David W. Swanson

Pastor and Author

advice please: staying in a hostel

The readers of this blog have come through with some good suggestions about breakfast cereals and surviving a family reunion. I return with another question. On Sunday I fly to Portland where I’ll be staying at the HI-Portland Northwest Hostel. Maggie and my sister will be arriving on Wednesday and we’ll upgrade to a hotel until the family reunion begins on Friday.

The only other time I stayed in a hostel was a couple of summers ago in Dublin when Maggie and I shared a private room with Maggie’s sister while we were traveling in Ireland. This time there will be no private room. It will be the real-deal dorm-style residence. I’m trying out the hostel for two reasons: good price and (hopefully) a good source of stories.

Surely some of this blog’s readers have experienced hostel living before. Any advice? Any horror stories? Or, any really good stories? Top bunk or bottom bunk?

David Swanson

3 responses to “advice please: staying in a hostel”

  1. Catherine Avatar
    Catherine

    I’ve stayed in dozens and dozens of hostels (I lived in Europe for a year), and OH THE STORIES I COULD TELL! I could tell you about the place where they had placed bed next to bed next to bed…probably close to 15 people sleeping side by side in one normal sized bedroom (we weren’t warned about this ahead of time) and how very very snuggly this forced us to be with strangers. I could tell you about the time the hostle owner locked up and went home before I arrived in town, and I had to pound on the door in the middle of the night without knowing the language, hoping to avoid being on the street. I could tell you stories about shared bathrooms, shared bedrooms, overheard conversation, things I wish I hadn’t seen, things I’ll be laughing about for the rest of my life.

    But not much advice. Except – have few expectations, be ready for adventure, and wear pajamas.

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  2. LS Avatar
    LS

    On night one figure out who the snorers are and get to sleep before they do on the second night. Bottom bunk: 1) you can stash stuff under the bunk. 2) if the bunk mate is a restless sleeper the relative motion on the bottom is less. 3) Hot smells rise. Top bunk: 1) No one steps on your face climbing to the top.

    Pajamas!?!

    62P

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  3. Michael Avatar
    Michael

    I’ve stayed in a bunch of hostels in a bunch of places.
    Bottom bunk is better. Definitely wear pajamas, unlike the guy I met in Barcelona who didn’t, liked to drink to the wee hours, slept nude, and was one of those guys who kicked all the covers off of himself while he slept. I tend to prefer the larger dorm type rooms. Sure there are those who may disturb you by coming in late, or going out early, but it’s much easier to meet and share stories with people. Besides, if I wanted to be by myself with just an impersonal number on the door, I’d stay in a hotel. Another great thing about hostels is that each one is different in terms of mood, food etc., so yeah, be ready for an adventure. And if a Japanese guy wants to talk to you about American politics at 1am, say yes.

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