13 years
IMHO it's best to keep some beds that you do not list online. It's good to have them available for walk-ins, but it's even better to keep them for current guests who want to extend their stay. Putting a happy guest out onto the street or sending them to your competition to make way for a new arrival sucks. The spare beds may save you in the case of an overbooking, too.
When you first start out it's good to get listed in as many places as possible. After a while you'll see which sites send you bookings and which ones just waste your time updating allotments. Then you can decide if it's worth continuing to give them beds.
As far as the guidebooks go, send them your info and hope for the best. It doesn't cost anything, but there is no guarantee that you will get in. They don't get updated every year, and even when they do it takes a long time for the books to get printed. If there are a lot of hostels already listed for your city, then it may be tough to get their attention - especially if you're brand new, because it's not sure that you'll still be in business by the time the book comes out. (I'm speaking in general, not suggesting that your hostel won't thrive and flourish)
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