum)
Bottom line: Comfortable, fun and close to the train.		 Rating Details:
Location: 2/3
Security: 1/1
Facilities: 2/2
Character: 2/2
Value: 2/2
How We Rate Hostels
Yoho Official Website
Last visited July, 2004

What to Expect

Three photos from Salzburg
Top to bottom: A Yoho room, the bar and one of the numerous breakfast options. (Bottom two photos borrowed from Bibicall’s Flickr page.)

From its electronic key card door locks to its coin-operated showers, Salzburg’s Yoho screams efficiency. Large and modern, the Yoho is the prototypical backpacker’s hostel, offering basic lodging with a few perks — in this case, a lively bar.

Salzburg is a popular stop on the ‘beer route’ from Munich to Prague — the Yoho crowd is especially young and boisterous. Thirsty guests pour into the bar around 6 o’clock for happy hour, swapping war stories over a pint of Stiegl, the local brew. In an hour’s time, I met twangy students from Atlanta, snippy British girls and a chatty lone vagabond from Israel.

Later, groups cross the Salzach river to Salzburg’s old town, whether for an evening stroll, a Mozart concert or continued intake at the Augustiner monks’ famous beer hall.

Quirks

  • Instead of a guest kitchen, the Yoho serves quasi-authentic breakfast and dinner, including Wienerschnitzel (breaded veal) and rösti, the equivalent of hash browns.
  • While dinner underperforms, Yoho breakfast is a great deal—morning meals range from quick and continental (2 EUR, 2004 pricing) to deluxe (4 EUR). I recommend the Austrian scrambler: scrambled eggs, ham, cheese, veggies and potatoes.
  • Every morning, the Yoho screens The Sound of Music, set in the surrounding Salzkammergut lakes region. A few local companies have capitalized on the film’s popularity and offer cheesy, song-filled Sound of Music tours of the countryside. Reviews are mixed.
  • Internet access is available in the lobby, but a better deal is a block away.
  • The Yoho’s inexpensive laundry room features both dryer units — rare in European hostels — and seemingly obligatory, poorly-scrawled graffiti verifying that Joe from Kentucky did indeed visit in June, 2002.
  • Lockers line the hallways but are gimmicky — you must pay each time you open the door.
  • The Yoho is the largest hostel in town, and in summer, it’s almost always booked solid. Reserving ahead is a good idea.

Directions

From the main train station, exit left and follow the road (Rainerstrasse) toward the city center. Turn left and walk under the rail bridge. Continue straight on Gabelsbergerstrasse past the overpass for one full block. Turn right onto Paracelsusstrasse. The Yoho is a block down on your right. A map and directions are provided.

Disclaimer & Call to Arms

Things change. These reviews are written based on the last personal visit to each hostel. Use this guide confidently, but at your own risk. If your experience was different, we would love to hear about it.