Amazing, huge hostel in an old textiles university
Tag Archives: PLUS hostels
25 Cool Hostel chains worth staying in
…… in no particular order
1. Generator – founded in London, soon to open its tenth EU hostel – a juggernaut! Check them out
2. St.Christopher’s – teamed up with the ‘Beds & Bars’ group, funky, chilled, food and drink, good EU locations
3. Oasis – Lisbon, Malaga, Seville, Granada…. all very cool
4. Base – Australian & Kiwi hospitality at its best
5. Sant Jordi – an incredible 6 locations in Barcelona
6. Equity Point – great quality properties in Spain, Portugal, Morocco and USA
7. Flying Pig – Amsterdam, Uptown & Downtown… and by the beach in Noordwijk
8. Home – two central in Valencia, one in Barcelona… chilled
9. Dizzy Daisy – cool, four Polish locations and one Prague
10. Nest – funky Spanish, a favourite for travellers in Granada, Valencia, Barcelona, San Sebastian
11. Hatters – UK: Liverpool, Birmingham & Manchester
12. Smart – UK: multiple, central London locations
13. Journey’s – UK – three London, one Brighton… extending to Asia
14. Bohemian – cool hostels in Prague, well known group – look them up!
15. A&O – founded in 2000, largely German…. expanding through EU – considered the biggest chain
16. Meininger – well known German, plus London, Vienna, Brussels… set for big expansion
17.USA hostels – California anyone?! Backpacker hostels in Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego
18. Wombats – Austrian & German, recent opening in Budapest… next stop, Milan?!
19. PLUS – great hostels, plus camping…. Italy, Czech, German….. Berlin is amazing
20. Baxpax – funky German styling, three Berlin locations
21.Hip Hop Hostels – about a dozen in Paris – a collective
22. Palmers – posh UK, London times two…. and an opening in Zagreb, Croatia
23. Nomads – a brand affiliated with properties all over…. bigger in OZ & NZ… looking for world domination!
24. YHA – a brand affiliated with properties all over… big in UK, Scotland but some key Australia properties are best!
25. HI – a brand affiliated with properties all over… big in USA and Canada
There are so many great hostel chains and independent hostels out there… I have been so lucky to have visited a lot! Are there any not on this list that you think should be included?
Happy travels ))
Most European destinations mentioned are cheaply reached by budget airlines
Best Hostel Chains 2013
HostelBookers ‘Awards for Excellence’ have announced their ‘Best Chains’ for 2013 and the winners are:
Generator, PLUS and Equity Point!
All are juggernauts in the industry and set for expansion in 2013.
Generator Berlin Mitte is due to open towards the end of April, along with their two Barcelona properties (Hotel & Hostel – same building, separate receptions). The growth that Generator has experienced in the last two years has been phenomenal. Long gone are the days of having a stand-alone property in London – they now hold fort in Hamburg, Venice, Dublin, Copenhagen and Berlin East. They have recently re-branded with a new bright pink logo and have modernised their look, moving away from the rave hey day of the nineties.
I was at ITB last week and attended a great party by Generator – billed as “rising from the ashes for one night only!” in the Mitte property. Great location for the hot ‘industrial Berlin’ party that ensued, with VJs, DJs spinning proper vinyl, fire performers and classy mixologists creating deadly cocktails for the night.
Equity Point is considered the most worldly of the three chains, with properties in the USA, UK, Spain, Portugal and Morocco. Equity Point also opens in Prague within the next few weeks. It’s location can’t be beat, in close proximity to Charles Bridge in the ‘Old Town’, where you find the famous Prague Astronomical Clock. Equity has always fared well in regards to recognitions and industry awards, with a lot of other hostels trying to follow in their footsteps.
PLUS has really grown due to its Berlin opening a few years back, making it the third country it has foundations in. Infamous already for providing fun and varied accommodations in Italy, the chain also has a base in Prague…. and is rumoured to be eyeing off their next country to conquer! Their camping grounds and facilities really set the brand apart from the other winning chains…. if you want a real ‘Roman holiday‘ than this chain is definitely for you!
Congrats to all three on the amazing achievement and for forging their niche products in what has become an extremely cut-throat, competitive market
Check out all the Awards for Excellence winners here: http://www.hostelbookers.com/2013-top-accommodation/
Most destinations mentioned are cheaply reached by budget airlines
HostelBookers ‘Awards for Excellence’ 2013
Well – that time of year is upon us again, where we get to award all the best properties from around the world who work with us at HostelBookers! For the second year, I have had the honour of selecting the winners – a mind boggling task. So many excellent properties working hard to achieve their personal objectives of creating great brands and customer experiences.
The selection process took roughly 3 days and involved analysing a lot of data based largely on customer reviews. This year’s categories include Best Hostel Chains, the first time we have done this in the four years history of our Awards for Excellence! Other categories include the following:
Most Popular ; Best Overall ; Best Atmosphere ; Best Staff ; Award for Cleanliness ; Best new accommodation ; Best for solo travellers ; Best for families ; Best for couples ; Best value hotels ; Group recognition
So many awards – 200 to be exact! This is such a small percentage of the 22,000 properties that we have on our books at HostelBookers… so it is rather exclusive.
The Awards for Excellence launch at the start of March, so keep your eyes open for this year’s winners…. this is definitely the strongest list put together ever. You will see all your favourite brands and some great independent properties…. small (6 beds) to large (800 beds)… hostels, hotels, B&B’s, apartments and even campsites!
I should stop there, as I don’t wish to give too much away… needless to say, we are all super excited for the launch…. check out last year’s winners here:
Ryans-Air-Adventures! 