I stayed in three hostels during my trip, and had varying experiences. Some things are the same regardless of what country you are in though — the noise, the drunk frat guys stumbling in at 3 am (”Duuuude, I can’t find my keeeys”), the breakfast (bread, cereal and coffee, maybe fruit), and the weirdness of sharing a few days with complete strangers in an intimate setting.
In London I stayed at the Astor Museum Inn. It’s located in a converted house with four floors; I, of course, stayed on the fourth floor. My room was a 4-bed female-only dorm, with two bunk beds and a sink in the room. Two shower rooms and a toilet were down the hall. Here’s a tip for staying in budget hotels: take your shower at night, because there will be no hot water in the morning (and it may not reach the 4th floor, either). I met some really cool girls from all over the world, and it was nice to have people to go out with at night to dinner and whatnot.
In Paris, I stayed in a single room at the Le Montclaire Hotel. The room was quite spacious, all things considered. It had a single bed, a closet (!) a small writing desk and a sink with a mirror. The showers are only on every other floor, though, and they have the kind of nozzle that you have to push continually to keep the water coming. While it was nice to have the space to spread out, I think I would have had a better time in a dorm, where I could have met more people.
In Amsterdam, I stayed at the International Budget Hostel. No free breakfast here, but they made a good ham, egg and cheese sandwich that you could buy. This was the most awkward hostel experience for me, because I was in a 4-bed dorm with three guys. They were all very nice, and I never feared for my safety or anything like that, but as I said before, sleeping in the same room with strangers is very intimate, and sleeping in a room with strange boys was a little too intimate. Plus there was nowhere to change except the shower stalls, which were wet most of the time. But being back in a dorm let me meet more people again, and the lounge area was very comfy for watching TV and reading.
I don’t think I would want to do the hostel thing every time I travel, but once you get acclimated to it, it’s not that bad.
In 30 hours, I’ll be Canada-bound with my good friend Lori, off to celebrate my 30th birthday with Bjork (oh, the times we’ll have, Bjork and me). I dropped off my dog at the kennel to stay until Monday and get a bath, I’ve packed everything but last-minute essentials — toothbrush, comb, mascara — and my roommate will look after the cats and their neverending need for more food now.
Since I never took a real vacation this summer (because unlike most of Europe, I can’t take off from work for the whole month of August), I’m chomping at the bit to get away and have some leisure time. This trip will also be my Europe “dry-run”, where I test out how much I can pack in my one carry-on and how much I can tolerate sharing a bathroom with strangers.
A couple of birthday shout-outs: to my sister Sarah (Sept. 9), my friend Wassa, my birthday twin (Sept. 8 ), and to fellow blogger Jenn, who’s celebrating her 30th today in Nevis. This weekend, I’ll drink a few (too many) cocktails in celebration for you all!
This is a picture of one of the rooms at the International Budget Hostel in Amsterdam, where I’ll be staying for three nights. Doesn’t it remind you of the nursery rhyme about the Three Bears?
I can only hope that my bed will be “just right.”
So after researching and researching my hotel/hostel options in Paris, I’d decided on my first choice: Hotel Caulaincourt Square. I sent in my online reservation form, confident that there would be a bunk bed waiting just for me.
Today I received an email saying that there’s no availability for the dates I’ll be in Paris.
I kind of feel like I’m applying for colleges and I’ve received a rejection letter from Harvard saying “You’re not good enough to go here.”
Don’t worry, I’m not upset. It’s just frustrating to try and find a decent and cheap room in another country, find said room, then find out I can’t stay there. And everything I’ve read states unanimously that Paris is a crappy city for hostels.
Oh well, at least I have my fall back to lean on.
My name is Erin, and I’m an addict. I’m addicted to hotel reviews. TripAdvisor is like crack for me these days — I love that there is a place where average people can give honest accounts of the good, the bad, and the bedbug-ridden. Since I don’t have the luxury of having intimate acquaintances in any of the cities I plan to visit, I’ve been making lists upon lists of places I can afford to stay. It’s gotten so bad that I have “browsing blackouts”, where I think I’ve been browsing for only 30 minutes, but it turns out to be two hours.
I’m not the only one chasing the dragon, according to the New York Times.
Another daily Web obsession is Apartment Therapy, which is toying with the idea of starting a Paris edition of its design site. S’il vous plait, AT, full-time Paris reporting is what I’m craving!
I want to go to Gulf of Policastro in Italy just so I can stay in this Spiderman room at the Comics Bed & Breakfast. And for the culture. Yeah, the culture…
Budget hotel, budget flyer, … budget cruise? The idea behind easycruise is that you get no frills like buffets or room service, and in exchange you get to spend a lot longer at each stop and can explore them on your own. The boat is super tiny compared to other luxury cruiselines, and you have to pay for your own drinks, but the rooms are sleek and modern, and there’s no shuffleboard in site. And it hits places like Amsterdam and the Caribbean. Sounds like a fair trade to me.
