4 Reasons Why You Should Never Stay in a Hotel
Close your eyes for a moment. Imagine, you have time off from work and the freedom to travel anywhere in the world. In this dream getaway, are you picturing yourself relaxing on white sandy beaches, diving into warm crystal blue waters, and wandering through an oasis of towering palms? Or are you perhaps fantasizing about strolling along a brick-laden road in an enchanted little European town, glancing into old book stores and antique shop windows, pausing at a small cafe to enjoy freshly brewed coffee and a pastry straight from the oven?
When daydreaming about a perfect vacation, your mind instantly fills with the possibilities of the day, the activities and experiences that highlight the area which first enticed you. You fantasize longingly for the adventure, and I’m guessing that you didn’t begin your fantasy with deciding on which Holiday Inn to stay at. It would be a rare situation to travel with a hotel in mind rather than a destination.
If you’re not convinced that hotels are a waste of time and money, keep reading.
1) They’re unnecessarily expensive
I can guarantee that those people who gawk at my ability to afford traveling as often as I do are the same people who stay in hotels when they travel. A hotel is merely an establishment that provides lodging in a foreign destination, it is not the destination. If you’re traveling properly, you’re only using your bed/room for sleeping at night. Why not free up your funds by opting for a cheap (or even free) option rather than an expensive hotel?
Imagine you are looking for a place to stay in Lima, Peru. Depending on what is most important to you (i.e location, free breakfast, wifi, etc.), the cheapest hostel I found currently listed on Hostelworld is $3/night, with the average hostel price being about $10-12/night. A full week at a hostel in Lima would therefore range from $21-$84 on average. You would be hard-pressed to find a hotel rate of $21-$84 for a single night, let alone an entire week. Additionally, for a slightly higher cost, most hostels offer private rooms, if that is what you’re interested in.
By avoiding the financial drain of a hotel room, you free up resources to enhance the experiences that incited your interest for that location in the first place. Imagine what you could do with an extra $100 a day while on holiday. Or better yet, imagine how much more often you could travel if you didn’t have to account for the burden of an expensive hotel on every trip.
2) There are better options available
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: hotels are for tourists; hostels are for travelers. Any true vagabond will tell you that there are a multitude of options when it comes to choosing a place to rest your head at night. Not only are there cheaper accommodations (like hostels), but there are also lodging options completely free for weary travelers! Some of these cost effective options include Couchsurfing, Workaway positions, and utilizing a tent.
Couchsurfing offers you a free place to stay and simultaneously gives you a local’s unparalleled insight to the city. If you’ve never used the Couchsurfing app and site before, I strongly suggest checking it out. The verification process and host/traveler reviews create a strong sense of safety, even though you are essentially interacting with complete strangers.
Workaway is another great option because you not only receive the benefit of free accommodation, but you also get to experience life as a local with this volunteer or paid work experience. You can choose the length of stay when you apply to a host, as well as the amenities most important to you and your traveling goals (i.e wifi, shared access to a car, walking distance from city center, etc.).
A tent is another free and easy option while traveling. Setting up a tent at night has proven to be difficult in urban settings, but is an ideal alternative in sparsely populated locations where lodging is hard to find. I personally opt for a tent whenever the option is available, not only due to the cost effectiveness, but also the freedom from a set schedule or ending location. With a tent, you don’t have a strict reservation to adhere to; you can come and go as you please.
3) Hotels rob you of an authentic cultural experience
Hotel rooms: if you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all. In my time traveling, I’ve noticed that chain hotels offer a copy-and-paste experience from one city to the next. I’ve found myself wondering, “if someone brought me blindfolded in this hotel room, would I be able to guess where in the world we are?” More often than not, the answer is no. The hotel lobby might feature some local art or authentic style decor, but few other aspects differentiate one hotel from the next.
Chain hotels are often constructed from a template and replicated around the world. On the other hand, hostels offer accommodations unique to the area because they are run and operated by locals. The buildings are most often reimagined structures developed to accommodate travelers, and therefore maintain an authentic essence and local design.
If you choose to stay in a tent, you miss out on the architecture of the cityscape, but gain an intimate knowledge of the countryside. A tent set-up connects you with the local flora and fauna in a way that any urban accommodation would not. The process of finding a location to pitch your tent also enriches your understanding of how to navigate the area, and often requires some sort of interaction with locals to aid in your search.
When you get home and your friends ask you “how was your trip?”, I doubt your initial response is, “oh, it was great! The hotel lobby was really cool”! You tell them about the places you went, the food you ate, the people you met, and every other little detail that made your experience unique.
4) Hotels lack a social component
By nature, hotels are isolating. They provide a private room and once you’re inside, you forget about the world around you almost as quickly as the world forgets about you. At times, this anonymity can be nice, but the moment you desire an immersive experience, the task of figuring out what options exist outside your room lies completely on you.
When I was traveling through South America, my goal was to complete every trek I could, only stopping in cities long enough to restock on food. I was traveling alone and the planning details of every trek was solely my responsibility, so when I would come off trail, the last thing I wanted to do was create an additional itinerary to be able to enjoy the city. Luckily, I knew to stay in a hostel, where my opportunities for social interaction and night life would be plentiful. My very first night in Medellin, the hostel I chose to stay at was offering free salsa lessons on the rooftop patio. Of course, I signed up and received authentic instruction from locals and was able to head out later that evening with a local staff member to dance in some of the less touristy areas of the city.
My hostel provided me with a lively opportunity to experience the vibrant Colombian culture; and it was as easy as signing my name on a sheet of paper. I didn’t have to seek out dance classes, figure out pricing, or determine safe bars or dance clubs that I could check out later that evening. My hostel offered me free classes, and a group of likeminded people that I could explore the town with. It was like having a private tour group that cost me absolutely nothing. It was easy, it was fun, and it was something I never would have spent energy on figuring out if I had been solo staying in a hotel.
My culturally immersive experiences outside of hotels don’t stop there. I’ve shared meals with friends and family members of my couchsurfing hosts, traveled days on end with new friends who had set up their tents near my own, and spent entire days soaking in the culture of new cities with people I met over breakfast in my hostel.
As a traveler, you have the unique opportunity to make life-long companions from around the world, but those connections slip away the moment you lock yourself in a hotel room. Considering you often have the option to reserve a private hostel room, there is no added benefit to booking a permanently isolating hotel room. Even if you are seeking solitude, your introverted mood may shift a few hours after checking in. Staying at a hostel allows you to instantly re-emerge from your reclusive state after recharging your social battery.
When I recall memories from my time spent abroad, I regularly relive the moments spent with a welcoming couchsurfing host who took me to their favorite restaurant, or a beautiful mountainside view from my tent. My memories of hole-in-the-wall restaurants and cheap hostels evoke a sense of adventure and excitement. Avoiding hotels has not only saved me money, but also has enriched my international explorations and has allowed me to become a better traveler. I assure a more memorable and alluring adventure if you choose to do the same.