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I'm 37 years old and wanted to know if anyone my age (or older) has ever stayed in any? I thought they were mainly for younger people, but not sure. Any complaints or praises?
To be honest, at all the hostels I've stayed at (two in Mexico, two in Spain, and one in NYC), most of the other guests were between 18 and 25 years old. I steered clear of "party hostels" but I imagine they would be skewed even more to the young bucks. However, in most of them I remember older guests - even guests who looked like they were over 60. The weird thing is after 30 or so, the demographic (from my VERY limited experience) seems to be even between age groups.
Some hostels do not accept any guests over the age of 30 or 26 (traditional hostels exercised this type of age discrimination), but this is becoming as rare as mandatory chores - which is to say, almost non-existent.
Some disadvantages cited by other posters include:
* Curfew time and lock out - This varies immensely between hostels. Some have no curfew or lock out. Most I've stayed at do not lock you out, and only a few have had curfews.
* Snorers - DEFINITELY a problem. You might have one in your room, might have two, might have four - in any case, 1 is enough to disrupt your sleep. My #1 suggestion is BRING EARBUDS! Or better yet, noise-cancelling headphones (you'd think they'd have to have other uses than in planes - and snoring is FAR more annoying than jet noise, which is a constant din easily tuned out). Of course, this can be a problem if you're traveling between hotels with a group of friends or family too.
* Lack of privacy - One hostel I was at did an excellent job of maintaining some privacy by a strategic placement of bunks, others don't. Of course, you'll have to lug all of your stuff to the shower, which becomes annoying. Some (they tell me this is particularly an issue at party hostels) shameless drunk people will have sex in the dorm room. However, I've never witnessed that.
How do you all feel about safety issues at hostels? That would be the biggest thing that would worry me. You're in a room with possibly 10 strangers from around the world. Obviously most hostels have lockers to prevent theft, but what about physical safety while you're sleeping? I guess I'd be paranoid that some violent sociopath ended up in my room.
I'd definitely lock up my stuff, but I think you might have a higher chance of being attacked by a sociopath while out eating dinner in a restaurant or grocery shopping in your home town. I've not yet run into any sociopaths in hostels, just students, international travelers, and hard working people who want to travel but don't have unlimited funds. That's my experience.
Location: The Chatterdome in La La Land, CaliFUNia
39,031 posts, read 23,015,083 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jak Blak
I'd definitely lock up my stuff, but I think you might have a higher chance of being attacked by a sociopath while out eating dinner in a restaurant or grocery shopping in your home town. I've not yet run into any sociopaths in hostels, just students, international travelers, and hard working people who want to travel but don't have unlimited funds. That's my experience.
Of course we could run into sociopaths anywhere but what concerns me the most about the potential of sharing a room is when you are asleep and left vulnerable in a hostel room with travelers with less than good intentions.
Of course we could run into sociopaths anywhere but what concerns me the most about the potential of sharing a room is when you are asleep and left vulnerable in a hostel room with travelers with less than good intentions.
Honestly, I've never been the least concerned about sociopaths sleeping in the same room with me. Murders in hostels are almost unheard of. If it makes you feel any better, some (most?) hostels have female-only rooms.
Location: The Chatterdome in La La Land, CaliFUNia
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tvdxer
Honestly, I've never been the least concerned about sociopaths sleeping in the same room with me. Murders in hostels are almost unheard of. If it makes you feel any better, some (most?) hostels have female-only rooms.
Female sociopaths can kill other women ... Sorry but saving a few bucks is not worth placing my safety and peace of mind at risk ...
My niece owns J's Backpackers in Hamilton, New Zealand. I've visited a couple of times and it's a great place for travelers to call home for a few nights. I'd never hesitate to recommend it to people of any age traveling in New Zealand. See jsbackpackers.co.nz for more information and to get a flavor for their cosy place.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
34,698 posts, read 58,012,579 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by raubre
I'm 37 years old and wanted to know if anyone my age (or older) has ever stayed in any? I thought they were mainly for younger people, but not sure. Any complaints or praises?
Many times, many places. ('older' stays @ hostels). Tho my kids referred to them as "Foster-homes-for-college-kids"
Female sociopaths can kill other women ... Sorry but saving a few bucks is not worth placing my safety and peace of mind at risk ...
It's not good to live a life of fear...
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