hostel

The benefits to travelers of hostels include lower costs opportunities to meet people from different places, find travel partners and a sense of community, and share travel experiences.{{Cite news | url=https://skift.com/2024/12/18/who-is-fueling-indias-demand-for-hostel-accommodations-india-report/ | title=Who Is Fueling India’s Demand for Hostel Accommodations — India Report | first=Bulbul | last=Dhawan | work=Skift | date=December 18, 2024}} They are usually more centrally located than lodging found on Airbnb.{{Cite news | url=https://www.yahoo.com/news/ive-stayed-hostels-9-different-104301719.html | title=I've stayed in hostels in 9 different countries. Here's why they're my preferred option — especially for solo travel. | first=Grace | last=Dean | work=Business Insider | via=Yahoo! | date=August 25, 2024}}

Some hostels, such as those in the Hostelling International network, cater to a niche market of travelers. For example, one hostel might feature in-house social gatherings such as movie nights or communal dinners, another might feature local tours, cooking classes, and pub crawls, one might be known for its parties, and another might have a quieter place to relax in serenity, or be located on the beach.{{Cite news | url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/ap-airbnb-travelers-hostels-panama-b2455601.html | title=As Airbnb falters, hostels seek to compete | first=Sally | last=French | work=The Independent | date=29 November 2023}} Some may cater to older digital nomads, global nomads, and perpetual travelers who prefer slightly more upmarket private rooms or a quieter atmosphere. Hostels may also differentiate themselves by being environmentally friendly ecohostels.

Hostels may offer long-term lodging to guests for free or at a discount in exchange for work as a receptionist or in housekeeping.

Guests are advised to be respectful of others:

• There is less privacy in a hostel than in a hotel. Sharing sleeping areas in a dormitory and bathrooms might not be comfortable for those requiring more privacy. However, the shared lodging makes it easier to meet new people. Some hostels encourage more social interaction between guests due to the shared sleeping areas and communal areas. Lounges typically have sofas and chairs, coffee tables, board games, books or book exchange, computers, and Internet access.
• Nearly all hostels have a shared communal kitchen area for the preparation of food and a storage area with refrigerators. Most hostels have a label system to identify the owner of the food. Some hostels will have a labeled "free shelf" where guests can leave unwanted food. Theft of food can happen.
• Noise can make sleeping difficult, whether from snoring, farting, talking, and social activities in the lounge, guests staying up with the light on, or someone either returning late from bars or leaving early. To mitigate the effects, many guests use earplugs and eye masks.
• Some hostels do not provide linens.
• Some hostels may have a curfew and daytime lockouts.

In August 1909, Richard Schirrmann, a teacher in Germany, first published his idea of inexpensive accommodation for youth travel after leading a school camping trip that was derailed by a thunderstorm. Schirrmann received considerable support and opened a makeshift hostel for hikers in the school in which he taught. On June 1, 1912, Schirrmann opened the first hostel in Altena Castle.{{Cite journal |last=Bunda |first=Robert |date=2014-05-02 |title=The Business of Beds: An Exploration of Hotel and Hostel Business Strategy |url=https://digitalcommons.lib.uconn.edu/srhonors_theses/350 |journal=Honors Scholar Theses}} The original hostel rooms are now a museum. Schirrmann served in World War I and after observing the Christmas truce on the Western Front in December 1915, he wondered whether "thoughtful young people of all countries could be provided with suitable meeting places where they could get to know each other". In 1919, he founded the German Youth Hostel Association.

By 1932, Germany had more than 2,000 hostels recording more than 4.5 million overnights annually. The International Youth Hostel Federation (now Hostelling International) was founded in October 1932. It is now an organization composed of more than 90 hostel associations representing over 4,500 hostels in over 80 countries. These hostels cater more to school-aged children, sometimes through school trips, and families with school-aged children.{{Citation needed|date=February 2025}}

In 1936, Franklin D. Roosevelt was the honorary president of AYH (now Hostelling International USA). John D. Rockefeller III was a proponent of hostels and was president for several years.{{Citation needed|date=February 2025}}

During World War II, many hostels in Europe were temporarily shut down or placed under the control of the Hitler Youth.{{Citation needed|date=February 2025}}

In the 1960s and 1970s, hostelling prospered. The industry declined during the 1970s energy crisis.

A law passed in New York State in 2010 banned hostels due to illegal hostels set up in residences, unless a hotel license was obtained.{{Cite news |title=Why the Hostel-ity? |url=https://www.decoderny.com/hostels-new-york-illegal |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210117224118/https://www.decoderny.com/hostels-new-york-illegal |archive-date=January 17, 2021 |date=March 23, 2017 |publisher=Decoder}}{{Cite web |last=Shaltiel |first=Jason |date=November 29, 2015 |title=Youth Hostels in Nyc, Made Illegal in 2010, Could Rebound Under New Legislative Push |url=https://www.amny.com/news/hostels-in-nyc-made-illegal-in-2010-could-rebound-under-new-legislative-push-1-11174351/ | work=amNewYork |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807190801/https://www.amny.com/news/hostels-in-nyc-made-illegal-in-2010-could-rebound-under-new-legislative-push-1-11174351/ |archive-date=August 7, 2020 |url-status=live }}

During the 2008 financial crisis and the Great Recession, the hostel market actually grew due to its cost appeal.{{Cite news | url=https://www.savills.je/research_articles/262231/198686-0 | title=European Tourist Hostel Report | work=Savills | date=26 January 2016}}

• Bed and breakfast
• Inn
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