By now, most of us have heard someone say, ‘I would never stay at a hostel because I’m afraid I would get robbed or murdered.’
While that outcome couldn’t be further from the truth, the thought behind it underscores a reality of what the hostel industry, particularly in America, faces: a poor, unfounded, fabricated, and gross stigma of what it’s like to spend a night in a hostel.
Part of this stigma has to do with Hollywood and its ability to spin a horror film (and now television series) out of the hostel experience. Part of this stigma is also perpetuated by people who make those sorts of statements but have never actually stayed at a hostel themselves, allowing the misconception to carry on because they have nothing to compare it to. Part of the stigma, however, comes from the presence of illegal, or illegitimate, hostels. And that might be the most dangerous of them all.
Illegitimate hostels are, more or less, businesses that advertise themselves as being a hostel but do not have the necessary paperwork, permits, or operating procedures to be recognized as a real hostel. These operations might be a modest house with a few bedrooms and some bunk beds in them, or they could be a single unit someone rents out in their apartment and advertises the space as a hostel. These sorts of operations tend to pop up in large cities, like Los Angeles and New York, but have even become common in smaller cities like San Diego. And because backpacking culture caters to people on a budget, they have a built-in audience of willing travelers to try their “hostel”, even though they are not a real hostel. (Both mayor's offices in San Diego and Los Angeles were contacted for this story, but neither provided any comment on the subject.)
Jimmy Black, co-founder of ITH Hostels, spoke about illegal hostels, since he and his experienced dealing with illegitimate hostels in the past. For years, an individual in San Diego advertised his house not only as a hostel but also as part of the ITH company. Not only was the illegitimate hostel improperly using the ITH brand to lure travelers, but it was also doing business without being a registered hostel, opening the door to a litany of possibilities that could harm travelers' experiences and the reputation of hostels. Therein lies the problem.
“Someone who checks into a hostel like that that’s not regulated, or doesn’t have the licenses or permits to be a hostel, or is run by someone who isn’t in it for the right reasons, they can have a horrible experience, and not only are they never going to stay in a hostel again, they’re probably going to go online and write a review about it and that’ll ripple out there, and someone will read it and say, ‘yup, I was thinking about trying hostels but no. That’s dangerous, that’s scary,'” said Black.
Especially in this day and age, where word of mouth and online reviews carry significant weight for businesses, that ripple can have massive implications. And with Hollywood pumping out more content that wrongly portrays the industry, it makes it difficult for the hostel owners who are doing things the right way, operating with the necessary permits and licenses and paying taxes, to change the narrative that has been miscast about their industry.
While hostels can fulfill their role by offering memorable, fun, affordable, and safe travel experiences for backpackers, the industry can also take steps as a collective to combat the stigma. For instance, as Black suggested, hostel associations like the North American Hostel Association can continue their efforts to raise awareness not only about good hostels but also to flag bad or illegitimate ones.
“Just like there could be a map showcasing all of the hostels in a region, there could be one that highlights the ones that are not legitimate and operating illegally,” said Black.
And if a hostel were to be flagged as ‘bad’, it would open the door for them to prove themselves as being a legitimate and legal hostel. Booking platforms and OTAs could also do their part by tightening their standards of what it takes to be listed on their websites, creating a more competitive but stable industry overall.
Although hostel owners don’t have the power to stop Hollywood from making more movies or television shows about the "horrors and frights" of staying in hostels, they do have the ability to continue creating unforgettable (in the best way) experiences for their guests by doing what they love to do most: hosting people and sharing culture in shared spaces in an affordable way.
