Hostel Culture: Discover A New Way to Travel

A Relaxing Hostel in Jeju, South Korea featuring hammocks and an outdoor gym

Understanding Hostel Culture

For international travelers, hostel culture is more than just a budget-friendly accommodation choice—it’s an invitation to explore, connect, and exchange your language and culture with other travelers. Unlike hotels that prioritize privacy and house guests separately, hostels thrive on fostering a sense of community by bringing together backpackers, digital nomads, students, and explorers of all ages from every corner of the world. The result? A beautiful mix of stories, friendships, and unforgettable experiences.

In hostels, travelers share more than dorm rooms and common areas; they share ideas, traditions, and travel tips that shape their journeys. Whether it’s sharing a night out, cooking a meal together in the communal kitchen, or telling stories entwined with laughter in the lounge area, the hostel lifestyle exemplifies the meaning of cultural exchange. For many wanderers, hostel culture isn’t just about finding a place to store your luggage—it’s about finding a community on the road. 

Travelers Share Stories in a Hostel Lounge

Evolution of Hostels Around the World

Modern hostels can trace their roots back to early 20th-century Europe, where they were first established as affordable accommodations for students and backpackers. It began as a grassroots movement started by German schoolteacher Richard Schirrmann, which spread around the world to become a global phenomenon. The idea of a network of affordable accommodation for travelers was inspired by a school trip Richard took with his students in 1909, when they found themselves without shelter and at the mercy of a heavy storm. They took refuge in a school building, which gave Schirrmann the idea to begin arranging lodging for his students at local inns and farmhouses while traveling. After only a few years, Schirrmann opened the first official youth hostel in Altena Castle in Germany in 1912. Today, you can still stay at this updated and modern youth hostel and visit the original rooms, which have been preserved as a museum dedicated to the history of the youth hostel movement.

International Travelers Sharing a Communal Meal

Global Expansion

Early hostels were designed to be educational and character-building. Young travelers would often exchange their labor for a bed, helping with chores like cleaning and cooking, a practice still alive and well today on platforms like Worldpackers, Workaway, and HelpX. The idea spread like wildfire and by the 1930’s associations established globally to set uniform standards including Youth Hostels Association (YHA) founded in Great Britain, The International Youth Hostel Federation, now known as Hostelling International (HI) was founded in Amsterdam and later absorbed the American nonprofit, American Youth Hostels (AYH). Today HI provides a global membership card for international travelers offering discounted prices to properties all over the world. After World War II, traveling groups helped to rebuild the hostels of Europe and in the 1960’s and 70’s the newly dubbed “hippie trail” of budget backpackers focusing on long term travel inspired a new wave of private hostels to spring up, offering mixed-gender dorms and private rooms in a casual and relaxed environment. In the 1980s and 1990s, entrepreneurs led the industry by modernizing properties and improving facilities to cater to families and couples as well as solo travelers. 

A Modern Hostel Dorm Room

Modern Hostels 

In the 2000s, the tech revolution continued to bring innovation and automation into hostel culture, operating through online booking systems, and relying on email automation to communicate self check-in procedures to guests. Modern hostels of today feature trendy cafes, rooftop lounges, on-site bars, and co-working spaces. Hostels provide many of the basic amenities included in a hotel including WiFi, communal toiletries, hairdryers, towels, and on site laundry services. The communal kitchen provides a secure place to store your groceries and prepare your meals, enabling you to enjoy local cuisine beyond microwaveable ready-made meals and disposable cutlery. This home-away-from-home environment offers something for everyone within the global community, and makes international travel affordable, accessible, and comfortable for wanderers seeking new experiences and connections abroad. 

Travelers Enjoying a Sunset at the Hostel Rooftop Lounge

Why International Travelers Love Hostel Culture

Hostels are many international travelers' preferred style of accommodation because they offer more than just affordability, providing access to a global community of wanderers and immersive cultural experiences that extend beyond the destination. Traveling solo can at times feel lonely or isolating, and hostels provide a found family and a sense of belonging that accompanies you on your journey. The social connections you make during your stay may be brief or long-lasting, but their impact can last a lifetime. When you leave a hostel and wave goodbye to your new friends, you part with a full heart, sad to leave but excited to reconnect again in the future, to discover a new place in the world.

Some people choose to stay short-term while exploring a new area, while others rent long-term accommodations to work remotely while making new international friends. Some travelers on a working holiday decide to volunteer for free accommodation while exploring a new country and culture. Whatever your lifestyle is, there is a place for you in hostel culture, and the new connections you will discover make it worth exploring. Are you ready to make global connections, lifelong memories, and new international friends? There’s a hostel waiting for you wherever your journey takes you. Below is a list of Do’s and Don’ts to guide you through your next hostel stay. 

Reception Area of A Hostel in South Korea

Do’s and Don’ts of Hostel Culture

DON’T

• Don’t be afraid to reach out to the property directly with any questions that you have about the property, location, and social environment. 

• Don’t forget the golden rule of hostel culture: Everyone pays for themselves. 

• Don’t bring any unnecessary valuables, jewelry, or electronics on your travels. 

• Don’t be afraid to ask for help if you need it. 

• Don’t be too loud if others are asleep in the room, you can always use the common area to pack, work, or talk on your phone. 

• Don’t forget to write your name on your belongings and food items if used or stored in communal areas. 

• Don’t leave your personal items in the communal bathroom. 

• Don’t track mud, dirt, or sand into the bedrooms. 

• Don’t expect curtains around the beds and be prepared to hang a towel for additional privacy if necessary.

• Don’t suffer in silence, if someone is being loud or disrespectful, it’s ok to politely ask them to stop or you can ask the front desk for help addressing the problem. 

• Don’t hang items on the ladder if sharing your bunk with another. 

Do

• Do use HostelWorld to explore the property before you book.

• Do share stories and experiences with your new international friends. 

• Do use combination locks to secure your belongings. 

• Do use the kitchen to cook your meals, share your culture, and save your money. 

• Do ask other people in your hostel for recommendations on where to go, what to eat, and how to get around. 

• Do ask to join in and invite others to join you on your excursions. 

• Do be respectful of others and ask what is open for communal use in the kitchen before using.

• Do try new things and eat new food when offered or invited. 

• Do set healthy boundaries and remember that it is ok to say “NO” when you need some time to rest or recharge. 

• Do clean up after yourself. 

• Do bring a sheet and a pillow case if you are germ conscious. 

• Do bring a sleep mask and ear plugs so that you can sleep without being disturbed by the presence or activities of others in your room.