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4.0

Very good

535 reviews

#8 of 166 Specialty lodging in Panama City

Location

Cleanliness

Service

Value

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Property amenities

Free High Speed Internet (WiFi)

Wifi

Free breakfast

Airport transportation

Baggage storage

Non-smoking hotel

24-hour front desk

Laundry service

Outdoor furniture

Shared bathroom

Shared lounge / TV area

Room features

Air conditioning

Kitchenette

Good to know

HOTEL STYLE

Budget

Languages Spoken

English, Spanish

Location

72Somewhat walkable

Grade: 72 out of 100

44Restaurantswithin 0.5 km

2Attractionswithin 0.5 km

Casa 7-62 Calle Primera Perejil, Panama City Panama

Getting there

Tocumen Intl Airport21 kmSee all flights

Paitilla Airport2 kmSee all flights

Car HireSee all Panama City car hire

See all nearby hotels

Nearby restaurants

Fonda Concolon Panamanian Cousine

31 reviews

4 minLatin

See all nearby restaurants

Nearby attractions

4 minSpeciality & Gift Shops

See all nearby attractions

535Reviews6Q+A64Room tips

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Rowan H wrote a review Nov 2022

Cairns, Australia1332 contributions1759 helpful votes

Superb option for the no frills budget traveller

Spent two nights here as a couple in one of the private rooms. PROS - VALUE - Although its advertised as 40USD per night for a private room at reception we got ours for 29USD through booking(dot)com. This is ridiculously cheap compared to its competitors. - WIFI - Worked and reached the room - AIR CONDITIONING - Worked well. - ROOM - Definitely on the basic side but large enough to safely house everything you need. Small window. Towel rack. Small set of shelves. Bin, etc. Bed and pillows were comfortable although would’ve loved a blanket. - SECURITY - 24 hour reception. Two steel doors which you need to be buzzed in through. Deadlocks on the private rooms. Electric fence surrounding the property. - STAFF - Friendly. Lots of helpful information covering the walls of the property. - NOISE - not noisy. - SHARED FACILITIES - One of the real highlights. Small pool was kept clean. Pool bar which was staffed from 4 -11pm (even when no one was in the bar). 24 hour reception. Shared kitchen with all the necessities. Bottled water for sale. Coin laundry around the corner (we did a load for total 3.25 USD). 2 resident dogs and 2 resident cats. They also have secure luggage storage available if needed. CONS - HOT WATER - Nil - LOCATION - definitely a bit of a grittier location. Strangely enough though if you walk two streets towards the water there is like a invisible metaphorical train track and the neighbourhood seems to appear a lot better. I didn’t personally feel unsafe walking these streets although I wouldn’t be going out after dark. Luckily Ubers in Panama City are criminally cheap so you can get anywhere and the security measures (above) made me feel very safe. We walked to old town from here - just go 5 blocks to the water and walk along the malecon. Overall we were really pleased with our stay here. For the price you pay you make significant savings, which you can invest on other aspects of travel.…

Date of stay: November 2022Trip type: Travelled as a couple

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Chris M wrote a review Apr 2022

Nottingham, United Kingdom289 contributions107 helpful votes

Interesting neighbourhood

Spent 5 nights here whilst exploring panama city. Very easy to get to by bus or metro (you do need to purchase a metro card at 2 dollars) and its also very easy to get out to the attractions by public transport. The old town is 20 mins walking. There are loads of mini markets near and plenty of eateries although the hostel has a very good kitchen. It was quiet enough at night but the room was very hot and the aircon poor. I would still come back as I liked the vibe and atmosphere. There was excellent free coffee every morning until 11 am. The neighbourhood is a little run down with characters on every street corner but friendly enough, damn I miss that coffee

Date of stay: March 2022

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Response from Mamallena Beachside, Owner at Hostal Mamallena

Responded 27 Apr 2022

Thanks Chris, much appreciated. Let me look into that AC..........

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Elias wrote a review Jan 2022

1 contribution

Great experience!

Super friendly staff. Good common areas and atmosphere in general. Made new friends:) Easy to get around the city from there. Walking distance from metro. Otherwise Uber is super cheap. Several cornershops and restaurants in the neighborhood.

