HI-Houston- The Morty Rich Hostel

Was bummed to find they do not host guests that reside within 50 miles of their address. I was hoping to have the opportunity to stay a night and see what it’s like in preparation of my international travels. In any case, the house is beautiful. I visited at night and was unable to appreciate the full grandeur of it but from what I saw, it felt like a bed&breakfast. Common areas were abundant on the first floor, pool area was beautiful, large gazebo out back along with an additional house for guests just beside it. Lush landscaping. They’ve got 3 parking spots at the end of a long narrow driveway. That was fun to navigate.
Some residents were super friendly. Others not so much but no one was rude. Front desk attendant was welcoming but could probably stand to work on his multitasking skills. Looking forward to returning for an evening with the residents.

This hostel is located in the beautiful ritzy neighborhood of Montrose. I booked a 2 night stay, Sunday thru Tuesday and was very pleased with my experience. All the staff I interacted with — Sarah, Rob and David — were all helpful, friendly and very approachable.
I opted for a 6 bed mixed room for my tenure. The room was very spacious, filled with plenty of natural light and a large bathroom within — which is on the first floor and is handicapped-​friendly based on the built-​in fold out mini bench directly under the shower head. The only gripe I had about that room in particular is that the bathroom door rubs against the floor, so opening and closing the damn thing is a pain in the ass and very noisy, so it could disrupt one’s sleep. Also, the metal bunk beds are quite flimsy, so any movements whatsoever are felt throughout the entire frame. That said, this hostel has everything you’d need to have a pleasurable stay in Houston, including a nice collection of travel books and the like.
The Morty is conveniently located a block from Westheimer Rd, which is a very long strip of whatever you’re in to; bars, restaurants, grocery store and a decent sized half price bookstore in which I scored a great read that I couldn’t even find on site of 3 different Barnes&Nobles. If you enjoy dining at izakayas there are literally 6 or 7 within .9 miles. Pretty dope.
I wouldn’t think twice when considering booking here again, overall totally satisfied.
Go Red Sox!!!
–Bean

I originally tried to book a bed by calling the place directly and taking advantage of that Unilocal 10% offer (because 3 bucks is 3 bucks, right?). But it was strange — the guy asked me why I couldn’t book online, and then instructed me to email them instead. I did… and got no response. After giving them a few days, I tried calling again but couldn’t ever reach anyone. Eventually I did, found out that nobody did anything with my email, that the guy on the phone was really pissed at the slackness the previous guy had exhibited, and that (of course) the place was now sold out. But he said he’d talk to the manager to see what he could do, and within 12 hours he had fit me into an 8-​bed male dorm. So it was pretty screwed up but all’s well in the end.
The hostel is located in a nice spot — nice architecture in the neighborhood, good places to eat blocks away, and you’re in close distance to the Menil Collection and Rothko Chapel. Though as the city was flooding during my stay I ended up driving around — the Houston way!
Beds are assigned, and I got a bottom bunk. I was happy with the room and while I slept very little it wasn’t the room’s fault but my own liberal late-​night coffee indulgences. But it allowed me to check the scene out in this room, which was part of the cottage not connected to the main room itself. Most of my dormmates were respectful of the quiet hours and made as little noise as possible. But there were 3 jackasses who came in at 3:45, grunted a bit about stuff, and then one of them took a shower. I was quietly awake during this, so I can’t say it disrupted my night, but it certainly did for some. Can’t blame the hostel for this, but it’s just another one for the «people — meh» file.
Breakfast had the options you’d expect at an HI place — bagels, cereal, coffee. I also moseyed around the intimate space. The lounge looked comfy enough, and there’s even a billiards room — I felt so Colonel Mustardish. I played a round before dropping off my linens.
So overall, there were some non-​perfect things, but overall I was happy staying here especially at the price they offered. Now to go see what I can do with this $ 3 burning a hole in my pocket.

Nice location, nice building, free breakfast. But don’t plan on getting anything resembling sleep here. Quiet hours supposedly begin at 11pm but our hostel mates were out partying in the pool (loudly) until around 2am, and they were being watched by a staff member the entire time who never asked them to keep it down. I believe the place has a no alcohol allowed rule, which was also not enforced as our lovely considerate roommates were sharing drinks even with a staff member earlier in the day. I wouldnt particularly care about that, but I sure do wish this place would follow its own rules. The icing on the cake was having to listen to my roommates go at it in the shower right next to my bed at 2am, which I guess technically isn’t against any rules. I have been hostelling out of the country before but this is my first stay at an American hostel and I have to say I am not impressed. Place gets 2 stars for the location and the free breakfast, 2 stars for the acceptable accomodations, and minus 2 stars for being awful.

