Principes

Hi everyone, I've never booked a hostel before, and i'm browsing through hostelworld right now as I want to start booking things for my euro trip.
I have several questions regarding hostels. First, there is a check-in time, does that mean I can not check in any time for the check-in time? Say I arrive in Lisbon at 10:35am, and check in time is at 2:00pm, I just have to wait until 2:00pm before I can check my things in?
Also, if check-out time is 12:00pm, that just means on my departure date I have to leave by 12:00pm, but if I want to leave earlier than that it is also fine?
Third question, there is often a cancellation policy that is 1,2, or 3 days. I'm assuming that means 1,2,3 days after booking the hostel not 1,2,3 days before arriving?
Also, I was wondering if it is generally a good idea to book all of my hostels well ahead of time (right now it would be 1 month ahead of time for me), especially since it's in Europe during the summer travel season.
Thanks !!

marvelousmouse

Ah, dang it. Lost reply, may type up again when I have time.

Short version- BOOK NOW. You may be out of luck in some places- I often book 4-6 months out. Pay attention to reviews that mention cleanliness, noise, location. Be willing to pay a little more for a better option- either hostel wise or room wise.

marvelousmouse

Check in and check out are just like hotels but you can often store luggage before or after. Cancellation is based on when reservation starts- if I had a reservation check in @ 2 on Friday, cancellation is 24 hours, then the latest I could cancel would be Thursday at 2.

marvelousmouse

And try to book through the hostels website rather than hostel world- usually it gives you a better idea of what you actually are booking.

Principes

thank you marvelousmouse? Do you know what the policies are with check out time regarding night trains. I am thinking about booking a hostel with a check out time at 12:00pm, but the night train leaves at 9:35pm, will they let me keep my baggage stored safely with them until around 8:00pm where I will be prepared to take the night train?

PalenQ

Get a copy of Let's Go Europe - invaluable coverage of hostels and youth hotels (fewer rules - check-in anytime - have bars and a convivial atmosphere - no curfews like in traditional hostels and even private rooms - there are zillions of these.

Let's Go gives a great objective rundown of hostels - telling which are the pits and which are good bets.

Are you going by train - if so check on overnight trains on your route - save the cost of an accommodation and save daytime travel time- many of these in Europe yet. If going by train check these superb IMO sources - www.seat61.com; www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com.

and yes in large cities with few hostels book ahead but many times you can just show up - like in many Amsterdam hostels - there are so so many.

marvelousmouse

Yes. You may have to pay for a locker, though. You can always email each hostel too. Post back and let me know where you stayed- I'm hostel hunting for Europe in December

Principes

@marvelmouse
will do!
I noticed that on hostelworld they have a 20% downpayment deposit. I think this means that if I cancel I will lost that 20%? If I go through the hostel's website do they typically also have a downpayment?

marvelousmouse

Most hostels I have stayed at take a deposit- differing amounts. Usually not refundable, sometimes it is. Honestly the amount is usually small enough that I don't look into that.

A good place to start is the Hostelling International website. Usually very solid, family friendly, safe accommodations. Not boutique hostels but often in good locations or interesting buildings. And you can sometimes book multiple stays at the same time as they have a "shopping cart" feature.

I use hostelworld mostly for the reviews and ratings- ratings don't always mean much but if you have a place that has a high rating and hundreds of reviews, it means it is probably a safe bet. Location and safety are big for me- after that, amenities, the building, cleanliness. Ideally focus on reviews of people who are frequent hostellers and who are interested in the same stuff you are. (Poor reviews from people who usually stay at 4 star hotels or high ratings from people who clearly are only there to party don't mean much usually). If I have two hostels to choose from it usually comes down to either bathrooms or the plug in situation- as in are there enough plug ins in the dorm room for everyone to charge their cell phones.

PalenQ

HI hostels may tend to have more young school groups during the school year - one reason non-HI hostels are more oriented to young adults and not filled with rules and check-in times.

