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Top ten traits of an excellent hostel
I've spent nights in hostels that were probably just fronts for drug operations, and hostels that I wish I could live in. What makes a hostel good is fairly basic: cleanliness is the biggest issue, followed by orderliness and friendliness. But a few traits separate the good from the excellent when it comes to hostels. Here's what I've determined are the factors:
1. Good ventilation: It is so gross to open the door into a dorm and be hit with a wall of humid halitosis. It doesn't matter how clean the room is; you just can't cleanse the air of a dozen people sweating and breathing. A window (with a screen to keep the bugs out) and a fan work wonders.
2. Towels: Even threadbare ones are a nice break from the damp, mildewey clumps that backpackers are loathe to pull out of their packs and "dry off" with.
3. Separate male and female dorms: Boys are smelly. Girls can't hang out in their underpants with boys around. And I appreciate being able to change in my room, rather than carry all my clothes down the hall to the bathroom, try to change without getting my feet or the bottoms of my pants wet, and then carry my jammies back (waking everyone else up in the process as I go in and out of the door).
4. Drinking rules: Don't get me wrong - I like to party as much as the next 19- (or 33-) year-old. However, lax rules tend to lead to noisy late-night sessions, with giggly guests lounging around the common areas. At the least, drinking rules encourage folks to get out of the hostel and experience wherever they're at. Even if it's just the local pub.
5. A big kitchen and a staff that cleans it daily: Unfortunately, you just can't count on every guest to do their own dishes. And you definitely can't count on them to wipe the counters and sweep the floors. A kitchen that gets a scrub down once or twice a day is a wonderful thing to behold.
6 Non-metal, non-creaky beds: Not everyone has the bladder capacity of a camel. Which means that not everyone is going to sleep through the night without creeping down the ladder to relieve themselves. And you're gonna have folks who had a late night, or people who have an early flight to catch. It helps when the beds are a nice, quiet natural wood. And they don't have plastic sheets on them, either.
7. Local knowledge and the ability to book tours: Three words: One-stop shopping.
8. Nightly activities: Canadiana Backpacker's Inn in Toronto has at least one weekly activity a night, whether it's karaoke Monday at a local bar, game night, or a Friday tour of a brewery. Some of the activities, like karaoke, are free, which encourages everyone to participate. It's a great way to get out of the hostel and meet some other travelers.
9. A nightly/weekly limit: It's been my experience that hostels without a stay limit attract folks who aren't necessarily travelers, but rather are people in transition, trying to relocate to the city. That's not exactly a bad thing, but it's a different vibe than the regular traveler scene. And in one unnamed Alaska hostel, it meant a bunch of 50-year-old unemployedcriminals men, selling cocaine and stealing cash from guests. True story.
10. A decent breakfast: It doesn't have to be anything fancy, but I'll take a bagel and cream cheese over Wonderbread toast and jam any day. Decent coffee, brewed slightly strong, is a thousand times better than instant coffee. Put out a donation jar; I'll gladly throw in a buck or two to feel full and awake for a couple of hours. HI Austin receives day-olds from a local bakery, which means that hostel guests can help themselves to almost-fresh doughnuts, french breads, and whatever else the baker made that day.
[Photo credit: Flickr user Barnacles Hostels]
6 Non-metal, non-creaky beds: Not everyone has the bladder capacity of a camel. Which means that not everyone is going to sleep through the night without creeping down the ladder to relieve themselves. And you're gonna have folks who had a late night, or people who have an early flight to catch. It helps when the beds are a nice, quiet natural wood. And they don't have plastic sheets on them, either.
7. Local knowledge and the ability to book tours: Three words: One-stop shopping.
8. Nightly activities: Canadiana Backpacker's Inn in Toronto has at least one weekly activity a night, whether it's karaoke Monday at a local bar, game night, or a Friday tour of a brewery. Some of the activities, like karaoke, are free, which encourages everyone to participate. It's a great way to get out of the hostel and meet some other travelers.
