How to choose a hostel?

USA Hostels in Los Angeles

Even if you want to save money, you need to be careful when comes the time to choose your hostel. To sleep well, it might be necessary to pay a little more.

If it happened that I wasn't satisfied by some of the hostels I chose, I usually ended up in good places. Why?

- Booking early allows to choose in a large number of hostels. But... being last minute might help you take advantage of a cancellation. No place to sleep? Ask at the reception how long they do keep the bed for a no-show. And wait. Sometimes, it works. Otherwise, the fuller the hostel is, the more popular it might be... Could be a good sign.

- Know that websites like hostelbookers and hostelworld only show a part of the beds available. If you call the hostel directly, it happens they might have beds left even if the internet tells you the opposite.

- Look at the average rating. Cross that information with the number of clients who left a comment. The place may have a perfect score of 100 %, if that result is based only on one comment, it might only be the opinion of the owner. I was told some hostels with bad comments erase their account to start fresh. But it's not the majority. A hostel with a few comments only may also be a very new one. It's up to you to see if you take the risk. But if the owners want to keep their business open, they will never offer as many services as when they just opened.

- The comments. If the ratings are important, the comments are at least as crucial. They explain the ratings. Sometimes, people complain because the soap is not included in the hostel. Because somebody snored in their room. Because they didn't like the color on the walls. Because they found dirt on a shelf... You take some... You leave some. But it's a good way to know if the place is a bed bugs nest. If you can see the age of the person who commented, you can also find out what kind of people stays in that hostel.

- Know what you need. Want to sleep? The smaller dorms offers the best chance not to share a room with a snorer. Want to meet people? Big dorms might be for you. Know that younger people travel more on a budget and usually choose bigger dorms to save money. The more expensive a hostel is, the more chances you have to meet young professionnals, in their mid-20's, and older backpackers. I usually choose those.

- The services. In 2012, if you don't have wi-fi in the hostel, you're kind of late. But be careful, in some places, you'll need to pay to use the internet. Search for the word "free" in front of the wi-fi word. On the same subject, most places give free breakfast. Do they have a common room, a curfew, DVD's, a restaurant, parking, lockers, private bathrooms, bicycles to rent, a tour desk?

- The description on the website. Reading the property information helps find out a lot of information. If it is fun, easy to read and complete, you can guess the services will be great. Same for the amount of pictures that show the rooms where you may sleep. Same for the directions to help you get to the hostel.

- Private hostel or a chain? Yes, there are chains of hostels like USA Hostels in United States, Wombats, Saint-Christophers Inn, in Europe, Nomads in Oceania, Che Lagarto in South America or Hi-International, everywhere in the world, like in Canada. These hostels look more like hotels. They have a lot of rooms. The employees are usually very professionnal. The buildings are huge. Impersonal. You are almost sure to find some quality. On the other hand, private hostels, where owners are younger and often live there, are more authentic. There are only a few rooms and it's often easier to meet other travelers there. Cleanliness and services depend on the quality of the owners.

- Location. Some hostel say it "only" takes 30 minutes to get downtown with the metro. Tranquillity might be what you're searching for. If not, the further away you go, the harder it is, usually, to move around.

So, as far as I'm concerned, I mix prices, location, ratings, the number of beds in the dorm and the pictures to make a decision. The result is good most of the time.

And please, if you sleep in a hostel, leave a comment to help other travelers to make a choice.

Why stay in hostels?

Hostel in Xi'an

What is a hostel? Why would you sleep there? It must be impossible to get a good night of sleep in there... You are courageous to go in these kind of places.

When I first heard about hostels, I was 21 years old. I was told it was cheaper and less comfortable than a hotel, that you needed to bring your sleeping bag or to pay for the sheets, that the dorms had 10 beds, that I could get bed bugs, that the showers were dirty and that hot water was often just an option.

Hostel in Beijing.

That is crap! Well, it wasn't really eight years ago. But hostels got better. Backpackers ask for more. The places which can't adapt won't get good comments on hostelworld or hostelbookers or tripadvisor. That is not good for business.

I know what I'm talking about. I visited 58 hostels in six months. At least 75 in my traveling life. I tried several things. And I still book in hostels when I go on the road.

What is true is that hostels are cheaper than hotels. You will find guests between the age of 18 and 80 years old, with more young ones than the ones with wisdom.

The concept : yes, there are dorms. Of 3 to 26 beds. The more beds they have, the cheaper it is. The cost usually includes the sheets, more and more, a reading light for each bed, a locker for your valuables, a wifi connexion and a breakfast. The time where you would get dry bread and a sip of bad coffee is behind you, Most meals are good enough.

If some mattresses make noise or can be uncomfortable, most of the time, it is possible to have a good night of sleep... even if it happens that the roomates are not disciplined enough.

Advantages, other than the cost, the internet connexion and the meal? The employees know trendy places, off the beaten track, or tips to help you save money in the city. They know the public transportation system, know exactly what you should see, speak good english and can teach you some words in the local language. They will write a note for you for the taxi driver or the train station cashier.


