25DollarTravel

I am currently traveling the world for an extended period of time. During that adventure I’m predominantly staying in backpackers and hostels. Some of them are good and some are simply mediocre. But every once in a while there is an awesome hostel that just hits the ball out of the park.

(If you are interested in some of the best hostels in South America let me know on the comments and I’ll put together another post.)

If you are ever thinking of running your own hostel/backpacker business in an exotic location or if you simply want to know what to watch out for when you are looking for a place to stay while on the road, then this is for you

Here is my dissection of what gives any hostel a solid edge in the competitive hostel market:

Build a core local team

I cannot tell you how much better your stay in any place is when you have a knowledgeable local staff at the front desk that lived in the place/city/spot for years on end. You get all the insider information, know the hottest clubs instantly, surf the best surf spots (and more importantly, don’t make a foul out of yourself when entering a the water in the wrong spot!) and eat the tastiest food for local prices. On top of that local staff will give you a whole bunch of meaningful background information that you won’t find in any Lonely Planet guidebook.

For example, in Puno, Peru our hostel (the Duque Inn) was run by Ricardo who holds a PhD in Archeology. Talk about a great resource when exploring nearby pre-Inca ruins or visiting indigenous Quechua people in remote villages. By the way Ricardo also knew how to navigate a taxi through the semi-desert so we could by-pass the week-long blockade of the only main road out of Puno.

On the other hand, if a hostel is mostly staffed with foreigners (locals who just moved to the place usually can’t give you good information either) it is a major deal breaker and a reason for me to move to another place. It just boils down to the fact that I don’t like to waste my time and if I ask for a good restaurant (where the locals eat!) and end up at a place where I spot a guidebooks on 90 percent of the tables, well then, thanks a bunch, I’m out of here!

In my opinion, employing knowledgeable local staff increases the awesomeness of any hostel by 20 percent. Which means more recommendations (guess which hostel I’ll recommend in Puno, Peru for the rest of my life!?) and longer individual guest stays. In short, hiring local staff will result in more revenue.

Keep your core team small

By small I mean 3, max 4 people on a rotating shift. More people and your travelers will get confused with who of your team said what, communication between staff gets complicated and the whole vibe of the place changes from family business to corporate hotel business. Which is obviously not good for a relaxed atmosphere. That is not to say, that you cannot run a big hostel with 3 people. I’ve seen plenty of hostels with 50+ beds that where run by a core team of three. This core team was then supported by many helping hands (cleaning staff, maintenance, etc.) that where running things in the background. But, for the visitor, the same three people are always there to answer questions, help out and offer solid guidance to the many lost travelers out there. In short, they keep the great family vibe, we are all looking for fresh and healthy.

On that note:

Increase your hostels family vibe

A great way to increase this family vibe, is to put pictures and names of the entire staff behind your front desk or in the kitchen area. Just put the pictures somewhere everyone can see them. Through your staff pictures, most of your guests/travelers will know who to ask questions and will less likely get confused with new faces on different shifts, times and days. Additionally, your guests will remember your staff names and -hopefully – use them to address your staff. Nothing better then hearing your name after a “thank you!” followed by a big smile of a happy traveler. What a morale booster!

BTW if you are really good then you’ll include a few bullet points for each staff person below their picture summarizing what they know best. For example, if Alejandra knows the local party-scene best, than write “always knows the hottest party in town”, for Hugo the surfer dude show “surfs everyday before work”.
When you do that it will take little time before each staff has their own field of expertise. In turn, your staff will feel so much more special – “I’m the party-scene expert!” – and your travelers are stoked for quickly fiddling the right person for their questions.

Yup, that is motivational management in action, but that’s a whole other blog post 🙂

Create different areas within your hostel

Just like in your own home your backpacker should have different areas for different purposes: the kitchen is for cooking, the tables next to the kitchen are for eating and the hammocks outside are for relaxation. Try to separate those areas as much as possible, so that the kitchen and front desk – nosy areas – are away from quiet zones to relax and hang out. If possible have more than one area for each of them. For example, having two smaller areas with hammocks – one outside in the yard and another on the roof top overlooking the city – is way cooler than one big one.

I know you may think that all of this sound super obvious but there are plenty of hostels out there that consistently get this wrong. For example, one place in Buenos Aires had the bar, where smoking was allowed and loud music played, right next to the kitchen, and I mean right next to it, where people tried to cook and prepare food. It was so close to each other, that the bartender asked me if I want to cut my carrots on his bar! Needless to say that they guy blowing cigarette smoke over my fresh cut parsley and the loud made this otherwise lovely cooking experience a real downer. In short, many travelers were out of that hostel in no time!

Conclusion

Establishing and running a world class backpacker/hostel is not easy, but it is possible. Have the obvious fundamentals, such as a good location, clean facilities and a fair price down, and make sure to

• Have a small and local core team,
• Create a good family vibe, and
• Offer plenty of different areas to cruise, cook and talk story.

What was awesome in the last world class hostel/backpacker that you stayed in?