Stolen debit card information.
A friend and I stayed here recently and we have both had clones of our debit cards made without our knowledge. The hostel makes it a point of taking your debit card information in their back office. If anyone else has stayed at this hostel recently (March-​April), PLEASE check your bank account for unauthorized transactions. PLEASE post on Unilocal & TripAdvisor to warn others not to stay here if they value their bank information.
I have notified both our banks and opened a complaint with the FTC.

Beautiful yard and building in a great neighborhood located next to everything you could need with free streets side parking when the lot fills up!
Good things:
Pool
Nice outdoor areas
Free WI Fi
Parking
Very nice and comfortable around the house.
Bad
No achohol policy
Expensive
Showers in room which wakes you up at different times whenever someone showers in the morning and door was broken and really hard to shut so I made a really loud noise when shutting.
I recommend staying here just keep in mind the no achohol policy and the loud rooms if you are a late sleeper.

Each staff member was super friendly. During my stay in early January, my room was super cold (8-​bed room located outside). The staff were more than willing to make the room warmer and provide additional blankets. Breakfast was sufficient– cereals, oatmeal, boiled eggs, toast with various spreads (including Nutella!) My favorite part was the location — $ 5 – 6 Über ride to most bars and super close (0.4 miles) from the gay bars!

I stayed at this hostel from June 3^rd to 6^th 2014. The deposit was $ 10 and it cost $ 28 per night. I stayed in an 8 bed female dorm. The hostel felt very secure. The staff were all nice and will gladly give you recommendations on where to eat and how to get places. The museum district is in walking distance. The only problem I had was that there was no hot water at that time! Taking a cold shower is certainly one way to escape the heat but it wasn’t exactly pleasant.

I moved to Houston and apt. wasn’t ready, so I chose to stay here. The place is a small mansion and pretty nice on the inside and grounds are kept up. Parking is bad, you have to get lucky in order to get a parking space.
They have male, female and unisex rooms. I preferred the unisex over female because the female dorms are dirtier and smellier. The women for some reason, leave long strands of hair all over the bath area and sink. Plus the women love to argue in the early mornings over petty things like time spent in the bath when there are several bathrooms around the house not in any dorms that anyone can use.

The unisex room upstairs has a long uncomfortable stairway but is better ventilated and has the TV room (which must be shut down at around 11pm). The only thing I don’t like about the unisex is the inconsiderate young people who like to get it on when you are trying to sleep.
There is another unisex out back in the guest house but it is w/​out A/​C, the mosquitos are horrible in the summer, and the toilet tends to clog in that one.
There is free Wi-​Fi in house. There is also one computer but a line to wait for using it. The kitchen is ample but stays cluttered. The staff is ok, somewhat friendly but can get a little lazy. If more than one staff member is present you will notice them socializing together more than tending the place. There is free breakfast that consists of cereal, microwaved biscuits and hard boiled eggs. The guests are mostly foreigners and not very friendly. There is a pool and hammock out back as well as one washer and one dryer. For the price, overall I guess you can’t beat it.

For only $ 25 per night, you can stay at the best hostel in Houston and the second highest rated hostel in the planet! The Morty Rich Hostel is basically a 3 story mansion that was owned by a former City of Houston mayor. It later transformed into a staycation before being bought by Hostelling International. The building is large enough to hold up to 55 guests per night.
Reasons to book this hostel:
1. Very close to the center of Houston, in the Montrose area. Don’t have a car? That’s okay, as many hip bars, restaurants, and coffee shops on Westheimer are within walkable distance. Have a car? Only a 10 minute drive to the Galleria. There is lots of street parking right outside of the hostel, on both sides of the residential street.
2. Quiet room for hostel standards. I stayed in a 4 person male room for one night and did not experience any problems with noise, even though I am a light sleeper. I don’t think this is a party hostel. You won’t find drunk European guests running around and shouting in foreign languages at 3am (happened often in my past hostel experiences). During my visit, most of the guests seemed to be introverted and preferred not to interact much with other people. My other random roomates were in their early to mid 20’s, and they all surprisingly declined my invitation to go out on a Saturday night. They just wanted to relax and get sleep before flying out the next morning. This hostel is great if you are simply seeking a roof over your head and a soft pillow to lay your head on.
3. Bedding was clean and mattress was comfortable. However, not that the bunk beds do make noise when the person on the top bunk moves, so if you’re on the bottom, pray that the person on top doesn’t constantly roll or shake the bed at night.
Toilet, sink, and showers are conveniently inside the room, unlike the dorm-​like configurations at other hostels I’ve been to, where I had to shower at one room, use the toilet at another, and then go back to my room to wash my hands.
The room was not cramped for 4 people, there was adequate space to move around. Plenty of electrical outlets for everyone to use. Like other HI-​hostels, there are lockers for each guest inside the room to store luggage and belongings.
4. Very professional, caring, and friendly front desk staff. Very good at making recommendations for local night activities, but don’t expect hem to give thoughtful food recommendations outside of the area, as the guy just did a quick Google search and wrote down the first few items on the list.
5. Modern facilities. There is a pool table downstairs and the lounge has contemporary furniture. There is a flat screen TV on the top floor and a swimming pool outside.
Although I only stayed for one night, my experience exceeded expectations and I would recommend this hostel to friends. If you are traveling solo and are on a budget, consider booking this hostel, as you get to live comfortably AND meet other travelers for an affordable price.