Hostels are often really well located or in places you need to explore. If they thought about everything, there is a common room where people gather to chat at every hour of the day or the night. You sit with a group of strangers, you say hi, and there you go, discussion is underway. And the solo traveler finds something to do.

That's the best part of it : meeting other travelers, from everywhere, with stories all more interesting than the others, who travel for different reasons. They also can share their knowledge, tips, life experience.

About cleanliness, again, most of the places are great. Same for the bathrooms, that are more and more private. I once slept in a hostel where the toilet used rain water to preserve the environnement. Efforts are made despite the low prices.

Yes, you'll find a snorer once in a while. Or a sleeping beast who never leaves the bed, event to shower. But for each bad experience, there is a lot of good ones.

Hostels are everywhere... Why not stay there?

Soundtrack of My Life

Music lulls most of our life, if only because the radio screams in the background while we live pure moments of joy or sadness. In some ways, the songs make the soundtrack of our life, because hearing those songs again brings memories back.

I have already posted the Jason Mraz song Details in the fabric, which came randomly while I needed something to comfort me. "Hold your own, know your name, and go your own way" the song says. I had listened to that cd but couldn't recall that song. But one night, watching the sunset, the song made its way into my souvenirs box.

Same for the Coldplay song Fix you, heard at some funerals where I was troubled. To see a 20 year old guy leave for the cemetery, I knew I needed to realize my projects while I could.

Strangely, towards the end of my trip, in the village of Paraty in Brazil, the radio was just emitting noises to me when I heard Fix you. That song wasn't even a single the radios played. The driver had decided to play the cd...

The next day, still in Paraty, I spent the day on a boat. While we were stopping in a bay, the speakers were giving us Details in the fabric. Still not a single. Still a cd. What was the chances to hear both significant songs in 24 hours.

For those interested, here are ten songs that are now in my souvenirs box, which makes the soundtrack of my trip. Luckily or not. You can't choose these things.

Living in the Moment - Jason Mraz
The album Love is a Four Letter Word came out while I was traveling. Living in the moment, the essential of the message of the song, really appealed to me.

Call Me Maybe - Carly Rae Jepsen
Without any doubt the success of the summer, Call Me Maybe, caught most people attention. Was impossible not to hear it. Like it or not, lots of my friends ended up singing it. When I hear it, I still smile.

Aujourd'hui ma vie c'est d'la marde - Lisa Leblanc
I totally fell for Lisa Leblanc's album. I listened to it a lot, especially in Brazil. Her song with very colourful lyrics made me smile.

We Are Young - Fun. 
I admit I did not listen to the lyrics. I only know the title, which they repeat in every chorus. And the melody got engraved in my soul. I was watching those backpackers who were discovering life at the same time they were discovering the world, some were 18 years old, some were 23, and they had fun without thinking of the next day. Because they had time. Because these are the moments they will look back at saying to themselves they lived while they could. And living in the moment, while we can, can make us young too.

Ho Hey - The Lumineers
To be honest, I had never heard of the Lumineers before. That song is the perfect example of a soundtrack playing in the background and making us nostalgic.

Février - Vincent Vallières
Listening to Vallières sing Février (February), on February 29th (for a short month that never ends, like the song says) in New Zealand (around the end of summer in the southern hemisphere), it's really funny. And comforting. When I hear it, I see mount Tangariro getting further and further through the bus window. And me, laughing alone in a sea of anglophone tourists who wouldn't understand the song if I didn't explain.

Your Home - Alanis Morissette
When you have a lot of time to listen to music, in planes, in trains, in buses or while you're trying to cover the noise, you rediscover songs you had never listen to carefully before. That hidden track on the Jagged Little Pill album is a good example.

Home - Phillip Phillips
Strangely, the songs talking about home, about knowing where we're from, wanting to get back to our native land, are always close. Strange in a trip where the notion of the place we call home is blurring... When we're telling ourselves home might not be in a specific place.

I Will Remember You - Ryan Cabrera
Here is another nostalgic touch that reminds me of those people I met randomly and that I now call my friends. Impossible to forget them.

Geneviève Jodoin
When I wanted to listen to french music, I was often playing Geneviève Jodoin G's album.

Traveling at home

Quebec parliament

Who said you can't be a tourist in your home country? It's true we usually feel ridiculous to get lost in Québec or Montréal, while we wouldn't care in Paris or Rio. It's also true that we'll wait to retire to explore the land around our house. And it's also true that we travel more around our country to visit friends than to pay interest to the particularities of some of its cities. Most of the time, I mean.

It's while welcoming an austrian friend that I started to wonder what there was to do in Québec City. Of course, there is the parliament, the Plains of Abrahams, the Old Town, but what more?

I then consulted tourist guides, and to make sure I would get the total experience, I booked a bed in the Hi-International hostel in Québec, on Ste-Ursule street, in the old town. It's also because that is where my friend would sleep.

In two days, walking through the old town, going down in Petit Champlain and the lower part of town, going around Orléans Island and climbing the steps to the top of Montmorency Falls, I found the outside of time freedom of the tourist in me. The same relationship with strangers in the hostel, same relationship with the waitresses in the restaurants, the employees of the shops or the museums.

Which proves there is no need to go far to feel you're away, free.

