Irish Republic has a independently owned Hostel affiliation .. Used several when there 20 years ago..

Here's one of the more charming hostels I stayed at along the Dordogne River in France ...


Auberge de Jeunesse, Beaulieu-sur-Dordogne (Corrèze) France

But in the US most of the charming hostels are gone. In the 70s there were chains of them on the C&O canal, PA Dutch country, and up the length of VT.

Quite variable. When I stayed at the HI Hostel in Washington DC, they had a total ban on posession of alcohol on the premisis, which I thought was funny when they also had organized pub crawls.

The Fishermans Wharf hostel in San Fransisco, count the bottles on the table.



Internationally, I think most of them have a policy for reasonable use in public areas, like this one, fourth bullet point:

Would you consider using a service such as Warmshowers or CouchSurfing (post COVID of course) ? ?

I assume your question is to everyone and not any specific poster.

I like hostels, you can be as social or as anti-social as you want. Last summer I met a gal that was also starting a bike tour at the same time and hostel that I was starting out from, we rode together for a day and a half. I have met a lot of interesting people at hostels.

If I fly somewhere and stay at a hostel at the start and end of a trip, I will schedule those months in advance with reservations, but otherwise I often stay at a hostel on a spur of the moment basis instead of camping. I have also finished tours at a hostel where my end-date was more flexible because I was taking a train, not flying. In those cases I will make a reservation a few days in advance.

I have not stayed at Warmshowers or Couchsurfed, but have no plans to do so. I would rather not arrive there and find that I do not hit it off with the host. I would rather stay at a Motel 6 than do that. But, I am well aware that a lot of people use those services frequently and enjoy them.

Just came through the Canadian Rockies and HI hostels are still a thing here, though the experience is probably altered due to covid.

The major centers are expensive (Jasper, Banff, Lake Louise) but the chain hostels are more affordable and nice, if you like dorm style sleeping.

The best bet is to route plan and reserve during the high season.

Lake Placid has a great hostel, Home | TMax-n-Topos Hostel - Lake Placid, NY - A friendly place to stay!
Nicely located near town, brewpubs, meals etc I stay there in winter for Daks backcountry skiing

Chile, S.A. has splendid hostels, some of the best I have ever stayed in. They are nicely located in the foothills of the Andes and some of the cities!!