Hostelling International (HI) (http://www.hihostels.com) is the brand name of the non-profit International Youth Hostel Federation (IYHF) and more than 90 Youth Hostel Associations in 90 countries that operate 4,000 hostels around the globe. HI hostels can be easily recognized by a blue triangle sign.Let’s get something straight first. Around 90 percent of all hostels in Europe do not require a membership card; however, HI hostels do. A membership card can be purchased from your nearest HI office in your home country, or from the first HI hostel you stay at for around $15.
We have only stayed in a couple HI hostels due to the membership card fee. If you do not purchase the card up front, it will cost around $3 or $4 extra per person for each night you stay. We make sure to only stay in HI hostels that have prices that are comparable to others in the city, even with this extra charge. For each night you pay the extra fee, you’ll be given a stamp on a card that holds six stamps. When the card is full, it is just like having purchased a card for $15, although purchasing the card for the initial fee up front saves around $3 to $5.
According to HI’s Web site, the main reason to become a member is to have access to safe, clean hostels. You may also receive discounted member prices in other hostels, discounts on activities, reduced admission to museums and cultural centers, savings in retail outlets, and reductions on some travel services. When we stayed in HI hostels, no one made us aware of these discounts so it behooves you to ask the reception staff what discounts you can get with the card.
HI hostels generally have the capacity to cater to large groups so they might be packed with people from school trips or tour groups when you’re there. Every HI is different so it is hard to categorize them – some have kitchens, some have lockouts, some have curfews, some offer free breakfast, some charge for bed linens.
It is important to be aware of HI hostels when you are booking rooms. The easiest thing to do may be to steer away from them in order to avoid paying extra for a membership card or an additional fee for each night’s stay. However, you may find that some smaller cities only have HI hostels, which means you will be paying the fee whether you want to or not.
No matter what kind of hostel you are staying at, here are some things to look for:
-Kitchen
-Free backpack storage
-No lockout (Some hostels lock their doors for a few hours during the day to clean and no entry is granted for a nap, meal, shower, or to grab something from your backpack during that time.)
-No curfew
-Free bed linen
-Co-ed or female-only rooms (depending on your group)
-Distance from train station
No comments:
Post a Comment