And there is a little something about feeling the usual atmosphere of a hostel... with something totally québécois. Felt like the average hostel... with nothing to be too impressed about.

In other countries, I was told it's hard to communicate in english in Québec City. It seems like it's getting easier. At least, most of the people tried politely to communicate and to be understood with the non-francophones.

Finally, there is something really interesting about getting the opinions of the other travelers about our cities and our culture.

They are talking about me

My tour around the globe is starting to travel by itself. In November, it is named the blog of the month on the French website Skyscanner, a site to compare the prices of plane tickets. It allows not only to narrow the search on one website, but you get easily an overview of all the prices and schedules for the trip you want to make.

An introduction on who I am and a short interview will be on that site for the whole month. Isn't it great news to throw some light in a grey and boring month? You can train your french skills and read the article on their Actualités page, or directly on http://www.skyscanner.fr/actualites/blog-du-mois-mon-tour-du-globe.

Skyscanner is also available in different languages. You just need to change the language and the country you're from at the top of the page.

The interest of traveling alone

I often get the same question : don't you get bored when you travel alone?

Or sometimes, some people praise me for my courage : I wouldn't be able to do that... I need to share my traveling experiences...

I won't talk about my life. Or maybe I will...

I started to travel alone in my second trip to Europe. About three years after getting on the old continent for the first time.

Truth is out : I was scared a little bit. Taking the plane alone. Arriving in the airport alone without anybody to help me if I got lost...

The thing is, in the plane, I met a perfect stranger who I chatted with. Interesting. In the next plane, which brought me to Warsaw, Poland, I met a French girl who spoke polish. She guided me to my hostel. Pushing back my fears to the next day.

I won't lie, that next days, with the street of Warsaw under my feet, with the signs all written in polish, I was scared. Wanted to sit down and wait for myself to disappear. But life doesn't work that way. Took a deep breath. Kicked myself where I needed to. And hop! I survived. For two weeks.

Three more years later, I left for six months, around the world, still by myself. And I don't regret it. I even met a great friend who describes the ideal woman as a partner who would let him travel by himself. It tells a lot.

Why? Because beyond the fear of loneliness lies a joy I can't ignore. The one to be alone with myself, to learn to have confidence in myself, the one that forces me to make choices. A joy to be 100 % myself, to be able to make mistakes without anybody blaming me for it, to have room to think.

Getting on the road alone, it's controling our schedule, our expenses, our activities. It's forcing ourselves to get sociable. Would you talk to a couple who is looking in each others eyes in a corner of your hostel? Would you want to meet the frat group of five strangers who talks loud and makes jokes between themselves?

When you travel alone, you live loneliness when you want to. You find friends when you want to. You make compromises when you want to. And the beauty of it all is that you don't need to spend time with boring people... unless it's your brother, your "best" friend or a colleague you accepted to bring with you.

I was sick while traveling. Strangers took care of me. I got lost. Strangers took care of me. I wanted discoveries. Strangers made me discover tons of things.

I'm not traveling to feel like home. Traveling in a group, for me, is sharing an experience with others. I like it... sometimes. Traveling alone, for me, is sharing the world. Point blank.

I'm not saying it is the only or the best way to travel. Only, one can only tell what it's worth after trying it.

A matter of choices

Members of a trek hold their drink in a forest near
I wiChiang Mai in Thailand.

I will never say it enough : traveling around the world is a matter of choices. Life in general, you'll say, is full of choices to make. It's true! But still, we have to make the decisions.

Like the decision to leave... Easy, you'll say again, when you have no kids, no house to pay. True again, but every situation has its solution. There is no ideal situation. When you want to leave, you can find the means to do it.

I was criticized for choosing to go around the world in six months. For wanting to visit 20 countries. Some give me weird looks when I talk about it. But I made my own choices. I wanted a hint of every culture while others wanted to sink themselves in it. One's point of view is as good as the others.

I went all the way around the world without having anybody pressuring me to drink one sip of alcohol. I tried some, of course, but I never got tipsy. It's expensive, drinking, some will say. I for one invested in quality meals instead. That's all. I also visited Brussels, known for its beers, and I was in Munich for the Fruhlingfest, a smaller version of the Oktoberfest. But I didn't drink.

You don't need to skydive, to bungee jump or to get sick from malaria to be able to say you've traveled, that you've lived. It's not because something exists you inevitably need to try it.

I've seen vegetarians traveling in countries where meat is almost the only thing you can eat. I've seen people with nuts and fish allergies eat without limits in Asian countries where traditionnal food almost always contain nuts or fish oil. I've seen women traveling alone without any fear for their security. You just need to know how to surround yourself with the right persons and to know how to avoid the biggest risks. I've seen elders sleep in hostels. Families doing the same thing. I've seen people without any money work while they were traveling everywhere they wanted to go. I've seen people moving from places to places so fast they don't have time to make friends anywhere. I've seen people speaking only one language making their own way without understanding anything they were told in a foreign country.

When you want it, you make choices. And you trust yourself to find solutions. You trust yourself you'll find people who will help you, you'll know how to surround yourself with the right people, you'll create a scenario that will be your own.