Booking Hostels In Advance

[stompy]

Hi All,

I am currently planning a trip with my girlfriend to Western Europe this summer for 4-5 weeks and had a question regarding lodging. If anybody has any advice I would be much obliged.

Should I book hostels in advance? I feel like if I book, in advance, hostels for every single city I plan to visit it would reduce some of the spontaneity of my trip. Perhaps I may want to stay in a region longer than expected I don't know. On the other hand, booking hostels in advance would make me feel more secure as I know I would have a room and won't have to worry about searching. I was wondering what you guys have done to tackle this problem. A quick note is I would want to stay in private rooms as I will be with my girlfriend.

Thanks!

Cheers
Eric

[herrbert]

Hello Stompy,

It's the age old dilemma. However I feel that the flexibility card is drawn too fast by a lot of people. If you are only going for a couple of weeks, you want to get out of your trip as much as possible. This means you need to do some planning. If you have time enough and will spend 3 months in Spain, it would be a different story. The fact is that people who don't prepare a trip, miss out on sites, see less than they want to see, and in a lot of cases are not sure what they are seeing. I most cases when people don't plan ahead, they spend more time in a city, which also means at the end of the trip, that overall they have seen less. Don't forget that planning, does not mean that you have to rush yourself.

A few points:
1. Your travelling in summer, which means peak-season. The Europeans will also be travelling, which means beds in popular (or good) hostels are taken if you don't book in advance. If you don't book you will be left with the second or third choice hostels, or even have to go for a hotel.

2. In some places (e.g. London, Amsterdam, Rome) hostels need to booked in advance, as the number of beds in the city, is lower than the demand. So booking ahead in these cities is recommended not only in summer but also during the rest of the year.

3. Build in time to do other things. If you feel that flexibility/spontaneity is a factor you really need, see to it that you have options in the different cities. Let me give you an example. If you feel that Madrid is a place you want to visit, and like to spend 4 days in, make sure that you a. have something to do for 3 days, and spend the 4th day on whatever you want. (In my case I always try to get away from the tourist sites for at least half a day. (this is extra time I add to a city). If you feel that you have seen Madrid in 2 days, than know the alternatives. (as you have booked you hostel/train or flight, you are stuck in Madrid, or it least it might feel like that.) As I said know the alternatives, and read in advance about possible daytrips from the cities. (e.g. for Madrid: Toledo, Segovia, Cuenca, Avila.) These daytrips you can take if you are there, and don't need too much planning. (besides looking up, the trainshedule on internet.)

4. Private rooms in Hostels are usualy booked even quicker, so if you like that book ahead, and on time. A good reminder is that you can also check out some bed and breakfasts, pensions, and sometimes it's possible to find hotels with good prices.

5. Time: If you book in advance, you will need less time on the road figuring out how to get somewhere, and comparing prices of hostels etc. As you don't have too much time, this is time I would for sure rather spend on seeing the city instead of looking at websites.

good luck planning,

[mslibrarian]

If you want private rooms, you need to book them way in advance. I mean WAY in advance. I'm going to London the first week of May and I booked our private room weeks ago and they are now so out. I got one of the last I believe.

I always book my hostels in advance because I want to know I have a place secured. I remember in 2005 I started booking at Christmas for a trip in May (my fav time to travel) and I had to settle for my second choice in Edinburgh and had to B&B it in Whitby as there were no beds left.

I understand you wanting to be spontanious and if you don't care about where you end up, you can go without booking ahead. But if you want private rooms (and only some hostels offer them) you will need to start looking soon.

[jennifer]

Gotta go with them on this one, i'd book in advance, as for my trip to Spain I booked a little late (although my trip was in May, not yet peak season) and we had a hard time finding a nice private room!

[Eagle]

Stompy, first of all, welcome!

I definitely agree with the others here, especially as you're going to be travelling in the summer (as herrbert pointed out, PEAK travel season!). Despite the economy, Europe will probably be very busy. Also, I noticed on another travel board this morning that some travellers are now considering Hostels in order to reduce their travel budgets, so rooms will be at a premium!

Most Hostels only have a limited number of private rooms, and as mslibrarian pointed out, these usually book up very quickly. In some cases, the cost of a private Hostel room is not much different than for a budget Hotel room so you may want to consider that also (check Guidebooks for listings).

While pre-booking accommodations reduces "spontaneity" to an extent, I find it to be a more efficient travel method. I much prefer to arrive in a new city knowing that I'll have a bed for the night. That also provides me with a choice of which property to stay in and what price I want to pay, but equally important which part of the city I want to "base" in. Spending time wandering around an unfamiliar city with a 50+ lb. Backpack is a waste of valuable travel time IMO (and also a darn nuisance!). Those who fail to plan (especially for travel during the summer months), may find themselves in a property WAY out of town (increased time and expense to reach major attractions) and / or in a "dodgy" property (increased risk of theft, sub-standard accommodations, bedbugs, etc.).

Happy travels!

[stompy]

Hi All,

Sorry for the late response. Thank you all very much for your replies...undoubtedly very informative. I think it's pretty much clear for the most part I should plan ahead in order to avoid further trouble later down the road.

Thanks Again!