9. A nightly/weekly limit: It's been my experience that hostels without a stay limit attract folks who aren't necessarily travelers, but rather are people in transition, trying to relocate to the city. That's not exactly a bad thing, but it's a different vibe than the regular traveler scene. And in one unnamed Alaska hostel, it meant a bunch of 50-year-old unemployed
10. A decent breakfast: It doesn't have to be anything fancy, but I'll take a bagel and cream cheese over Wonderbread toast and jam any day. Decent coffee, brewed slightly strong, is a thousand times better than instant coffee. Put out a donation jar; I'll gladly throw in a buck or two to feel full and awake for a couple of hours. HI Austin receives day-olds from a local bakery, which means that hostel guests can help themselves to almost-fresh doughnuts, french breads, and whatever else the baker made that day.
[Photo credit: Flickr user Barnacles Hostels]
Filed under: North America, Canada, United States, Budget Travel
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
darngooddigs Aug 9th 2010 11:58AM
Catherine,
Great list! I rushed right to the top ten list the first time I read your post - and missed your big three - cleanliness, friendliness, and orderliness. I'm glad you included those. I'll add window screens, because I hate when mosquitoes get into the dorm rooms - and you can't even turn on the lights and go after them because everyone else is sleeping.
I think for Darn Good Digs, we'll add at least some private bedrooms, good clean showers with privacy, and a pleasing design. You may be saving money by staying in a hostel, but it's still your temporary home while traveling - and it's good to look forward to going back at the end of the day.
The Top Tips for Trips Blog Aug 9th 2010 12:48PM
I always find hostels that have their own mini travel agents/activity booking service are brilliant. Also to be a top hostel it has to have a bar :), the cozyier and mosre laid back the better!
Daryl Aug 9th 2010 3:06PM
Wow! I recognized the hostel in the picture! Barnacles in Galway was amazing!
Ren Aug 11th 2010 5:05AM
I *mostly* agree with this, however a lot of the excellent hostels that I've been to don't necessarily have separate male/female dorms, nightly activities, or a stay limit. For the former, maybe it's because I'm a guy, so I generally don't care too much about separating males and females. Nightly activities are a bonus rather than a must, IMO (though one of my personal favorites DOES have nightly activities). And a stay limit... well, I didn't really ask about that, so I don't know.
As for drinking rules... well, I'll be first in line to break them, so I may have to disagree with that, too. ;-)
Girl, Unstoppable Aug 13th 2010 2:26AM
Nice list. I enjoy hosteling and feel like hostels often get a bum rap. So I appreciate it when people focus on finding out what makes a good hostel rather than forgoing them altogether!
I agree with everything except for the time limit. Situations like the one you had in Alaska are probably not that common, especially if the hostel already has the other traits you mentioned. I recently had an experience where I ended up staying in a city a little longer than I expected. I met others at my hostel who were staying much longer than I was as a break from moving around a lot or to work/volunteer or take Spanish classes. It was really cool to see the same faces around the hostel and it ended up feeling pretty homey. There was a nice balance of people who were staying for awhile and those who were coming and going quickly. I know from experience that this is not always the case, but I think there are definitely situations where long term hostel guests can create a nice atmosphere for everyone who stays there, especially if the hostel itself has already worked on getting a good vibe started.
That leads me to something else... I'd add aesthetics. Hostels that have put effort into making the spaces look visually pleasing are typically way more pleasant to stay in than those that don't.
And just one more thing to add to the list- lockers!
Alexa Sep 7th 2010 1:03PM
Perfect list. But drinking rules... these guy in frankfurt acually give out free beer: www.stay-frankfurt.com/party in their hostel. Weird Germans. I wonder if that would be possible in other parts of the world . However I had quite a hangover there :) ...
www.ontario-travel-secrets.com Sep 8th 2010 7:57PM
Would also add: private rooms. I like to stay in hostels when I can but I no longer want to share a room with strangers.