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That is fine. Plenty of hotels for those who can afford and prefer it.
Hostels have their place and I'm glad there are a lot of them too!
Especially in very scenic areas of the world that don't allow hotels.
I don't mind a day or 2 of roughing it lol but any more than 2 days & I go crazy plus I need wifi because i need to be able to respond to clients. (I get to go on vacations but i still have to try & work remotely as much as I can on the go).
I travel internationally 1-2 times a year and domestically 2-3... depends on what my job will allow.
but... if you are a couple traveling together and not married / renting separate rooms... A hostel can make sense.
Actually a hostel usually makes more sense financially if you're alone, not two. You get two people paying individually for hostel beds you start to hit the same price range as budget guest houses where one shared room would have more space, privacy, security, and maybe your own bathroom.
Quote:
Originally Posted by StealthRabbit
Hotels are really too sterile for a 'rich' travel experience. (Meeting interesting people and learning about the local area).
It is what you make of it, it is silly to believe that choosing to share a bunch of beds in the same room somehow makes a stay less sterile and rich.
Plenty of people check into hostels, hang with other tourists playing on their phones in the day room, head to the touristy bar at night, and sign up for the touristy excursions that the hostel runs where a dozen people with dreadlocks pile into a van to see the waterfall. Their non-sterile rich travel experience is conversations in English that are usually thinly disguised brag-fests to see who has been traveling longer or been to more countries. If the hostel serves food the menu is often dominated by pizza and chips.
Meanwhile some else might have checked into a local family run hotel where the other guests are other travelers who come from the region. Their interactions might be with the lady who runs it, and it's half gestures to get around language issues. They get tips from these locals on how to get to the same waterfalls by local bus instead of the hostel tour up the street. Their restaurant's food is cooked by grandma after she gets back from the market.
There are no absolutes on what experience is richer hotel versus hostel.
I agree with you. I feel like having a comfy bed and a nice hotel adds more to my experience. I am not going to have fun on vacation if I get no sleep because the bed & room are crappy.
There's something just so great about crawling into a big nice comfy hotel bed at the end of the day.
Maybe it is b/c I am female. We also grew up very differently. I grew up very affluent while he was very poor growing up so some hostels he stayed in before meeting me were actually nicer than the bedroom he had growing up.
Also I do not ask for fancy type hotels, but I at least like to stay @ chains... Marriott, Sheraton, Hilton etc b/c I know what I'm getting... I don't need The Plaza or anything though.
What's your destination?
Unless you are going to New York City or similar, getting a decent hotel room via priceline isn't too expensive, I mean, under $100.
Even some Best Western Plus can be much better than hostels. I'd look for 3 or 2.5 star hotels on priceline(Marriott Courtyard, Hilton Garden Inn, etc).
Unless you are going to New York City or similar, getting a decent hotel room via priceline isn't too expensive, I mean, under $100.
Even some Best Western Plus can be much better than hostels. I'd look for 3 or 2.5 star hotels on priceline(Marriott Courtyard, Hilton Garden Inn, etc).
I'm talking international re: hostels. Domestically we stay @ Marriotts b/c we get a discount. The discount doesn't work internationally so he is wanting to do hostels internationally now.
I'm talking international re: hostels. Domestically we stay @ Marriotts b/c we get a discount. The discount doesn't work internationally so he is wanting to do hostels internationally now.
Nowhere particular yet.
International?
Asia is fairly cheap. Even Japan is slightly cheaper than the U.S nowadays. A decent but very small hotel room in Japan usually costs less than 100 dollars. It's ridiculously small, but the bed is comfortable, very clean bathroom, good A/C, little noise. It fits my bill when I just need a bed to sleep.
I have stayed in many SPG properties in China, great experience.
Me, I don't think I'd want to bother with a hostel, unless they were extremely cheap. I like having my own room and privacy. Some folks have cited cons with your stuff getting stolen, but FWIW, they do provide lockers for some of your valuables. I travel with a suitcase, and don't know if that'll fit in there. AFAIK, you do up your odds of getting thieved, but more people are not should be honest.
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I don't bother with $400 "fancy deluxe hotels". For me, I too just want a place to sleep, shower, and brush teeth. If there's complimentary wifi and TV, that can be nice too if it's there if I end up getting there with 3 to 4 hours of spare time. However, more often than not, I crash at the hotel/motel as soon as I get there, wake up, and immediately check out, so I have no time to use those amenities anyways. The hotels I stay at range from $70 to $130 per night. Unless the hostels are $50 or less per night, then I'd rather pay extra for the privacy.
YMCA Hostels are nice and safe too. I will be happy to stay there rather then some dodgy hotel.
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