Along my travels, I have had the pleasure of staying in dozens of hostels. Some of my experiences have been good, some have been bad and some of them have completely changed my perspective of what it means to live well while traveling on a budget. Each and every time I stay in a hostel, I always take note of certain details, features and amenities that I feel add lots of value to the lives of the travelers that they host. Here are the best features the I feel every hostel should offer …or at least aspire to.
What Makes A Hostel Amazing?
When it comes to what makes a hostel truly amazing, there are certain key factors that can make the difference between a life changing experience and a stay from hell. From the welcoming presence of hostel character, class, and charm, to the importance of staff who are experienced travelers themselves, these factors create an environment that goes beyond mere budget accommodation. Stimulating cultured social events and providing a quality common area that travelers can meet each other and cultivate new experiences and relationships. Providing a safe, comfortable, and clean place to stay and prepare to launch whatever future travels you have planned. By considering the points raised in this article, both hostels and travelers can play an active part of cultivating an enriching environment for travelers from all walks of life.
Hostel Character, Class & Charm
The character of a hostel is often what gets me to look closer at the experiences that they offer. It’s easy to just offer a bed to sleep in but what really sets a hostel above the rest is not WHAT they do, but WHY they do it. Do they do it because they are travelers and want their guests to feel at home while traveling? Do they do it because they want to share their language, culture and way of life with their guests? Do they do it to tell their story? or do they do it because they just want to make money? What is is about a hostel that makes you fall in love and tell all the stories about it years later? The character of a hostel plays a big part in the experience that they offer.
Staff Who Travel
One of the very first things that I look for is whether or not the hostel staff are travelers. Too many times I have stayed at a hostel and the staff are all locals and none of them are very well traveled and they often only speak 1 or 2 languages. Since I am a language nerd, the first thing I look for is how multilingual the staff is and are they passionate about what they are doing? Do they hate their jobs or are they excited to be helping travelers get the most out of their time while staying in their city? Staff who travel are more likely to empathize with you since they understand the struggles and hardships of being alone and away from home. Traveler staff are more likely to provide you with useful travel insight like helping with directions, suggesting restaurants and helping to bring like minds together.
Efficient Check-In Process
If the staff are also travelers then they should understand the importance of a quick and efficient check-in process. Too many times have I stood in line only to find that when I get to the counter, I am asked to fill out some forms. “Why the hell wasn’t I asked to fill out these forms during all of this waiting!? Why wasn’t I filling this out while I was waiting for your super slow check in process?” When you arrive at a hostel, it should be easy to drop your bag at reception and they get you checked in and if there is any waiting around, you should be spending that time filling out whatever forms need to be filled out BEFORE you get to the counter. Part of this check-in process should probably include the acceptance of both cash and credit cards.
Modular Bathrooms
Keeping the shower, toilets and lavatory separate from each other is an important aspect of an efficient hostel. This one is obviously not possible for every hostel but I have stayed at too many hostels that have the toilet, lavatory and shower all in the same bathroom. This might not seem like a problem at first but when you wake up and need to go to the bathroom first thing in the morning and you can’t because that German couple is having a shower. That’s a problem.
A Nice Clean Bed
Nothing feels as relaxing as falling asleep in a nice inviting and comfortable bed after a long day of traveling. Most hostels these days have quality beds and linens but surprisingly, some don’t and the result is an uncomfortable stay. A bed should come with bed linens and a pillow. Unfortunately, not all hostels seem to understand this simple concept. It’s also a huge plus if they aren’t IKEA beds that squeak and squeal like a banshee whenever you touch them.
A Locker for Each Guest
I once stayed in a hostel in Amsterdam that had 10 beds and 8 lockers. You don’t have to be a math major to know that two travelers don’t have access to the level of security as the other eight. A hostel should make you feel safe and secure and if you don’t have a place to lock your things up, then you won’t be able to enjoy yourself as much as you should. It is also a huge plus to have power points inside of the lockers so you can leave a device charging while it is safely locked up.
