First time traveler, truth on hostels please!

[azotos]

Hi!
Im a 19 year old travelign to europe for the first time and I want to stay in hostels to keep the prices down and meet some cool people along the way! What I want to know is if my expectations of hostels are really naive. For example is there any danger in a young woman staying in a hostel? Would it be better to stay in private rooms? What do you do about your luggage while you sleep? Please give me any and all the advice and info you can think of! Thanks!!

[pointofnoreturn]

I'm not a big fan of hostels but I did stay in a few during my trip and it wasn't too bad but all the rooms we stayed in (I went with another female) were private rooms. We didn't want to stay in dorms because we're very particular about our ways. Some cities in Europe don't have hostels but they have guesthouses (esp. in Greece) and some places have B&B at bargain prices.

If you were to stay in a hostel dorm-like room, you could lock your bag to your beg and also locking your zippers on your bag with small locks. The people I met on my travels had good times in their dorms and didn't have any problems but you should always be aware.... but not paranoid.

Private rooms.... are a good bet, but cheaper if you're travelling with a 2nd person. If you're going by yourself, costs will surely be higher and sometimes double the price. I personally like private rooms (maybe cause I can afford it?) because I get to go to bed when I want, etc.

It would be nice if you stayed in a mix of hotels, hostels, B&B and guesthouses during your trip. If you can only afford hostels for the majority of trips, try to stay in a hotel every now and then to give you a break from hostels and also give you more privacy!

P.S. It would be advisable to look around at costs of hotels/B&B/hostels/guesthouses in each city so you know the price ranges and what you can afford or not.

[me]

Many hostels have lockers for your bags. most of them have lockers.

HI hostels have single sex dorms, i think. that's an option if you're uncomfortable sleeping in the same room with men you don't know.

for the private hostels, smaller is better. one of the best is the Beehive, in Rome. but, no lockers. yet there were no problems when i was there, in 2004. the woman at the desk said there had *never* been a theft at the Beehive.

Edit: but, FYI, the Beehive has only a mixed dorm - no single sex dorm. at least there wasn't when i was there, in '04.

also, for anyone visiting Rome, the Beehive has a city faves booklet, “The Beehive Recommends.” it's available as a pdf at www.the-beehive.com/recguide.pdf

i suggest it as pretrip reading to anyone visiting Rome!

- d

[freshsprout]

Azotos,

Check out my suggestions in this thread:
pretravel.proboards1.com/index.cgi?board=CCadvice&action=display&n=1&thread=3877

Here is a website where you can choose from many different kinds of hostels. Again, be careful in figuring out what kind of hostel you would prefer to stay at (party, no party, unisex, females, big, small, location, etc.) It's pretty good in giving you photos, listings of their accommodations, and most importantly - ratings and reviews from past backpackers.

www.hostelbookers.com/hostels/england/london/

I personally -loved- staying at the St. Christopher's Orient Espresso - near London Bridge. It was *very* clean, spacious, quiet compared to everywhere else I stayed.. it is an all-female facility (hence maybe the cleanliness, sorry boys).. so you feel a bit more secure and location was fantastic - right across the street from a major tube station (and walking distance to the London Bridge/Tower of London).
Heck, even the doors were painted pink for the girls. ;D

The only odd thing about it is it's a facility on it's own - there is an internet space downstairs and cafe. But the actual lobby is several blocks down the street where you have to check in at the St. Christopher's-Village building (that is a unisex hostel), and Belushi's Bar where you can get lunch, a pint or go dancing in the evening. The good thing is you won't have to deal with that noise when you return to your own quarters!

But I've heard good reviews about GlobeTrotter's too.

I never had anything stolen while I was in Europe.. I mean, you just have to be smart - take your valuables with you or lock them up. Since I had 3 TSA locks with me, I just snapped 2 of them on my locker. I also recommend getting a cable - you can buy a cheap one at any Sports store and wrap it around the locker if doing the small locks gets annoying.

Unless I was traveling with a group of people, I wouldn't bother reserving a whole room to myself. The prices in London are double than over here - so you got to consider, if you're staying in a room for 50 pounds, that's gonna be $100/each night (+tax). [whistles] And you won't get much cheaper than a hostel unless you have friends or family there.

Oh, and be sure to bring a eyecap and earplugs with you. You'll need those.

[Eagle]

azotos, Hostels are indeed a good way to keep the price of lodgings down, and meet some cool people! However, not all Hostels are equal - some are good and well run, while others are a bit "dodgy" and are "party palaces". I've always found HI Hostels to be good. They're part of a world-wide chain, so all locations have to meet specific standards. Most HI locations only have single-gender Dorm rooms, however this varies by location.

As you're travelling "solo", I suspect you'll have to settle for Dorm rooms unless you're willing to spend extra and book a double for yourself (you'll have to book a LONG way in advance, as these book up quickly). You might also consider budget Hotels, as in many cases the cost is not that much higher and you get to enjoy a bit of privacy. Some of the "European style" budget Hotels still have shared bathrooms, but that's not a big deal IMO (some have a sink and shower in the room, with toilets down the hall, while others only have a sink in the room so the shower is shared also). What type of accomodations you choose will depend largely on how much you want to spend!

Four bed Dorms are a reasonable compromise. Many of the newer ones are ensuite, so each room has it's own bathroom. Of course, there are some sacrifices with "communal living". If the room doesn't have individual Lockers (BTW you have to supply your own Padlock), the front desk will usually store valuables for guests. Normally, just locking your pack is sufficient (which is a good reason to choose a panel-loading Backpack, with lockable zippers - top-loaders are harder to secure). Of course, DON'T leave any valuables in your pack - wear a Money Belt!

As I mentioned, there are some "dodgy" Hostels (generally they are independent and not part of a chain). One of my relatives (a young woman) and her friend were accosted by drunks (or possibly on drugs?) in Rome last year, and apparently the Hostel management was too incompetent to deal with the problem. They had to leave the Hostel and get a Hotel room for the night!

Situations like that do occur, but in my experience most people behave themselves. I was in a six-bed Dorm in a Hostel in Switzerland last fall, in which there were five guys and one girl in the same room. I also stayed in co-ed four bed Dorms in Rome and didn't notice any problems. Everyone was respectful and got along well (although I did notice that girls take a LOT longer in the washroom getting organized in the mornings!!!). In Rome one of the ladies in the room only spoke Spanish, so it was very frustrating not being able to communicate with her (although there was an Italian guy staying in the same room who could speak Italian, Spanish and some English, so was able to translate - however he wasn't always around).

You might find that a combination of Hostels in the more expensive cities and budget Hotels in smaller locations might work well for you? That provides a nice mixture of cost effective lodgings as well as some privacy and a "break" from the communal living.

Cheers!!!

[ryannorris]

I stayed in many hostels and the worst problem I had was either someone who stunk or snored a lot (in which case you just hit him with a pillow) I've stayed in many hostel rooms with girls and everyone seemed fine. I'd highly suggest that you lock up your zippers on your bags and lock them in a cupboard or a locker or lock it to your bed. Try to be as modest as possible when in your room eg ( don't sleep topless when you're in a room with guys in it. The YHA hostels in England have seperated female and male rooms. Some other hostels do that as well. I didn't have any problems, but I'm not a girl so I wouldn't feel the same way. Just be careful is all I can say. Hostels are a great way to meet people and they're cheaper and you can cook for yourself most of the time, but some are smelly, hot and packed full with hardly any privacy. ha Just be prepared to have someone see you naked at least once.