The 6 Worst Things You Can Do In A Hostel

I’ll admit, I havent stayed in a hostel since about February last year (and that was only because we couldn’t find an Airbnb place at such short notice), and to be honest I’ve really gone off them as I’ve gotten older. That’s not to say I’m staying in 5* hotels and fancy places everywhere I go, I’ve just moved ‘up’ a step to airbnb apartments or cheap hotels. I think I just like my own space – so now even if I do stay in a hostel I usually try to get a private room. Don’t get me wrong, I think hostels are great ancd I stayed in hostels for my entire RTW trip a few years ago – they’re cheap and they’re a great way to meet fellow traveller. But there were definitely some major annoyances that I found come with hostel life – here are my top 6 worst things anyone can do in a hostel:

1. Be the phantom plastic bag rustler. You all know what I mean. There’s always someone who’s dirty shoes or toiletries are stores in the depths of their rucksack in a (seemingly) extra rustle-y plastic bag. Please stop. It’s really noisy and I’m trying to sleep.

2. Sex on a top bunk. Or really, sex in a room with other people in. They can hear you y’know. I get that sometimes in the throws of passion (slash alcohol infused poor judgement), you just don’t care who else is there to hear (or see) you, but I can assure you that everyone else in your dorm room is really not impressed. It might be funny for about 3 minutes and then it’s just kinda gross. Go get a room. Your own room.

3. Steal other people’s food. An absolute no-no in my book. This happened to me quite a lot on my travels and it was always things like milk or chocolate (I know…who does that?!). Don’t be a shit. Buy your own food and don’t take other people’s. It’s as simple as that!

4. Turn all the lights on in your dorm room in the middle of the night. This pisses me off possibly more than anything else on this list. And it is one of the main reasons I no longer like sharing rooms with strangers. I am a total bitch if I get woken up… even worse if it’s because of abrupt light and noise. Have some understanding people. You may be having a great time, but you’ve chosen to go in a big dorm room, so have some respect for the other people in there who are already sleeping!

5. Not do your washing up after cooking/eating. This is just rude. You are living in a communal space, and everyone has to be able to use the same things in the kitchen. There’s nothing worse than going to cook and then first having to wash up someone else’s pans and dishes before you can even make your own meal!

6. Pee on someone else’s bed. Yes this happened. Just don’t. Okay?