WiFi is Included
This one is pretty much a no-brainer. WiFi is to travelers abroad as space suits are to astronauts in space. If you don’t have it, then you will die. Ok, not really but WiFi is such a crucial part of a travelers life for booking hostels, booking flights, checking in for flights, finding things to do, blogging, contacting friends & family back home, digital nomads need WiFi in order to make a living as they travel and the list goes on and on. Access to the internet is one of the most important things for a traveler, so if you hostel doesn’t include this as part of your stay, they’re doing it wrong.
Complimentary On-Site Computer Use
I have stayed at hostels that have some sort of coin operated computers or you need to buy some sort of code from reception. Not only does this nickel and diming method create unnecessary friction for travelers, it also adds extra work for the hostel staff. Now if you want to use a computer, you need to wait in line with reception and then buy something that should be included with your stay. This inconvenience only compounds if the hostel doesn’t have a streamlined check- in process so you end up waiting for like 10 minutes just to buy some WiFi. Waste…of…time.
24 Hour Kitchen Access + Dining Area
This has been a big deal at some hostels that I have stayed at. The kitchen closes at like 10PM so you can’t make yourself some food if you arrive late or early. People need access to food and cooking facilities 24 hours a day.
Communal Area
The communal area can be the single biggest maker or breaker for a hostel. Staying at a hostel is about building relationships with other people who share the same passions as you. Without a good common area that stimulates interaction between travelers, people miss out on connections, invaluable peer to peer street smarts and some life changing experiences.
Cultured Hostel Social Events
Hostel social events should not only help to bring together travelers but they should also help to foster and stimulate mature travelers who want culture rich experiences and not just a drunken party. More cultured social events include things like wine tastings, tapas, art walks and museum tours rather than free shots, winning bar tabs and pub crawls.
Bar or Restaurant + Locals Welcome
Sometimes everything you need is supplied by the hostel and that includes entertainment. Hostels with some sort of alcohol for sale can often save you lots of time and money since it is usually cheaper to drink within the hostel and you don’t have to go very far to have a couple beers with new friends. These sorts of hostel bars are often open late and have
I have stayed at too many hostels with a bar that is only available to the guests of the hostel. This cuts travelers off from one of the most important elements of traveling, meeting the locals. If I want to learn the local language from the people who speak it fluently, it helps to be able to meet some of them at the hostel bar.
Bringing Your Own Beer, Wine or Spirits is Allowed
I have stayed at some hostels that have a strict “no outside beverage allowed” policy. This mostly resulted in people breaking the rules but also seems kind of controlling. If a hostel is doing its part to foster more mature and cultured travelers this shouldn’t really create many problems since the focal point of the hostel culture is not on getting wasted.
Complimentary Breakfast
They say that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. I agree and I think it is even more important while you are traveling. The reason I say that this is so important is because missing even a single meal while traveling can really tax your immune system. When you are traveling, not only is your sleep schedule all messed up but you are also being exposed to all sort of pathogens that your body has likely never encountered before. A complimentary breakfast is one of the easiest ways to keep your immune system strong while also setting up guests for a more productive day.
Travel Accessories For Sale
If you have done any serious amount of traveling, you have likely stayed at a hostel that sells things like small locks, international travel adapters, towels, metro cards, soap, toothpaste, etc. Not all of these items need to be offered by a hostel but it is often very convenient to be able to get a hold of these travel tools without having to leave the hostel.
Access To Laundry Services
Health and hygiene and closely related. Keeping yourself clean while traveling can be a big part of keeping your immune system strong and freshly laundered clothing is a must as often as you need it. Not only is it good to have fresh clothes to wear, it is also courteous to your fellow travelers who don’t want to smell your dirty laundry in the room. Some hostels have coin operated laundry machines available to their guests while others may offer laundry services for a fixed rate per kilo.
Complimentary Luggage Storage
After you have checked out of your hostel, you will probably need to hang around for a little while until you catch your plane, train or automobile out of there. Most hostels offer short term luggage storage for you while you spend your last day in the area. This is also true if you arrive before your the check-in time, you can drop your bag off while you go out into the city for little while.
This list is not possible for every single hostel but if a hostel is doing all that they can to provide their guests with a hospitable experience, they probably already offer most of these amenities. If you would like to see an additional feature added to this list, let me know with a Tweet at @JonnyTravels
