A perfect location. A lot of information given at the reception. Wonderful owners who organized a beautiful Diwali celebration for us all with shared food, nice music, common activities. Good laundry service. The rooftop is perfect to get to know people, the vibe is very nice.

The beds are tooo short and the room is a bit too small. Staying in dorms in India never work.. there is always someone not caring at all about having other people in the room (eating at 2am, packing at 4am with lights on and as much sound as possible..and etc). The kitchen didn't look too clean.

Property is amazing in terms of location and room comfort. Gateway of India, Marine drive, Colaba Market and Local train station, all of them were at walking distance which made my travel and exploration easy. Hostel had a secure card checkin system and elevator. Sheets and blankets were on every check-out maintaining hygiene.

The information listed about shared and pvt washroom per room is a bit ambiguous, I booked a 4 people dorm considering shared washroom means it will be shared with 4 people, but actually there were 3 washrooms getting shared among 4-5 similar dorms.

Excellent location for tourists wanting to hit all the major Mumbai landmarks in a few days; the tea and biscuits on the rooftop were lovely. There are also books on the rooftop.

A/C wasn't turned on during the hottest hours of the day, or at least it was unclear if it even could be turned on; the air in the room felt a little stale. It's also quite impersonal - not unexpected for such a big hostel, but still.

The hostel is in a brilliant location close to the main sites, many of which you can walk too. Our private room was very clean and a good size. We found the service exceptional and better than some of the luxury hotels we’d recently stayed in. The staff were very friendly and nothing was too much trouble. We were very impressed and appreciated how friendly and approachable they were.

Very minor but as we had a premium room we had the benefit of being given water whenever we wanted it which was a great perk. To reduce plastic, I’d suggest initially giving a few free bottles and encouraging usage of the filtered water available on each floor. The hostel could also organise more social events on the rooftop to encourage more of a social atmosphere.

Welcoming, friendly and helpful staff who spoke good English and always happy to help - area felt safe Room was clean and comfy bed, good WiFi, efficient AC & fan, spacious with plenty of room for luggage Replenished tea, coffee, biscuits, water bottles & toiletries in the (private) room daily Good water pressure and temperature in the shower Provided you can get good rest, it’s a good base for Mumbai, good restaurants nearby - Madras Cafe, New Apollo Restuarant, Bagdadi Restaurant, Kebab Gunj They arranged for a SIM card seller to come shortly after check-in, approx £9 for 1.5GB per day for 28 days, he was friendly and helpful with general Mumbai recs Recommend Amaze Tours for AM group tour Dhobi Ghat & Dharavi, also PM private car tour of Mumbai sites, total £70 through online payment for nearly 10 hours - ask for Loki he was great! Elephanta Caves are over rated and over priced, we stayed an extra day in Mumbai to do this, but wasn’t really worth it (not accommodations fault, just some advice to consider)

Unfortunately the close proximity of room 402 to kitchen area was a bad design and could’ve been put in the common area This resulted in inconsiderate noise from people scraping plates and washing dishes multiple times from 2-6am, which is very unfair and frustrating on sleeping guests 2 out of 3 nights we got bad sleep due to this, we shouldn’t have to sleep with uncomfortable ear plugs, regardless of what you pay for a room/ bed, just because of other people’s rudeness Mumbai is a common starting point in travellers route arriving in India, people will be jet lagged and want to get some rest (…that is the whole point in accommodation after all!) Having said this I would still recommend Cowies due to positive points

Run by a sociable and proactive old couple who really go the extra mile to make sure you have everything you need, without being weird about it 😂 When you need something outside of the hostel, they'll know someone and will make a call. There is tea to use in the kitchen, which is a human right but many places seem to forget about it. Kitchen has a fridge/freezer, microwave, kettle and water purifier, which were sufficient for me as I'm not in Mumbai to eat dinner in the hostel. Showers decent. they are an individual toilet-and-shower wet room setup. You'll be wet once you've got into your clothes but that's the climate. Laundry is in machines on the premises, but you need to go through the desk, who get someone to do it for you, so it won't be quick. Friendly place with travellers. You can make friends. I don't know what other hostel locations in Mumbai are like, but this place is on a street with trees and the view from the roof is of houses with colonial architecture and gardens. Fast internet.

The communal space is a semi-open terrace. There are plenty of fans, but it can be hot. There is a roof terrace above that that they could do way more with. The housekeeping staff come into the rooms pretty frequently and are not particularly friendly. You need to seep with the loud A/C on or you will wake up sweaty. With A/C, you'll still wake up sweaty, but in the morning instead of the middle of the night. Mumbai is a big city. If you are leaving to the airport, make sure you leave in time 😭

Everyone I interacted with in the hostel was absolutely lovely, kind, and welcoming. The location is in a very lively part of the city so as a solo female traveler I still felt very safe being out and about at night-time. It is also walkable to all the Colaba attractions, but a bit further from the airport or Bandra (though in a city as big as Mumbai, it's impossible to be close to everything). They also kindly let me keep my luggage in the hostel after check-out until night-time. The beds are comfortable, with lamps and an outlet inside, and they have large lockable lockets underneath which fit my entire suitcase (remember to bring your own locks)

There were small spots on the pillowcase and coverlet, so you might want to consider bringing your own bedsheets if you have the space. Privacy curtains around the beds would also be a nice bonus.

It was incredible clean, very well operated with good procedures in place in terms of the admin and communication. The social area upstairs is nice and seemed to be conducive to lots of chatting amongst guests. Very secure with keycards for rooms etc.

Girl dorms are more expensive than mixed which I don’t agree with (yes if less beds but not of same number of beds). The dorm I was in felt a bit sterile - which is fine as it was very clean but it’s a shame the beds didn’t have privacy curtains and also the lighting was extremely bright and if you were on top bunk and someone needed light on it was quite blinding - seems like an easy fix with lampshades or curtains

Backpacker Cowies is located very centrally. Taj Hotel and Gateway of India are within 2 minutes of walking distance. Café, restaurants, sim card shops, pharmacy, souvenir shops, clothing shops, bus stop with good city public transportation and taxi services are within 2-5 minutes of walking distance from the hostel. Hostel was clean and safe. Hostel staff was very helpful and customer oriented. I lived with other roommates on the first floor. There was a balcony, a shower, a toilet and lockers under beds in my room. Just bring own lock. Kitchen with free tea, coffee, sugar and snacks was upstairs. There are two rooftop terraces. Hostel provides laundry service. Wi-Fi worked very well in the bedroom, kitchen and one of the terraces. Each bedroom has own separate room access card, which was great as other travelers or unknown people cannot enter the room. There are stairs and elevator/lift to go up and down. Hostel is the same as in booking.com pictures. Alcohol, smoking and drugs are not allowed in the hostel. I liked everything. Thank you.

I liked everything.

Excellent location, you have easy access to different museums, Gate to India, markets, etc. It is a safe area, so you can walk late evening. It is very close to the famous Leopold cafe, where you have a 20% discount showing them your guest house key. The staff is very helpful, they helped to arrange Indian SIM on the first day, and shared other tips. Gratis drinking water at the reception. The guest house is quite clean. They allowed us to check in by 11 am. We would probably recommend to others or return to this hotel, mostly because of its great location.

It was a bit expensive (also without breakfast). It can be cheaper/more affordable, but hope the staff is paid well then :-)