Hostel Advice
 

Hello all,

I am planning a European trip this October- November and wanted to find out more about people's experiences in hostels and if they are safe? I am visiting Dublin, London, Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels, Berlin, Prague, and Cologne. Should I even look into staying at a hostel or skip them entirely for a hotel room. Thank you in advance.

What exactly do you mean with safe?

It's been a few years since I stayed in a hostel.

From my memories it was physically safe. No assaults, no fighting, no threats. And I'm a woman travelling solo, so I had some worries before my first hostel stay, too. Physically, there were no problems at all.

But there was at least one case of theft. An unknown male person had been seen sneaking out of the shared female-only dorm room. Bags had been looked through and someone's mini computer was left on the wrong bed. Fortunately all I lost was some coins and a bus pass for my home town.

Most hostels have lockers. Leave your valuables there both overnight and when you go out for the day. Don't forget to pick them up when you check out.

Hostels can get a bit noisy. Especially if most of the other guests are young. But cheap hotels usually have thin walls, so they can be noisy too.

A more important question is if you can sleep in a shared dorm room. If you need quiet and privacy to get a good night's sleep dorm rooms will not be enjoyable at all. But a lot of hostels (not all of them) have private rooms, too.

been a long long time since I stayed in a Hostel.I know Prague very well and visit there several times a year.
this link about hostels and cheaper places to stay may be of interest to you.
http://www.livingprague.com/hostel.htm

Thank you both for the information. I did mean safe as in physically safe. I am currently in the military so I am definitely used to sleeping in dorms

http://www.numbeo.com/crime/compare_...st&city2=Paris
I would not say any of these places are unsafe but like any big city you just have to de street smart and I am pretty sure you are.
The above link will allow you to compare crime statistic for each city and compare them to your own city and to each other.

Hostels are safe. They are mainly used by tavelling school classes and this means you may encounter some drunken kids and some noise at night - but it looks as if you will be able to deal with that.

Compared to other parts of the world (including North America), all European cities are safe, apart from the risk of an occasional pickpocket (but I have been spending some 18,000 days in European cities and never been victim of a pickpocket). Just take the usual precautions against pickpockets (like carrying a venomous snake or scorpion in your pocket).

hostelworld.com gives ratings.

Hostels differ widely. Many are quite pleasant, but there are some where drugs and theft are common. You need to get a good review book or site to see which hostels in which you will be comfortable.'

Those member of Hosteling International are usually good.

But I would check out the Let's Go Guide to see which they reco - also the Thorn Tree section of the Lonely Planet web site. Note that the better ones do sometimes sell out in advance.

Our kids are in their 20's (college, and college graduate) and in Berlin they stayed at the Circus Hostel and said it was very good. Our daughter had no worries about her safety, etc. Their trip was over Christmas, so less than 2 months ago, so very recent.

Hostels are fine, but as others mention, vary greatly from one to the other.

Do check out The Thorn Tree (Lonely Planet's forum similar to this one) where more younger &/or backpacker hostel-staying folks post.

Also guidebooks like Lonely Planet, Rough Guides, Let's Go would be useful for this kind of information.

(Nothing against Fodor's and there's excellent information here but more posters who are older and stay in more mid to upscale places than you're seeking.)

There are definitely some dicey hostels, you can't say they are all safe as they aren't. Probably mainly in terms of theft. Others may be crummy, dilapidated, noisy, crowded with people yo udont' like but that isn't a matter of safety.

I pretty much feel safer in a hostel than a hotel. It's creepy being alone in a hotel room in a foreign country. I'd rather be in a hostel surrounded by other friendly travelers like me, sharing stories about our experiences, hearing about other cultures, etc. Sitting a hotel room by yourself is just kind of sad compared to staying in a hostel. Almost every hostel has lockers, so if you use them you don't have to worry about theft (which is rare, but it does happen).

The best hostels are nicer than most hotels. There are some really amazing ones all over Europe, including fancy super modern ones, and classy historic ones. Hostelz.com (https://www.hostelz.com) is the best way to find hostels (it's a free listing site that includes all hostels and shows ratings and tells you where you can book each one for the cheapest price).

I have young friends who stayed in the St Christophers Hostel in Paris and thought it was very safe etc.. They were 18-19 yr old girls.

I can vouch for YHA London Oxford Street as being quite safe and friendly -- never had a moment's trouble when we were there a little over a year ago. I like the YHA and HI hostels (and their affiliates).

We'll be staying at YHA hostels in Manchester and London (St. Pancras) later this spring, plus a Jugendherberge in in Germany. Can't wait!

Thank you to everyone that posted! I have a lot of research to do based on your recommendations.