The two best things about the Petra Hostel are its location and its view. It is located right inside the Jaffa Gate on the edge of the Christian Quarter in the Old City of Jerusalem. From here you can easily access all the major sites of the old city, as well as have access to numerous restaurants and shops. As for the view, it is so spectacular that the hostel actually charges non-guests 5 Shekels to see it. It is easily on of the best views in the Old City. From the rooftop you can see all of Old Jerusalem, including the Dome of the Rock, the Holy Sepulchre. The hostel will provide you with a mattress and sheets for a small fee if you wish to sleep out on the roof, and during the late spring, the weather is just perfect for doing so. Going to bed and waking up the glowing magnificence of the Dome of the Rock is something to be experienced.
For those not wanting to sleep outside, the Petra Hostel has dorm rooms for around $5/night and private rooms for around $8. The prices are negotiable though and a good bit of arguing will get you a long way. Many of the rooms have private showers and baths, but there are public ones as well. Hot water is readily available; you just have to ask them to turn it on for you about 20 minutes in advance. The Petra Hostel is not the most plush of places. Each room has a collection of rusty old bunk beds with rather thin mattresses. The rooms are a bit cramped as well, but most of them do have a balcony, which is a plus.
The staff of the Petra Hostel in general are not terribly helpful or friendly. The man who they seem to have employed as the street tout for the Hostel is a man who likes to poke at your nerves and make you uncomfortable. He followed us all around the Hostel and made inane comments like, "The people of America will suffer soon." But once you get by him, the others aren’t bad. They will do whatever you ask, but will do so without a smile. The only real exception is an American, from Cleveland, named Calvin, who one day decided to get up and move to Israel. He ended forming his own religion and is an extremely friendly and fascinating man if you get the chance to sit down and talk.
So while the Petra Hostel is not the most wonderful of hostels, it works, and it is cheap. Personally, I think the view itself is worth the price for one night.