Travel
Seven Hostel is a modern,
clean hostel located on
the Amalfi Coast.
(PHOTOGRAPHY SEVEN HOSTEL)
St. Christopher’s Inn of Paris,
France, at Gare du Nord was voted
Hostelworld’s ‘Most Popular Hostel
in Paris’ of 2015.
(PHOTOGRAPHY ST. CHRISTOPHER’S INNS)
The Amalfi
Coast is a worldrenowned stretch
of Italian coastline.
(PHOTOGRAPHY JENNA
INTERSIMONE)
W
hen I visited the Amalfi
Coast, a world-renowned
stretch of Italian
coastline known for its
pastel colors, old-world
charm and turquoise waters,
I foresaw my accommodations, Hotel
Londra, to be as alluring as the
destination. Unfortunately, one
of the two did not live up to
expectations, and it wasn’t the
Mediterranean region that has been
around since the sixth century.
Upon booking my trip with a popular
tour group, bus2alps, I was given the
option of staying at Hotel Londra
or Seven Hostel, both located in
Sant’Agnello, which is minutes from
Sorrento. As most logical Americans
and unlucky moviegoers to have seen
the 2005 horror flick “Hostel”
would decide, I chose Hotel Londra,
assuming it must be the more
luxurious choice.
My roommates and I were
unimpressed. After a seven-hour
bus trip from Florence, we were
disappointed to encounter twin beds
with floral, outdated bedding and
a lack of towels. As it was 2am,
we had no choice but to fall into
our tiny beds.
The next day, we visited the other
accommodation, Hotel Seven, to
meet up with friends on the trip. As
we peered into the huge, futuristic
rooms with modern fixtures on our
way up to the rooftop lounge, our
jaws dropped. Did hostels really
look like this? Where were the
mold, drunken students and
cheap bedding?
Throughout the remainder of my
three-month European tour, the
notion that hostels held the room
keys to luxury while hotels were left
in the dust with their overpriced,
outdated fanfare, was further
drilled into my head after stays
at more hostels throughout the
continent. Friends from home were
in disbelief when I showed them
photos of my lavish hostels, as they
were in sharp contrast from the
stereotypical musty, dirty dormitory
accommodation.
Partly due to the fact that some
Americans are relatively unfamiliar
with hostels, as they are only just
becoming fixtures in some United
States cities, most cannot believe
that hostels could have any element
of luxury, but this could not be
farther from the truth. Many
hostels, both in Europe and in
America, now have indoor pools,
rooftop terraces, private movie
theaters and more, as the demand
for hostels has grown with the
recession and increase in
international travel.
There is a catch, however, with the
decreased price of hostels, which
typically range from $20 to $40 a
night. Hostels feature shared rooms
as well as facilities, which either
allow for increased immersion into
a new culture or a lack of privacy,
depending on your point of view,
although private rooms are also
usually available for a higher price.
Hostels usually have four to 20
beds to an average room, as well as
free WiFi, breakfast and various
activities to help hostellers connect
with one another, such as comedy
nights, open mics, city tours and pub
crawls. Rather than hospitality, they
focus on involving hostellers with
the surrounding community and the
culture. However, many hostels now
focus on the element of luxury while
keeping with the tradition of
hostelling. If you will soon be visiting
one of the European cities below,
keep these plush hostels in mind
when deciding on your
accommodations.
Gallery Hostel of Porto, Portugal
has a name that doesn’t lie. It
doubles as an art gallery once a
month for local artists to showcase
their works, which I found to be
a great way to connect to the
Portuguese and to understand the
city. Its décor matches the classic
elegance of the local art culture.
From 20 euro a night, guests can
lounge in both private and
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