Date of stay: January 2022Trip type: Travelled with friends

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Joanna S wrote a review Dec 2019

Burnley187 contributions126 helpful votes

Nice friendly hostel

We stayed at Mamallena before starting our San Blas trip as a recommended hostel from San Blas Adventures. We really enjoyed our stay here - we arrived at a very unsocial hour but reception let us in and let us rest there before a room was available for us, letting us use the WiFi, breakfast and coffee facilities before we’d officially checked in. Our private room was good - nice bed, enough space for us and decent air conditioning. The pool was great to cool off in at the end of a hot day and we also cooked numerous times and have no complaints about the cooking facilities. All the staff are very friendly - always smiling and swapping a greeting when we saw them. They’re always at hand to provide information and give recommendations too. We also fell in love with Choco the hostel dog (and the hostel cat, although we didn’t catch his/her name). Showers were powerful but cold, which we didn’t mind due to the heat in Panama and the pancake breakfast is good with fruit on offer too! We were told by a tour guide that the area could be quite unsafe, however we didn’t have any problems and didn’t feel at risk while in the area - the hostel’s security measures and regular police presence was all very reassuring. We walked to the business district and the old town each day along the waterfront which was nice - just to note it was about a 30 min walk to the old town in case you wanted to be closer. It’s also easy to get an Uber into town too which are quite cheap. Top tip - make sure you head to the HUGE supermarket (turn left out of the hostel then turn right down the main road) - it’s great if you’re planning to cook for yourself and has so much to choose from…

Date of stay: November 2019Trip type: Travelled as a couple

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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There and back again wrote a review Aug 2019

Toronto, Canada117 contributions185 helpful votes

Decent place to kill time

Panama City has it's spots but it's mainly a starting point in getting you to other destinations within the country. I recommend this hostel if you are around for a day or two and looking for decent priced accommodation. I booked a private room which had AC. It was pretty small and bare bones, slightly run down, but it worked. Hotel has a large kitchen available, a few hang out spots, a small pool, and fair priced beer. The area is close to most points in the city worth seeing. The area outside is a bit seedy with no franchises or noticeable stores to get food so I did find that as a pain, ended up eating some budget Panama style fried chicken. In the hostel you may meet some others on the same route as you or coming back from similar destinations. The people I met ended up flying to the same town as me and being in the same hostel which seemed common. Everyone there is either returning from a trip and looking to rest or just about to leave for one. Breakfast was typical hostel style so I skipped that and bought fruit from the store around the corner.…

Date of stay: May 2019

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Location

Service

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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lifeinthetopbunk wrote a review Jul 2019

Portsmouth, United Kingdom476 contributions220 helpful votes

Good enough for a night or two

Mamallena is a popular backpackers with a small pool, cheap beer, and very convenient location. There's air con in the provate rooms, but the rooms themselves are just okay. The place is kind of run down, and breakfast is pancake batter and bananas - which can be a pain during super busy times, especially when people aren't cleaning the pans properly. The staff are friendly and the common spaces are nice... pretty average hostel.

Date of stay: June 2019Trip type: Travelled as a couple

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Dom B wrote a review Dec 2018

Bogota, Colombia55 contributions56 helpful votes

Chilled spacious hostel with nice staff and friendly cats

Stayed here for 1 night after doing the San Blas tours. The rooms were nice and spacious, with aircon at night and the facilities are good with a big TV room and games room. The guy on reception was really nice and friendly and there's some cute cats roaming around that are good for a stroke. Also free pancakes for breakfast which is a nice touch :)

Date of stay: December 2018Trip type: Travelled with friends

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Passport50697750445 wrote a review Nov 2018

4 contributions

Trip

Nice hostel, has everything you need. It's clean, cozy, friendly, good located and cheap. For everyone who wants to stay at a nice place in Panama City this is a good solution! i enjoyed the stay there!

Date of stay: September 2018Trip type: Travelled with friends

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Karl H wrote a review Oct 2018

Boston, Massachusetts6 contributions1 helpful vote

Favorite place to stay in Panama

Interesting guests from all over the world, super friendly staff, chill lounge areas, cheap rates, and Choco el perro (although he only likes you if you have food). Oh, and free pancakes in the morning! Cannot recommend highly enough. Only downside is that the area is not great, but you'll only find trouble if you're looking for it. The hostel itself is very safe.

Date of stay: August 2018

Rooms

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Sleep Quality

Trip type: Travelled with friends

Room Tip: Go for a dorm to meet fellow intrepid travelers & save money.

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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Cocobongo wrote a review Sep 2018

London, United Kingdom9 contributions1 helpful vote

Awful Attention

I went there with 2 friends. The receptionist was really rude!!! Her name was Lore and she didn’t look happy at all! We arrived at 7am and had to wait for an hour until she got ready to start her shift. She said there were 2 WiFi one for the room and I another one for outside I asked her to write it down for me but she couldn’t be bothered. The WiFi in the room never worked. I complaint and she said that no one had complaint before so she didn’t do anything about it. There was no hot water in the room. It would have been nice to get notified about this beforehand. The bedsheets were stinky. They were obviously not fresh. The bunk wasn’t stable so it moved. My friend who was on the top had to share the bed with my other friend as it was impossible sleeping there. Other than that the place is nice, the terrace was amazing, they do the mix for pancakes every morning and you just need to cook it.…

Date of stay: September 2018Trip type: Travelled with friends

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

1 Helpful vote

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