| Hostels
Posted: 6/16/2009 7:28:37 PM | | I stayed in lots of Hostels in New Zealand and Austrilia and just loved them! They were lots chepaer then hotels and you met all kinds of great people some of whom I still speak with today! You can find the hostels being reviewed in Travel Catelogs etc... | |
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| Hostels
Posted: 6/17/2009 8:51:45 AM | I perfer staying in a hostel. As a single traveler, it's easier to hook up with others and go out and do something together. Australia a huge group of us at the hostel all headed out for the great ocean road one day, and then penguin island another.
Plus a week's worth of rent was about what you'd pay for a day at a really nice hotel for a night. I found all my hostels when taking off either through the Y or VIP backpackers. | |
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Posted: 6/18/2009 11:11:10 PM | I love them. They are a great way to meet people and have people to hangout & party with. Its also a great source of information on what to do there and where to go or stay away from.
I've been to: China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Costa Rica, Paris, London, Mexico, Australia and Uruguay. and only Paris & london were for less the 3 weeks.
Great people and a great time. | |
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Posted: 7/4/2009 4:36:45 PM | Hostels are a good way to meet other backpackers across the globe. Although I know here in Italy a lot of Hostels have a age limit of 30 years. You being older might be limited in the hostels you can stay at. However the following services are free and very much recommended.
www.hospitalityclub.org
couchsurfing.com
These services are more of a cultural exchange. You look up a place you want to go & browse people that offer free accommodation. I've used these are are very interesting. I stay with a German family that took me in, showed me around there town, gave me there history, & introduced me to friends and family.
So these can be a very pleasant, interesting, and cheap alternative to hostels/hotels. | |
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Posted: 7/5/2009 4:10:50 AM | | Hostels are definatly the way to stay on budget whilst travelling and still have an awesome time! | |
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Posted: 7/11/2009 12:21:52 PM | | I just recently stayed in one in downtown San Diego. It was a good experience you just always want to check out the area/safety before you book one. What's great about them is that they are personal. It's such a blatant difference in the vibe because there is not a larger company behind the person who is helping you at the front desk. It feels like what it must have felt like staying at an inn 200 years ago b/c McDonald's took over the world. | |
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Posted: 7/11/2009 12:22:41 PM | | correction: "before" McD's took over the world. They are just ... more personal than we are used to nowadays. | |
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Posted: 7/13/2009 2:38:16 PM | I rate a good hostel above a good hotel.
Assuming they get the basics right - decent facilities, clean rooms - then a hostel gives a chance to meet new people.
And the people you meet aren't just any people, they're *my* kind of people, the ones I actually want to meet.
Some of my best times have stemmed from hostelling.
Anyone got some to recommend? | |
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| Hostels
Posted: 7/16/2009 3:49:04 PM | I've stayed in two hostels - one in Italy and one in Lugano, Switzerland. They were very different experiences and they were both good experiences.
The one in Menaggio, Italy, on Lake Como has been described by Rick Steves as one of the best deals in Italy. It was friendly and a lot of fun. I shared my room with four American college girls, one of whom was from my home town. The food was good and the camaraderie in the place was great. Twelve dollars a night included a good dinner. Most of the people staying were young single Europeans and Americans or grey haired American women. Rooms slept five.
The place I stayed in Lugano, Switzerland, was very different. Tiny but really nice private room, the fluffiest pillow I've ever had in my life, and a very nice shared bathroom down the hallway. Most of the people staying were young families and kept to themselves. It was more like $35/night and included breakfast, was still much cheaper than a hotel room.
I'd do it again but the one thing I'd want to know about a place is there a secure place to keep my belongings? I've known people who have been ripped off staying in dorm style rooms. | |
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| Hostels
Posted: 7/20/2009 2:01:30 PM | I went backpacking in Europe for a few months and only used hostels for the entire trip. They are a really fun place to stay if you can find the right one. The best thing to do is to go to Hostels.com and see how people have rated the hostel for the city you want to stay in and read the reviews. It also helps a lot in meeting new people if the hostel has a bar or a common area.
Good Luck! | |
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| Hostels
Posted: 7/23/2009 8:38:01 PM | | I've used hostels in Europe, Niagara Falls, Quebec, Acadia National Park + other places. It was one of the greatest experiences of my life. Haven't done them in years so I can't say what they are like today. Call up their headquarters in USA and find out/get more info. I'm sure you can buy a book about them, etc. | |
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Posted: 8/19/2009 9:26:21 PM | In response to jazztabulous's post.
Edit & Casaba's hostel across from KFC in Jaco, Costa Rica is the best one I've stayed at so far. The owners are just so friendly and helpful that it sets the vibe for the whole place.
The across form KFC part is important because it doesn't have a name and there are no addresses in most of Costa Rica. | |
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Posted: 8/20/2009 11:45:10 PM | I have stayed in hostels throughout China and have always had a good experience. They people and staff are always amazing. Even, when I had my own flat I would pack a bag and spend a night in one to hang out with new people. It was a mini escape for me. Leo Hostel in Beijing was a favorite. San Li Tun Hostel was nice; as it is on the street where all the bars are, so you never had to go far for a night out.
I have been a member of Couchsurfing for 4 years and I love it! It is a great experience to see the area you are in from the locals perspective. It also can save you a bunch of money. I know I cook at least one meal for my surfers, which usually helps them out. | |
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| Hostels
Posted: 8/24/2009 8:24:13 PM | | I belong to Hostel International. Go to HI Hostel.com for info | |
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Posted: 8/24/2009 8:43:22 PM | I have stayed in some really wonderful hostels and would be happy to pass on the names.
Brownies Hostel in East Glacier Montana (Glacier N.P.) is great,clean,inexpensive,friendly, and in a lovely setting. The building itself is an old log cabin building with wood floors and paneling in every room.
Lake Louise Hostel in Canada is unbelievable. It was a 5 star hotel which was purchased by the Canadian Hostel Assoc. and Hostel International.
The hostile in Redwood National Forest is another great one. A big old house on the beach--it feels more like a B&B.
All of the above mentioned hostels are members of Hostel International and I have found the ones who belong to be above others in their standards. HI Hostel .com
I just love hosteling--started by accident 4 years ago and have been going ever since. Have made wonderful new friends from all over the world. Even if I won the lottery I would still stay at hostels. | |
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Posted: 8/27/2009 4:14:37 PM |
Hostels are a good way to meet other backpackers across the globe. Although I know here in Italy a lot of Hostels have a age limit of 30 years. You being older might be limited in the hostels you can stay at.
i found that in italy!! my friend and were so shocked lol !!! and they told us we couldnt stay before they saw our passports lol very bad reality check!!! havent had that problem anywhere else, i just wonder what would have happened if just one, not both of us had been in the ancient class....
ive stayed in hostels all over the place and they are fantastic, you meet heaps of great people and have a ball, and some of the beautiful historical buildings are an experiecnce in themselves | |
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Posted: 8/30/2009 10:26:45 AM | | about ten years ago i travel through the southern states and i have to agree that savannah is one place that people that just want a nice calm area should visit, it was super nice and the people were very friendly i found, but the rest of the south, was a little dissappointing and alot of the experiences werent good, but all the people i met that were in the hostels were super nice and friendly. | |
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