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Anyone have any experience staying in a hostel in NYC? If so, can you recommend one?
Also... and this may be a naive question, but how easy is it to meet people to go out with at night at a hostel? Here's my situation... I'll be in NYC to interview for a job, and have an extra night while I'm there... so I'll be looking to go out, have some fun at some bars, etc. I'm a 26 year old guy that has never stayed in a hostel. Any advice/suggestions?
My sons stayed here a few years ago: Big Apple Hostel
Hostels vary; some are cleaner than others. But most have a common area or even a bar, they are a good way to meet people and get good travel advice.
Check out Hostelworld.com for all the hostels in any part of the country along with scads of reviews by people who have stayed there. I recently went to NYC for 5 days and tried the hostel world for the first time and from now on I'll be staying in hostels. I stayed at a luxury hostel on west 118th street and Adam Clayton Blvd., two blocks either direction to a subway stop, in the newly renovated Harlem area. Don't be put off with Harlem, after having walked through various other districts of NYC, like Greenwich Village, I'll be returning to that same hostel in April for a more extended stay. I never felt unsafe in that neighborhood, day or night. I don't know the exact name of this hosel but I believe it's L Hostel. If you check through hostelworld.com you'll find it, it's the one with the great rooftop deck. Try the hostel world, you'll love it!!! I only paid $29 for a dorm with two bunkbeds and it's own private bath in it. You can stay for less, $12, if you stay in a dorm with 3 or 4 bunkbeds. The dorm next to me had 3 bunkbeds, but during my stay there there was only one person in that dorm, having it all to himself.
Anyone have any experience staying in a hostel in NYC? If so, can you recommend one?
Also... and this may be a naive question, but how easy is it to meet people to go out with at night at a hostel? Here's my situation... I'll be in NYC to interview for a job, and have an extra night while I'm there... so I'll be looking to go out, have some fun at some bars, etc. I'm a 26 year old guy that has never stayed in a hostel. Any advice/suggestions?
I stayed at HI (Hostelling International)'s New York hostel, up on 103rd St. W. and Amsterdam Ave. Their website is here: HI - New York Hostel :: Hostel to Reserve in the United States . Met a lot of people there, from England, Bulgaria, Sweden, etc. The little TV lounge they have is always full, and computers are often taken. Stayed there one week. Staff was very nice, for the most part, though they accidentally put me in a girl's room at one point. Location was in the "upper" part of the Upper West Side, for the most part a nice neighborhood but kind of shady. Very convenient to the "1" subway line, though it's a fairly long ride to downtown NYC (usually involving transfers at Times Square from what I remember). You're looking at around $35 - $40 / night. No alcohol, smoking, weed, cocaine, meth, LSD, X, or other drugs on the premises.
Hostels affiliated with the organization "Hosteling International" (www.HIUSA.org) have to meet standards for cleanliness, safety, etc. The one in NYC on Amsterdam Ave. (see above post) is the only one in the city, I believe, that is part of Hosteling International, and it's a very nice facility. HI hostels don't allow alcohol, rowdy behavior, etc. (which can be a plus if you're trying to get a good night's sleep) and aren't always the cheapest choice, but I've always found them to be the best value for the money.
You might also check out www.CouchSurfing.com, an international newtwork of half a million people who will let you sleep on their couch (or often a guest bedroom) for free. Both Couch Surfing and hostels are great ways to meet fellow travelers and locals to hang out with.
I stayed in the YMCA hostel in NYC many years ago, and I think they are still open. It was a decent location, and you couldn't beat the price, but the room is bare bones.
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