Being well traveled, I have stayed in the most interesting places. Of course I have stayed in hotels but they get boring. I liked themed motels, home stays and hostels. When I was 14, I went with my school to Sichuan , China to befriend the earthquake victims as well as help teach English. Those were the most amazing 2 weeks ever. Anyways, we stayed in bunk beds in a small zinc room. Zinc roofs and walls nailed together made up the entire room. It was freezing but ironically cozy. I really enjoyed that. I even saw snow fall for the first time during my stay there.
A lot of people claim that anything other than a hotel is dangerous. I beg to differ. Hotels may feel safer with the high-tech lock systems and security cameras at every corner but it just feels so lonely. Therefore I love hostels. Not only do you meet people from all over the world, you get to hang out with them like a huge family.
Earlier this year in June, I went to Japan and most of the trip we stayed in hostels. I loved it. Sometimes, you don't even get a room to yourself. Of course the had privacy curtains for every bed. I had a lot of fun there. In the middle of the night, if everyone in the room isn't tired, people would talk and make friends. It felt like a community. People even shared a kitchen and unlike a hotel, cooked their own breakfasts.
Even though I was away on vacation, I had to write an essay for school so I went to the living room to use wifi. People from all over the world were crammed into the living room laughing, talking, sharing beers and playing cards. They offered me some but I don't drink. When they ran out of beer, a couple of them walked 10 minutes to the closest convenient store and bought beer for everyone. I didn't leave the room until 2am when started doing beer challenges and when I was done with my essay. It was a short essay. I just had too much fun getting to know people from all over the world. It was really fun. You could feel the warmth and energy. For a moment then, racism just seemed so non-existent.
You see? That is why I love staying in hostels. You may not be presented with an elaborate breakfast buffet or have your own room with room service at your disposal or bell boys to carry your bags for you but I wouldn't mind trading all that just to have cosy rooms and meeting new people.
Like I said, a lot of people worry about safety issues. All I can say is to pick your hostels wisely. When you have found a couple of hostels you might want to book, it would be good to find out a little about the neighborhood where it is located. Making calls to the hostel to make queries won't kill you. Talk to the owner or something. At least make sure of the safety features the hostel provides. Like some of the hostels I have been to, the doors auto-lock by 11pm and can only be unlocked from inside. Since everyone knows or recognizes everyone, they would only open the doors for people they recognize.
If your friends have stayed in a particular hostel and recommended it to you, it usually is most likely safe. After all, no matter how much they may hate you, they wouldn't want to shoulder the blame of recommending you to stay in a hell hole. Or maybe they would. I'm kidding. If you want to book your hostel online, I suggest you use sites that are trusted so you wouldn't be scammed. To be scammed on your vacation is just sad.
Here is a link to one of my most trusted site --> Hostel World.
You enter the country or state you wish to visit and they would offer you a list of deals. They are mostly pretty cheap and verified safe. Even so, do everything with caution and don't make decisions rashly.
If you have never stayed in a hostel, I strongly suggest that you do.
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