I had an absolutely wonderful four-night stay at Viva Hostel Design. The hostel is located in the charming and safe Vila Madalena neighborhood, which added to the overall experience. The 15-minute walk to the metro station was convenient, and I found the metro to be both efficient and clean, making it easy to explore the rest of the city. When I wanted to get around more quickly, Uber was a great alternative—cheap and super convenient. The hostel itself is beautifully maintained with modern furnishings and fittings that give it a stylish yet comfortable vibe. The shared areas are spacious, well-designed, and perfect for relaxing after a day of exploring. What you see on booking.com is exactly what you get—the place is every bit as nice as it looks online! The rooms are thoughtfully designed with built-in beds that offer both privacy and noise reduction, which I really appreciated. Each bed comes with its own light and power outlet, making it easy to charge devices without disturbing anyone. The spacious lockers with internal power outlets are a great touch—just remember to bring your own padlock. The beds were clean and comfortable, and the bedding was of excellent quality. I also loved the shower; it was powerful, and the bathroom had everything I needed. Renting a towel from reception was a nice option, especially when I wanted a break from my travel microfibre towel. The staff were outstanding—friendly, helpful, and always willing to chat. They speak good English but were also incredibly supportive when I wanted to practice my Portuguese. A special shoutout to Victor, who went above and beyond to make my stay even better—such a kind and friendly person!

While the WiFi was excellent at reception and good in the living room, it was unfortunately non-existent in the bedroom. It would have been nice to have the convenience of using WiFi from the comfort of my bed, which I believe other travelers would appreciate as well.

Very nice hostel, in a quiet neighborhood. Rooms have AC. Big kitchen and a nice dining/living area to chill and eat. It was the perfect spot to work remotely.

Although the bed pods are awesome. My pillow was very old and uncomfortable. Plus, I could tell it wasn’t clean, it had this brown-ish color (it was white, so it was very visible). It had this weird smell. I had to spray it with perfume and still it had this odd smell. The comforter wasn’t clean either.

The bunks have a lot of privacy. The kitchen and dining area is very comfortable, and the ping-pong is a lot of fun!

The bathrooms aren’t very nice.

It's a good hostel. Big kitchen. Big common areas with super comfy couches. Nice vibe really. Walking distance to many bars and restaurants of Vila Madalena.

The air conditioning in the room I was in was grossly inadequate. One night in particular was impossible to sleep it was so hot.

Staff very nice

I got sick with the aircon, but is not their fault, but sometimes temperature is too low

The beds are comfortable and privte . the room is nice and they clean every day. ( garbage toilet paper Etc) Goid size kichen access to laundry.

The design and facilities were extra, and the host/volunteers were friendly, helpful and a laugh to be had!

The pillows weren’t for my liking

Very friendly and helpful staff. Nice hostel located in a quiet, safe neighborhood. Enjoyed my stay here. Ty ;)

Common area is big and comfortable. It’s in a quiet area and few minutes walking from the subway.

the kitchen is very big and useful, the staff is very friendly

it’s pretty far from the neighbourhood’s center