The place was pretty nice and reasonably priced. They had hammocks, a pool, and lots of outside gathering places which was cool. The room was fine except that there was no air conditioning so it was super muggy and kind of smelly. Also the bunk beds were really cheap so any time someone moved an inch the whole structure wobbled. Overall not too bad I think I would stay there again. The staff was nice and the fellow guests were welcoming.

The area is nice, the grounds are nice, the common areas are nice, the breakfast was great, but the bedrooms are way too cramped and smelly. I can only speak to the 9 bed co-​ed bedroom, but that room smelled strongly of Axe and body odor, the «ensuite» bathroom dripped water constantly, the carpets were dirty, and the bunkbeds were unstable and pushed right against each other. This room maybe should have fit two bunkbeds, but instead had three, with two more beds in the adjoining room. Each bed squeaked loudly whenever anyone got in or out, and swayed from side to side whenever the person in the bottom bed moved. My foot was basically touching the next person’s head. I just didn’t feel safe.
I can handle loud sleepers when the beds are not so close together, but this was ridiculous. The person in the next bed over snored so loudly and grunted so loudly in his sleep that I couldn’t get any rest. This is obviously not the hostel’s fault. They do sell earplugs for 25 cents each. But it would have helped if the beds weren’t directly next to each other. The same guy also said «I thought they didn’t let girls in this room» and said some other rude things about how the other guys might take advantage of me in my sleep. …thanks, dude?
Overall, I’ve stayed in maybe 20 hostels in my life and I lived in a DC hostel for a month — this one is probably in the bottom 10. I always stay in a co-​ed room if it’s cheaper, and I’ve never had problems with it til now. It wasn’t awful here, but definitely not great. The common rooms are super nice, and they have perks like free movies, wifi, and nice couches, but I go to hostels to sleep, mostly.
It took 45 minutes to check in (I got there late and wanted to sleep), they didn’t make our beds, though they made the beds for other guests, and my bed was missing a pillowcase. I ended up not staying the second night and staying with a friend instead because I didn’t want to deal with the snoring weird dude.
The staff were totally nice, though. I feel bad writing this, but I wish I’d known the co-​ed 9 bed room would be that cramped. The room basically felt like living in a walk-​in closet.

Best hostel ever!!! The staff is friendly and super understanding. Just tell them what you need and they will surely accommodate.
Location: great area with Walgreens down the street, tons of small foodie friendly restaurants at great prices. The neighborhood is safe.
Parking: just four spots in the back and little room to move. If someone parks right behind you, which is not even a parking spot, you might not get out… So park on the street to the side of the place. They are free.
Breakfast: provided: milk, coffee, biscuits just freshly cooked, orange juice, jam and bread
Noise level: high to low. Varies with who you’re rooming with. Also certain locations can make or break your experience.
People whom you room with will make a big difference. Every day can be someone new.
Good: meet new people and culture, learn new things
Bad: they sometimes don’t talk as much probably introverted or just shy or just tired
Overall: I came back twice and will come again for the third time!
Diane and David from the front desk gave excellent service :) thank you!

Although I admit to being biased since I volunteer helping hostel guests enjoy the sights, sounds & tastes of Houston, the Morty Rich hostel does not disappoint!
If you ever have unexpected guests, they have a private apartment with a kitchenette available for up to 14 days.
Youth hostels provide a great mix of cultures from all over the world. Unlike a hotel where a premium is placed on sterile isolating privacy, hostels invite guests to interact with each other.
The rooms are clean and comfortable at the Morty Rich.
I highly recommend that any Unilocalers in the Houston area consider volunteering at the hostel since it is an opportunity to:
1) meet cool travelers with fascinating life stories
2) practice any foreign language with native speakers
3) a great all around experience!

