Disagree that hostels always beat hotels for solo budget trips

After a friend told me 'you're wasting money on private rooms, just stay in dorms', I tried it for a 5-day trip to Portland last fall. But I lost 2 hours each night waiting for people to quiet down, and my earplugs barely helped. I spent $38 a night at a hostel but ended up buying $12 coffees just to function the next morning. Now I book budget hotels outside the city center for around $50 a night instead. Has anyone else found that the social cost of hostels adds up more than they thought?

2 comments

2 Comments

hunt.jana14d ago

Oh please, "social cost" is a stretch. You lost two hours waiting for people to quiet down? That's on you for not just asking them nicely or finding a less loud dorm. I've stayed in hostels all over, and yeah, sometimes it's a bit noisy but you just deal with it. Five days of that and you're buying $12 coffees? That sounds like a you problem, not a hostel problem. Honestly, if you can't handle a little chatter at 10 PM without crumbling, maybe solo travel isn't for you.

hannahs7113d ago

So you think losing sleep and paying for overpriced coffee is just a personal failure then?