After our long motorcycle ride last week from Manila to Sagada to celebrate Art’s birthday, we stayed a night in La Union on the way back to Manila. Most of the time, I don’t really care where I sleep during pit stops during road trips, especially if there are not a lot of options. All you need to stay overnight in a place is a bed, a bathroom and a secure place to stash your stuff.
But the surf town of San Juan in La Union has lots of trendy new places worth checking out. I really wanted to stay in a place that had character instead of just a basic hotel room. While admittedly this was not the most practical choice after a long and tiring ride, sleeping in a Kombi van seemed like a fun and unique thing to do.
The Kombi Van Garage is the only private room available at Vessel Hostel, a four level surf-inspired hostel made from upcycled shipping containers stacked on top of each other. Designed by surfer architects Buji Libarnes and Nikki Dela Paz-Libarnes, the property is an extension of their home, located right below the hostel.
Vessel Hostel’s design reflects the couple’s love for classic surfing and the nostalgic lifestyle of its golden era. While the hostel is small, it manages to use the space very efficiently. Think Tiny House, Big Living. Vessel offers a cozy place to stay for a night or two in La Union, best for single backpackers or groups of friends who want to bunk together in dorm rooms. The thing with hostels is if you’re traveling as a couple, you may have to share a room with strangers.
The Kombi Van room offers a bit of privacy since it’s located within an enclosed outdoor garage. Kombi vans, known officially as Volkswagen Type 2 are a type of microbus first introduced in the 1950s. Popular with the counterculture of the 1960s, this “Hippie Van” remains iconic today with the retro revival. If you’ve ever wanted to experience the van life, the Kombi Garage room gives you a taste of that.
Table of Contents
Location
Vessel Hotel is located almost along the main highway of San Juan. The main entrance is a bit hidden, accessible through a small side street near Mad Monkeys Burger and Tagpuan. It’s walking distance from a lot of restaurants, cafés, and shops and the main beach.
Accommodations
We stayed a night in the Kombi van, which is parked in a private garage right beside Vessel Hostel. The van itself contains a twin bed inside outfitted at the back, an AC unit in front, night lights and WiFi. There are regular driver’s and passengers seats in front where you can stash your bags and extension cords outside and inside the vehicle to charge gadgets. There are also charging outlets located on both sides of the bed. WiFi was pretty fast.
If you book this, you get the whole garage with an outdoor shower/wash area, seating area for two, cooler, lounging chairs and small pocket garden. There’s an outdoor toilet and bathroom in the garden you can use though guests are free to use the indoor bathrooms on the 3/F of the main hostel. At the moment, this is the only private space good for 2 in Vessel Hotel.
The hostel also has a total of 22 beds in gender-neutral dorm rooms, split into four 4-bed dorms, and one 6-bed dorm. Each bunk bed comes with conveniences for the modern traveler including a locker with an outlet inside (you may bring your own padlocks or rent / purchase from the front desk); bedsides convenience outlets, a small bedside workstation, night light, and curtains for privacy.
Facilities
Vessel Hotel is designed to be a cozy place for single backpackers or traveling groups to stay. The hostel is compact, but well-designed with lots of picturesque corners and amazing natural lighting.
The lobby has a small gift shop with some surf-related items like shirts, shades and surf wax for sale. The common areas maximize the use of the small space and have a lot of vintage details that evoke the classic surfing lifestyle.
There are several common areas including a reading lounge, and a roof deck
with kitchenette and dining area from where you can see the ocean and Monalisa Point surf spot.
The common bathrooms are on the 3rd floor, with 4 stalls for women (two shower areas & 2 toilets) on the left side for women and 4 stalls for guys on the right side. The cubicles are tiny, but clean and modern with hot and cold power showers.
Relaxing music automatically started playing when I entered. I’m glad that each shower area was equipped with dispensers with soap and shampoo, to minimize the use of single use plastic sachets. The common lavatories are clean and modern as well.
Guests staying in the garage can also use the outdoor toilet and bath on the ground floor across the lobby right next to where the surfboards are kept. The hostel provides Surfboard rack / storage with lock during the guest’s stay. The area also has a wide parking area covered with gravel. We parked our motorcycles right in front of the garage entrance. The area offers free parking with limited slots (6), first come first served.
Dining
The Roof Deck on the 4th floor is where you’ll find the common kitchenette and dining area where complimentary breakfast is served. The food is typical hostel-grade fare like coffee, bread, jam, peanut butter, bananas and boiled eggs, which is fine for short stays.
The kitchenette has a fridge, a single burner, microwave oven, oven toaster, a coffee-maker, water dispenser and utensils that guests can use. This space is very airy and offers a nice view of the sea across the street. La Union has a vibrant food scene and there are a lot of dining options just walking distance from Vessel. We just had dinner at Gefseis Greek Grill and drinks at Curious Creatures, which serves local craft beer nearby.
Who should check in
The Kombi Garage at Vessel Hostel is a unique place for couples looking for something different for their vacation in La Union. While the hostel also offers regular bunk bed spaces in their dorm rooms, the garage offers more privacy for single travelers or couples.
I found the whole vibe of the place very romantic and cozy. The sleeping area was surprisingly spacious inside (I could sit up) but Art found it a bit cramped to get in and out. I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone who’s claustrophobic, but I personally liked the snug feel. Sleeping here kind of feels like staying in a capsule hotel or like glamping. You get that adventurous feel like you’re camping in a tent, but with access to the hostel’s facilities right next door.
While it may not be the most budget-friendly choice to stay in the area, you have to admit, it just looks so damn cool. Interestingly, the van is still fully functional. The air-conditioning unit is usually taken out of the window when the van is used for events. The van is usually rented out for events, pre-nup shoots, weddings and the like. I would recommend this to solo travelers and couples who just want a unique overnight experience to cap their La Union weekend.
Rates
The Kombi Van Room costs P2,900/per night good for 2 pax, with complimentary continental breakfast. The dorm rooms cost Php 1,200 per bed/night (bed sharing is not allowed). Guests are requested to bring their own padlocks to safeguard their belongings. Reservations are required to ensure availability and will only be confirmed upon receipt of full payment via bank deposit.
Address & contact information
Vessel Hostel is located along MacArthur Highway in Urbiztondo, San Juan, La Union. There are buses that pass along this route from Manila to Vigan, Laoag, Pagudpud, or Abra and vice versa, as well as Baguio – Ilocos routes. For those driving, you can find easily find Vessel Hostel on Waze and Googlemaps.
- Website: www.vesselhostel.com
- Facebook: Vessel Hostel
- Instagram: Vessel Hostel
Gusto ko pumunta ng La Union and stay there for a week tapos every other day lilipat sa iba’t ibang hostel haha
Ang dami na rin hostels sa La Union! Have only stayed in The Circle Hostel before. I also want to check out Flotsam & Jetsam next time! 🙂 At saka sabay mas mahabang food trip. Haha.