Hi all
Just a quick question and, I think, an easy one for you.
In your opinion, what are the main differences between a Hostel and a Guesthouse? Which is your favourite one?
Thank you
Cheers
Bocci
15 years
All the guesthouses that I know of are much smaller than the smallest hostel I know of and serve an older crowd. The guesthouse in my area has only 3 rooms, is run out of the owner's house and it's basically a B&B without the big fancy breakfast. Totally different vibe than a hostel.
15 years
I think of guesthouse as having just private rooms. See also this thread, which mentions guesthouses:
http://www.hostelmanagement.com/forum/f15/definition-hostel-284.html
15 years
Depends what country you're talking about. A guesthouse in the UK to me would imply a larger version of a B&B, which would also do evenening meals. Certainly not a place with dorms. Obviously this is not the same as a South East Asian or South Asian Guesthouse
15 years
Actually, my question is in Europe...
I am doing some internet research and I see a lot of Hostels that are very similar to Guesthouses and vice versa... In some web pages, as Hostelworld, there are some Hostels (they have "hostel" in their name) that are identified as guesthouses on their site...
But thanks for the feedback!!!
:):):)
15 years
I am looking to open a hostel in France, and several people have suggested that I register it as a guesthouse or B&B. They said the tax laws, fire safety, and disabled accessibility requirements would be more lenient that way than they would be if I called myself a hostel.
It comes down to the official primary use of the building. Is it a private residence that houses a small business or is it a business with accommodation for the owner?
None of the people who gave me this advice were lawyers though, which is important. Incidentally, not a single person in the Department of Urban Planning could agree with anyone else on how a hostel SHOULD be classified either.
The hostels you saw listed as guesthouses may have been taking advantage of this kind of ambiguity too.
15 years
Well, I was checking and maybe the main difference is:
- Guesthouse, if you want to stay one night and you are alone, you may pay all the room, i.e. if the bed is 25€ on a 4 bed dorm, you should pay 100€...
- Hostel, you can pay your own bed and you will stay in a dorm with other backpackers, as well...
:confused:
Should be this difference the main one?!?!
:rolleyes:
13 years
- Guesthouse, if you want to stay one night and you are alone, you may pay all the room, i.e. if the bed is 25€ on a 4 bed dorm, you should pay 100€...
- Hostel, you can pay your own bed and you will stay in a dorm with other backpackers, as well...
:confused:
Should be this difference the main one?!?!
Sorry for the very late reply... I just saw this unanswered post. :)
I think the main difference that separates hostels from other types of accommodation is that the rooms are shared with strangers.
In my opinion, a property is only a hostel if it provides some shared accommodation. Guesthouses have private rooms or "dorms" that can't be shared with strangers (like in your example).
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