This is an awesome hostel. Some friends and I crashed here for a night while visiting Houston for the first time.
At roughly $ 20 a night you really can’t do better. We stayed in the co-​ed dorm in the 3^rd floor. The bathroom was insanely nice, better than many hotels I’ve been in. Standard sheets and towels were provided, and there was free breakfast of mostly fruit, cereal, toast, etc. The beds squeaked quite a bit, but that’s honestly as bad as it gets, which is awesome for a hostel!
Best part? They have a really nice pool. Great place to meet new faces late night!

This hostel is:
1. Conveniently located in the Montrose area.
2. Close to a bus station, an easy/​cheap way to get to the IAH airport (~$ 2.50, with 1 line change).
3. A lovely house with wooden floors, Ikea furniture, and nice communal areas.
4. Cheap, cheap, cheap!
I stayed in the female-​only, 6 bed dorm with a private bathroom. There were lockers to stow away your belongings, clean towels, clean sheets, and free breakfast. On one of the evenings, they were celebrating their 1-​year anniversary (I think) and had a free lasagna dinner.
Outlets in the room are lacking, and the top bunks are squeaky.
This place is a step above other hostels, and is truly located in a good place to explore, dine, and drink.

Best HI I’ve stayed at in the US. Super comfy beds & lounge areas, plenty of community spaces. Super newly renovated & clean. You’ll want to stay longer. Parking is available, offstreet is limited.

This was a really great place to stay. I wish I would have been able to spend more time here.
The house was really nice. I stayed in a 6 bed female dorm room that was clean, and comfortable. There was a private bathroom for the dorm, which is always nice. There were plenty of outlets in the room, and even a little balcony which I didn’t use since it was hot outside. There was also AC but in Houston that seems like it should be a given.
I loved the games room, and the main room in the lobby. Lots of comfortable seating, and the giant map on the wall where people had pinned where they were from was awesome. Seriously, who doesn’t want a giant map in their house? The backyard area with the pool was nice, but I didn’t spend any time there. The free breakfast was nice, and the wifi worked well.
The neighbourhood was great, seemed safe, restaurants nearby and only a few minutes to the downtown area by bus. Pretty quiet area — this didn’t seem like a super party hostel to me, which for me is a good thing. I don’t need to be drinking until 5 in the morning every day. Sometimes a traveler wants sleep, so being able to get that here was great.
A few cons…
While there were lockers (no locks so bring your own) the dorm room I was in only had 4 lockers, but 6 beds. There were two lockers out in the hall, but having to go back and forth from the room to the locker I was using in the hall was a pain. If you’re going to put lockers in a dorm then put in one locker for each bed.
The hostel is far from the airport (George Bush Intercontinental) which I knew. It seems to be a little closer to Hobby. Taking the supershuttle from the airport was about $ 20 one-​way, so make sure to factor in that price when considering the hostel. Or rent a car — which would probably be a good idea if you’re going to be in Houston for a few days.
Overall I thought this hostel was great, and next time I’m in Houston I’ll stay here again.

If you’re looking for a cheap place to stay in Houston this is a good introduction
to a Hostel experience. It’s newly opened in a former big house with a pool in a quiet Montrose neighborhood. You’ll be central to all the art museums and inner loop Houston happenings.
We paid for the private room and didn’t have to share a bath, it was around $ 60 a night which was good for two people. Otherwise beds in dorm rooms are around $ 25 a night.
Free breakfast includes toast with peanut butter and coffee.
Staff can be youthfully nihilistic which can be a turn off.
Houstons public transit system isn’t that great so have a car, or at least a bike.

Love, love, love this place.
Big airy, converted mansion with hardwood floors and a lot of charm. I am staying in a guys dorm sleeping 6 on 3 bunk beds and a private bathroom. The AC has the room frigid but they provide comfy comforters. Super friendly staff.
Found cool books (travel and fiction) in the library to keep me occupied on the incredibly and bizarrely rainy days of my visit. If it stops raining, I might even hit up the small in ground swimming pool.
The TV isn’t hooked up to cable right now, so I streamed my Xfinity subscription over the WiFi which is running around 1.7 mbs down and 1.9 mbs up. For those without laptops, there are two desktops for folks to use.
Fully equipped kitchen and I saw other visitors using the laundry. Plenty of free street parking. Walking distance to a convenience store and lots of restaurants.