A hostel is essentially a low-cost and short-term lodging where travelers can rent a bed usually in a shared room with a bunk bed or in a dormitory. They offer basic amenities such as a shared bathroom and they may also provide a shared kitchen for your use. Some areas are separated by gender, but not all of them do.
There are hostels with private rooms, but the lower cost ones generally offer bunk beds and shared rooms. They’re often locally owned and operated and cheaper than hotels because you’re sharing nearly all your amenities. Some hostels may offer long-term lodging for free or at a discount in exchange for work as a receptionist or in housekeeping.
Hostels vs. Hotels
Hostels in Melbourne work similarly to hotels but with several differences. The biggest difference being the exclusivity of a private room and bathroom as hostels often only provide common spaces. Examples of this are communal showers and a shared kitchen. The benefit of having common spaces is that you’ll be able to meet all types of travellers from all over the world.
Tips for staying at a hostel
Staying in hostels can be a great experience, you may have heaps of fun, make new friends and hopefully add lots of new experiences to your travels. But if it’s your first time staying in a hostel then there are various things to know. Here are tips for first-timers staying in a hostel.
Bring earplugs
Dorm rooms can be great and provide some of the cheapest prices making hostels perfect when travelling on a budget. However, sometimes you can get snorers or people that are a bit inconsiderate of others and make a lot of noise. To avoid a bad night sleeps one of the first things to remember is to bring earplugs so you can hopefully drown out as much unwanted noise as possible. A good hostel like Bayside house will have good rules to help you get sleep.
Bring an eye mask
Next, if you’re a light sleeper then also consider bringing an eye mask. This will help as people may arrive quite late to the hostel and need to turn on the lights to see what they’re doing, such as when making their bed. Or some people may turn on the main light or their bed light and forget to turn it off. An eye mask isn’t 100% needed but definitely helps if you can’t sleep with any light around.
What is backpacking?
What is backpacking? The clue is almost certainly in the name. But just because I set out from the comforts of my home carrying some form of backpack on my shoulders doesn’t mean I’m backpacking. If that were true, every kid who hops on the school bus would be backpacking, so there’s more to it than that…
Backpacking can be taken to mean the act of travelling – not necessarily on foot – to new parts of the world with all your provisions and staying in relatively cheap accommodation. However, this definition of backpacking isn’t really what we're concerned with here. What we're interested in this feature in is the hardy brother of hiking, trekking and mountaineering. We’re delving into the pursuit of backpacking that entails beaten-up hiking boots, soaring mountains, crinkled topographical maps, spectacular wild camps and memories to last a lifetime.
TIPS FOR BEGINNER BACKPACKERS
1. Start Small.
An easy short trip doesn’t mean a boring trip.
Your first backpacking trip doesn’t need to be some long multi-day trip with huge elevation gains and distances.
Start off with a one-night trip, and choose a route that’s an easy to moderate distance for you and your abilities while carrying a heavier backpack than normal.
Knowing your ability and what your deficiencies are is important when planning a trip.
For example, if you’re really uncomfortable with heights, don’t go on a hike that requires you to scramble up a steep slope over boulders with drop-offs.
Use common sense and assess the risk along with your abilities so you don’t get yourself into situations where you’re uncomfortable.
In addition, consider choosing a more popular hiking route that will likely have other hikers coming in and out in case you need some support.
It’s so important to thoroughly think through a hiking plan and know what resources are available on the hike and where they are located.
For example, I always like to make sure my route has a water source so I can use my filter or purifier to get more water on the trip as I need it.
If you’re looking for a great hostel then check out bayside house.
