Hostels used to terrify me, now they're my go-to

For years I thought hostels were just dirty rooms with bunk beds and no privacy. Then I spent 5 nights at a place in Portland called HI Northwest for $35 a night and it had a full kitchen, free coffee, and a guy who gave everyone tips on cheap eats. The shared bathroom thing still bugs me sometimes but saving $200 vs a hotel made me a believer. Has anyone else had a hostel experience that totally flipped your view on budget travel?

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ivan_perez2mo ago

Stop acting like you discovered some hidden gem of the universe. It's a hostel bro, not a life changing experience. You saved a couple hundred bucks and shared a bathroom with strangers, big deal. Some of us have been doing that since college and never thought it was some terrifying ordeal. Yeah hostels can be dirty and loud sometimes, but $35 a night in Portland isn't exactly shocking. You get what you pay for, and if you're cool with that cool, but it's not like you cracked the code on travel.

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wesleyjohnson2mo ago

Haha man EXACTLY this. I remember paying like $30 a night in a random hostel in Austin and thinking "wow this is such a hidden secret" but really it was just a bunk bed and a shared bathroom with some dude snoring two feet away. It's not rocket science, you pay less you get less.

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