HI hostels, started under the Nazis in Germany or at least developed by them, are it seems getting more client oriented too but do not neglect youth hotels and non-HI or private hostels - especially if you are the social type and don't want curfews, mandatory reveilles in the morning, etc - fewer and fewer HI hostels have these but you never know. In Bavaria there is still a mandatory age limit I think of 25 or 30.

emilya4

To answer your question about the deposit, usually the deposit isn't 20% but more like 10-15%. But yes, if you cancel it for any reason, they don't refund the deposit. But you won't be charged any more as long as it's at least a couple days before the date of your stay.

But Hostelz.com is the site you probably should be using to research hostels. It combines data from all those booking sites so for example you can see how a hostel is rated on not just one booking site but all of them combined, and also see which one has the cheapest price.

marvelousmouse

Oh, good point about the school groups. Yes, if that bothers you, try to stay somewhere small or somewhere that makes the minimum age 18. Last hostel I stayed at I didn't hang out in the common area because it had been overtaken by dozens of poorly supervised middle schoolers. I don't mind the rules, though, because usually that translates into a quiet dorms at night.

Have only ran into the age limit once so far and that was a non HI in London (age limit 35). Any idea which ones in Bavaria, Palenq?

Principes

Also just another quick question? I am going with my brother, so if i book 2 beds, that means we are covered right since both my brother and I will have a bed?

PalenQ

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopi...a_Bavaria.html

Guess the age 27 was abolished in all of Bavaria a few years ago. It only applied to HI (Hostelling International) - the 'official' youth hostel organization - in the USA called American Youth Hostels.

so if i book 2 beds, that means we are covered right since both my brother and I will have a bed?> I assume since you pay a deposit for two people - some dorms are unisex but typically I think still sex-segregated in HI hostels

Hostels are great place to meet others you age but two together can at times, especially off season, get a cheap hotel at about the same price in some countries - also airbnb is always viable and usually reliable - but hotels are isolating - fine for those who like privacy but kind of a cocoon from others except at the breakfast table if breakfast is offered.

Theft can obviously be a problem in hostels so be sure to put valuables in a money belt or device that you wear to bed - other stuff in a locker. Anything out in the open is up for grabs - rarely happened IME of hosteling long ago however but in any room with strangers coming and going - especially in large hostels.

Christina

If you book two beds, yes, you will have two beds. I'm not clear what else you thinking it could be. Hostels are generally for singles or friends traveling together and do not typically have double beds, although some may (and some websites will list budget hotels in with hostels -- note that in Spain the word "hostal" is a small, family-run budget hotel, it does not mean the same thing as the world hostel you are used to). If they did, the website should say so. And when you book, you should be given a choice of room type--dorm rooms obviously are going to be two beds in a multi-bedded room. If it lists a room as a twin room, that is also going to be two beds. The website should be clear what you are getting -- if it says "double bed private" room, then no, it won't be two beds.

All of the questions you ask should be available on the hostel's website. At least good ones. I've only looked at them much in Paris, and I know some of those say all these things (about when you lose the deposit, how long you can store luggage, etc.). The website also ought to have photos on it so you can see what the rooms are like. The hostelworld website seems to have lots of info about every listing that gives all the details plus room types, etc.

kimhe

As Christina says, a Hostal or Pension in Spain is usually a small, basic hotel standard, great value place that has very little to do with youth hostels. Very often private bath, AC, TV, safe, 24h desk, usually small and atmospheric - often family-owned - alternatives to hotels.

Some of many examples of great value hostales right in the heart of some Spanish cities:
Hostal Orleans, Barcelona: http://www.hostalorleans.com/index.php?lang=en
Hostal Rodri, Granada: http://www.hostalrodri.com/?lang=en
Hostal La Perla Asturiana, Madrid: https://www.motordereservashoteleras...riana/?lang=en
Hostal Victoria, Malaga: http://www.booking.com/hotel/es/victoria.en-gb.html
Hostal El Museo, Sevilla: http://www.hostalmuseosevilla.com/