Travel Editor Ella Ruddle has weighed up the lifelong debate of hostel vs hotel and can definitively say, it's hostels all the way.
In the age of AirBnB and Booking.com, the thought of paying only slightly less to stay in a bunk bed with a room of strangers might seem unappealing. However, having backpacked around Europe for three months this summer (often utilising the luxuries of AirBnB and Booking.com), I believe that hostels remain the perfect haven for young travellers.
There is a hostel for every type of traveller. Do you want to save money? To meet people? Party? Do you want to go on adventures and be in bed early or all of the above? Apply filters on the Hostelworld app to find a place that suits your needs. Aligning yourself to a certain hostel type is the easiest way to meet like-minded travellers. If you know what you’re signing up for, there won’t be any surprises waiting for you upon arrival.
The hostel staff are live-in city guides. When I arrived at a new place, I’d always speak to staff members and come away with quality recommendations or methods to sidestep tourist traps. Oftentimes they would also have discounted or free group tours that wouldn’t be on offer in hotels. The hostel reception is your best friend.
Hostels, unlike hotels, are custom-made for meeting people. The best memories of my trip were made with strangers from the hostel. Even if you are travelling with a group, get to know the people in your room. Either you never see that person again, or you make a new friend. For the most part, travellers staying at hostels are some of the most interesting people out there.
If saving money, socialising, and recommendations aren’t enough to persuade you, what if I told you that, on average, hostels are approximately 75% less carbon intensive than hotels? This is according to a study by Bureau Veritas in partnership with Hostelworld. While their conclusion is based on carbon intensity, it explains that hostel waste and water systems are also incredibly eco-friendly. In an age of climate consciousness, where we wonder what we can do to become more sustainable, choosing hostels over hotels could be your answer.
If saving money, socialising, and recommendations aren’t enough to persuade you, what if I told you that, on average, hostels are approximately 75% less carbon intensive than hotels?
You might not get the same level of privacy or facilities that hotels offer, but at hostels you are saving money and the planet at the same time. Sure, you could be sharing a shower with ten other people, but those people could become the main characters of your travelling stories.