Just got back last week from my trip to Asia. We had checked on Tripadvisor before we left U.S. I'd decided to stay in Causeway Bay and Alisan seemed to be the best choice. The rooms we'd stayed werenot too big but they were very clean. If you had stayed in Motels in California (or elsewhere) before, you will find this place 10 times cleaner! The Guesthouse has very good location as we were in walking distance to all major shopping centers, shops, & tons of restaurants. If you are looking for neat place to stay but can't afford hotels in hk, I would highly recommend this place.

I am surprised by the rave reviews Alisan GH has received. The rooms are tiny and worn, not mentioning the bathroom where you basically have to shower over the toilet. Soap was not available. My room did not look particularly clean, just OK and the sheets had holes in them. I have to admitt that reception was helpful and hospitable.

Alisan is not a bad place, however it is not a place I would recommend either. I guess you get what you would expect in that price bracket in HK, nothing more, hence my surprise at the hype surrounding it, on tripadvisor and in various guidebooks.

We (3 guys) stayed for one Sunday night as we were transiting on our way to Manila from Mumbai in April 2nd week.
Reservation - The name came up repeatedly in my online searches but I had to struggle a bit to find out the email id. So I had to call up and super efficient Tommy took down my request and promptly called back. Tommy was really helpful in figuring out the best deal for us and promptly mailed back for all my queries.
Getting there - Hongkong is amazingly tourist friendly and Tommy knows how we shoe string budget travellers think. His instructions were precise and clear. And of course he came to pick us up from Excelsior hotel.
The Stay - The accomodation is bare minimum but not bad for a night's sleep. Our room had one small double bed and a single bed for the three of us. There was a tiny attached bath cum toilet. The place was neat and comfy but if you are looking for luxury or plan to spend a lot of time in the room then you should look elsewhere. This fitted our bill as we got back from our partying and touristy rides through the city only by 3 am and were out the next day at 12.
Overall - Just as expected. Tommy is a great help and even gives a great exchange rate. Stay if you are on a very tight budget and plan to spend more time on the streets than in the room.

We stayed at Alisan Guesthouse in Causeway Bay December 7-9, 2007. We reserved a 3-person room for the two of us since we heard they're bigger for $HK 450. The room was still tiny (one big bed and one smaller one right next to each other - we used the small one for our bags) and the bathroom tinier, but they were sufficient for us considering the high costs of accomodations in HK.

The guy who manages reception and speaks great English was very helpful. No problems checking in or finding the place according to their instructions.

There was construction going on with the building and we were actually woken up at 9am the next day by the loudest drilling I’ve ever experienced. Apparently, they were drilling right outside our wall. We were a bit annoyed that the guesthouse owners didn’t tell us this when we checked in. Based on our conversation with them, they assumed that it didn’t matter since this was only going on 9am-6pm when they assumed most people would be out. This was the last stop on our long trip, and we were out with our local friends until 5am the previous night, so this definitely wasn’t the case with us. They were nice enough to move us to a different room though where we could get some sleep, so that was good. The other room actually had a bigger bed and a bigger bathroom.

The location of the guesthouse is great, a block away from the metro stop, which was very convenient to everything. We were very glad we didn’t stay in Kowloon. We liked that area the least as it was very touristy, dirtier, and just in general not as pleasant. I definitely think the best areas to stay in HK are Causeway Bay, Central, Admiralty, or Soho, somewhere near a metro stop.

The only downside to the guesthouse is that there is no common area. The owners basically own several suites on various floors of a high-rise building, so there is no way to meet any other travelers. You basically get the room and never see anyone besides the cleaning lady. If you're looking for a fun atmosphere to meet other travelers, this is not the place. If you want a cheap small clean room to sleep at night in a good location, this fits the bill.