The Travel Girl’s Guide to Hostels: Safety Tips
My 8+ Years of Experience at Hostels
Hostels for women is a topic that readers ask me about over and over again. People want to know, are they dangerous, dirty, and full of creepy dudes? Well, some of them definitely are, but luckily that hasn’t been my experience. I first stayed in a hostel 8 years ago on my first trip out of the USA while I was on a study abroad program in Rome. We don’t really have hostels in America, so I was scared out of my wits to take the plunge and share a room with strangers in a foreign country. I got to my first hostel, a backpackers dorm in Budapest, claimed my top bunk, and then promptly fell off as I tried to climb into bed. The guys sitting on the bottom bunk saw all this and helped me to my feet. We quickly became fast friends, and then had a fun night out in Budapest together. And that’s the best part of hostelling as a solo female traveler, it’s the easiest way to make friends abroad!
Fast forward almost an entire decade, and I’ve stayed in dozens of hostels in places like Mexico, Guatemala, Peru, Egypt, India, Morocco, Ethiopia, Italy, France, Hungary, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia. If you’re a woman whose on the fence about staying at hostels, I recommend you take the plunge and try it out.
Are Hostels Safe for Women?
Generally, yes, in my opinion hostels are safe for women. However, there are some places where I wouldn’t stay in a hostel unless they had an all-female dorm or even an all-female building. I have stayed in both mixed and female-only dorms, but I only stay in mixed dorms in nice hostels, also called “Poshtels”. If they have curtains or walls between the bunks then that’s even better.
Starter tip: In Japan and some other Asian countries like Malaysia and Singapore, they have Capsule Hotels. If entering hostel life makes you nervous, these are a great starting point because they’re more similar to tiny hotel rooms.
Female Safety Tips for Hostelling
My Favorite Hostels I’ve Stayed in Across the World
- Thailand, The Dearly Hostel on Koh Tao
- The Zephyr Lodge at Semuc Champey in Guatemala
- Tribal CoLiving in Canggu, Bali
- Seaesta Hostel & Hotel in Labuan Bajo, Flores, Indonesia.
Different Types of Hostels
Poshtels
Poshtels are the newest trend in hostelling. They’re for people who want all the social elements of a hostel, but none of the discomforts. As a female traveler, I’m a huge fan of Poshtels. The one in the picture to the left is Seaesta Komodo Hostel in Indonesia.
Working Hostels
Working hostels are mainly a thing in Australia and New Zealand, where they have plenty of people on working holiday visas in search of cheap rent. I’ve heard from friends that working hostels aren’t the most fun and social places to be.
Party Hostels
Party Hostels are usually in places like Cancun, Barcelona, the Thai Islands, Bali, etc. Anywhere there’s a huge party scene that caters to a young-ish crowd. If they have a Bar Crawl advertised or a bunch of partiers on their promo materials, it’s a party hostel!
Sports Hostels
I’ve stayed at diving hostels, camping hostels, surf hostels, climbing hostels, and ski hostels in my travels across the world. If you’re keen on learning a type of sport, these are the best places to stay.
CoLiving Hostels
Post-2020 there’s been a massive rise in remote working, and some hostel chains like Selina in the Americas have risen to the challenge of creating on-site office spaces at all of their locations. The result is called “CoLiving”. I love CoLiving, and if you have the ability to work remotely I recommend trying it out!
My Top 10 Hostel Tips for Female Travelers
✅ Stay in an All-Female Dorm
If you’re feeling reticent about staying in a hostel, know that you can always book an all-female dorm. Most hostels, especially most higher-end ones, offer all-female dorms for the peace of mind of the residents. I usually only ever stay in all-female dorms unless I’m traveling with a group or staying in a nice place more similar to a capsule hostel.
Tip: They also have all-female hostels now in major cities.
