Like most people looking to book themselves a trip abroad or in the UK, my travel plans are dictated by budget.  Not only am I the kinda gal to look for a discount code on my boohoo order, I’m also the kind to shop around for a while before making a hotel or flight reservation.

Because I’m willing to spend that extra time shopping around and having the “you could get that for less” mentality, I’ve bagged myself some amazing deals.  Like my most recent trip to Venice that cost £120 for hotel and flights for three nights.  No, I wasn’t in the fanciest of hotels but it was clean, central and safe.  And most importantly?  It allowed me to travel for a fraction of what most people would be willing to pay for a weekend city break.

Hostels are a great alternative to hotels for when you’re looking to travel on a budget, travelling solo or for a short amount of time and can often offer much more bang for your buck if its socialising and experience that you’re looking for.  The extra money you save compared to hotels can go towards your next hostel stay in another city, a highly recommended restaurant nearby or the Ryanair sale.

My First Hostel

My first stopover in a hostel was when a group of us were looking for a slap bang central London hotel for 6 of us.  With the average price for a less than savoury looking flea pit hotel coming in at around £110 for a double for the night, the bright white, private dorm of a YHA just off Oxford Street for £30 each seemed too good to be true.  I’m not gonna lie, we were a little apprehensive about losing our hostel virginity, but where better to do it than on home turf, so to speak?  Fast forward a few years and I’ve stayed in several hostels including YHA, Clink and Hatters and would definitely head back to one AND recommend others to as well.

Here it is, a newbies guide to hostels:

1. Do your research 

First things first: it’s important to point out that not all hostels live up to the same standard.  Some are more modern, have better amenities ora better reputation but much like your standard hotels it’s nothing that some Trip Advisor or hostelworld.com research won’t solve.

2. You get to see more of the world, for less.

Hostels are generally much cheaper than hotels and start from as pocket friendly as £8 dependent on the country you’re travelling to. A dorm bed in a mixed room tends to be the cheapest option with the cost increasing for male/female only and smaller dorms.

3. You can always go private.

If sharing a room with people you don’t know isn’t your bag and you can stretch your budget a little further, most hostels now offer the luxury of a private room which gives you a little more privacy, means you don’t have to share with someone who may be a chronic storer (or sleep tooter) and an en suite incase you’re iffy about the shared bathroom life.. which I TOTALLY get.

4. You get to meet like minded travellers.

For those travelling solo or the ones who can strike up conversation with just about anybody, hostels can be like a kind of social club of grown ups.  The communal areas, bars and spacious shared rooms are breeding ground for conversation and striking up new friendships or even to pick up recommendations.  A lot of people are following the same travel path and it’s nice if you can occasionally come across a familiar face or offer up a simple “hi!” to someone travelling alone over breakfast.  It’s as much about the experience and the people you meet along the way just as much as it the journey.

It’s as much about the experience and the people you meet along the way just as much as it the journey.

5. Food and drink is cheaper

Food and drink is one of the biggest cost outlays you simply can’t eliminate from your budget, especially when hotel bars and mini bars can be pricey/extortionate.  Hostels with a bar often offer more reasonably priced drinks, which in major cities can eat up a lot of your budget if you’re planning on being on the fizzy stuff.

Some hostels have communal kitchens where you cook up a healthy well balanced meal without having to rely on junk food and takeaways and others have a built in kitchen meaning you can order food for the fraction of the price elsewhere.  Gotta save those ££… or euros, or dollars…

6. They’re well situated & (often) quirky.

Hostels are usually ideal due to their location and proximity to local transport links or the touristy spots you’re looking to visit.  If you don’t know the local transport system, be sure to ask at the reception about fares/travel passes and routes along with a map and recommended spots to see. You may pay a little bit more for a hostel smack bang in the centre of a city, but you can bet that you’ll still be paying a fraction of the price of a hotel in the same location.

Another key selling point for me is that the majority of hostels are housed in quirky or interesting buildings due to the sheer size and locality to the city.  I’ve stayed in a former laboratory and even slept in a jail cell but they’re tame compared to the bomb shelter in Switzerland, tree house in Hawaii or the old parish in Gloucestershire.

I’ve stayed in a former laboratory and even slept in a jail cell but they’re tame compared to the bomb shelter in Switzerland, tree house in Hawaii or the old parish in Gloucestershire.

7. Their focus is their guests

I’ve never stayed in a hostel without reception staff that know their shit, an enthusiastic bar tender or free wifi.  What makes hostels unique to hotels is the community feel.  Staff are often local to the city you’re staying in and are the best point of contact when it comes to where to go, what to see, where to eat and the best places to head to if you wanna be singing Adele come 3am.

Staff led walking/bike/bus tours of the city you’re visiting are becoming more popular and are often free if not a lot cheaper than you’ll find at the tourist information centres.  Just remember to tip or buy your guide a beer in the hostel bar later on in the evening.

Speaking of the bar, the majority of hostels hold various themed nights or activities within the hotel bar or communal areas to keep their guests entertained.  Karaoke, beer pong, quiz nights or live music allow you to mingle with other travellers and enjoy a cheap night.