✅ Don’t Book an “En-Suite Bath”
Sounds fancy right? Wrong! En-suite bath hostel dorms are the worst type you can book because that means the bathroom you’re sharing with 4-20 other people is in the room with you. People get sick while traveling, and the smells (and sounds 😬) carry over into the dorm. Also, sometimes people use the bathrooms as the designated hookup spot and you don’t want to be listening to that either!
✅ Bring an XXL Travel Towel or a Sarong and Use it if the Hostel Doesn’t Have Curtains
Where I live in Indonesia, the hostels almost always have curtains and are generally just really high quality. This isn’t true for hostels around the world. While I was staying in hostels in North America, Latin America, and Europe, most hostels were just bare-bones metal frames with no curtains – even the high-end ones! Curtains make hostelling so much nicer because you get a little bit of privacy and it blocks out the light if someone comes into the room late at night. So, if you’re going on a backpacking trip and going to be staying at tons of different places, you can
Makeshift curtains tip: I like to travel with an XXL Microfiber Towel when I’m traveling because I can use it as a bath towel, or a beach towel in a pinch, as well as a hostel curtain. I’ve seen some people use sarongs for this, but they don’t block out the light as well in my experience.
✅ Get a Good Sturdy Lock
Most hostels provide lockers for your valuables. Some offer their own keys with the lockers, and I don’t like these as much because the staff have their own sets and this is where a lot of hostel theft comes from.
✅ Bring an Eye Mask and Earplugs (Trust Me!)
I started using an eye mask and earplugs for long-haul flights, trains, and bus rides, then I started using them for hostels, and now I just sleep with them all the time – Even in my own house! I used to think sleeping masks were uncomfortable but the 3-D molded eye masks are like having a pillow on the front of your face.
✅ Consider Working in a Hostel as a Workaway if You’re on a Budget
Many hostel employees are actually “volunteers” working in exchange for a free place to stay. If you’re backpacking long-term, this is a great way to save money because you get a lot of social interaction on the job. It’s also a great way to “work” while traveling without having to file for working visas because you’re technically volunteering, so exempt from most rules. The downside is that hostel jobs pay you in accommodation, so you’re not actually making money.
✅ Book With Free Cancelation on Hostelworld
Read the fine print, but many Hostelworld bookings have 24-hour free cancellation. When I plan on staying somewhere a week or more I will usually book 2 3-day bookings on Hostelworld, and cancel the second one if I don’t like the place.
✅ Don’t Expect Them All to be “Cheap”
You can save a bit of money by choosing the ultra-budget backpacker hostels, but the truth is I rarely do. Many travelers choose to stay in hostels for the social aspect vs. saving money and the hostels I choose to stay at are priced for that demographic. For example, in Bali, you can get a private guest house room for $15, or stay at the popular party hostel “The Farm” for $20 a night in a bunkbed in a 12-person room. It’s not the budget option, but you’re paying for the chance to meet people and hang out with other travelers.
✅ Make Sure You’re Somewhere That Has a Hostel Culture
I made this mistake while traveling in Delhi. Staying at a hostel I was the only international traveler in Delhi as a tourist, everyone else at the hostel was a local just looking for a place to crash while traveling for business or school reasons. Many cities have hostels but no “Hostel Culture”. I’ve heard similar complaints from friends traveling in New Zealand and Australia that the hostels aren’t for travelers but rather for migrant workers. Do some research into the vibe of the place you’re going to before choosing to stay at a hostel.
✅ Consider a Hostel Subscription if You’re Traveling Long-Term
I’ve stayed at a few hostels that offer subscription packages for long-term travelers and remote workers, you can save roughly 30-50% by buying a 30-day package if you know you’ll be there long-term. My favorite is the Selina Chain. dubbed the most popular hostel in the world, you’ll find Selinas all over Latin America and Western Europe – They’re also starting to make an appearance in the US. While usually pricier than renting an apartment, the Selinas I’ve stayed in have been luxurious. Pools with cabanas, furnished office space, daily housekeeping, and morning yoga are the norm.
