This past
Christmas weekend, I stayed in my first hostel. I know what you’re thinking:
you haven’t stayed in a hostel on any of your travels? I have stayed at hotels
(of course), a cottage, an Israeli resort, and even a nunnery in Nazareth (that
had some seriously good internet). So, never a hostel in all of that time. I
was excited for the chance to stay in one for two main reasons: hostels are
cheaper and I wanted to see what all of the hostel hype was about. Susie, the
friend that I traveled to Beijing with, is a quite the savvy traveler. She lived
in China last year and has traveled all around Southeast Asia, so she knows
what to look for.
For those of
you that have used hostels, this won’t come as any surprise, but hostelworld.com is the best website ever! It is easy to use and has a lot of
filters that you can use to find specific amenities at hostels such as luggage
storage, 24-hour reception, etc. All you need to do is put in a city and it
will give you tons of options. All of the hostels have a rating that is a
culmination of all of the reviews of people who have stayed at that hostel.
There are also hostels that hostelworld itself recommends, too.
Now, not all
reviews are trust worthy, but hostelworld has very specific criteria that they
measure hostels by:
·
Value
for Money
·
Staff
·
Facilities
·
Security
·
Atmosphere
All of the
reviews/ratings can only be submitted by customers that have stayed in that
hostel in the last 12 months. The guidelines are not, obviously, the opinions
of hostelworld itself, but offer a good idea of what to expect in the hostel.
There are those random really negative reviews that you see, like you do on the
internet, but 98% of the time, you can trust what you’re reading. Also, the
reviews are good to read because they give you little tips about the hostel.
For example, who to talk to for good information about local landmarks or what
to avoid in the hostel. Overall, it is, in my opinion, a trustworthy way of
reviewing hostels. In sum, hostelworld.com is the way to go.
I stayed at
Sitting on the City Walls Courtyard House, which is located in the old city of
Beijing. It is surprisingly affordable location, considering it is within easy
walking distance of Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. The hostel
provides very specific directions to get there because it is up an alley, so it
is a bit tricky at first. One of the things that you need to find is a park
with people playing ping pong and you will know that you’re in the right place.
It took a second to get our bearings the first time we went, but once you know
where it is, it’s wonderful. It’s outside of heavy traffic areas, so there are
no obnoxious traffic noises to wake you up.
When we
arrived, the proprietor, whose name is Rick (I think, don’t take this as
gospel), asked us if we had been to Beijing before. When we replied that we
hadn’t, he immediately pulled out a map (in English, thank goodness) and told
us the highlights of where to go and what to do. He shows us where the “young
people” liked to hang out, the best streets for food, and the best shopping
close by. He had information galore, it was awesome! He even gave us a sheet
that had pinyin and characters for local attractions, how to get there by bus
and metro, and the prices for taxis. They offered good deals on tours on three
sections of the Great Wall, even though I wouldn’t call it a tour, more like a
ride there and back, food, admission, and time to do things yourself, which is what
I prefer anyway. My favorite thing Rick said was, “If you’re not vegetarian,
try our duck,” which we did on our last night there. I was just so impressed
with him from the beginning.
The rooms
were decently comfortable, even if a bit too warm for my taste. The shower had
a heater that blew down from the ceiling, which is the best invention that
anyone could have come up with. City Walls offered breakfast at an additional
cost, but it was affordable. They had a fridge with water and
Snickers—seriously, what more do you need in life?
On our last
day, Rick got up at 5:30am to call us a taxi to take us to the airport. I know
what waking up early is never the most fun thing, so I was so impressed by his
willingness and kindness and help us out. He even gave Susie and I one of those
red good luck rope things as a small souvenir. (I have no idea what they are
called, but you know what I’m talking about? Those red rope things with strings
or beads that Chinese people hang up for luck?) Overall, impressive. On the
scale of all the ice cream in the world is melted to I am getting free ice
cream for the rest of my life, it is a solid 9.7.
I couldn’t
have asked for a better experience for my first hostel. It made the experience,
especially the pollution was rank. I wholly recommend Sitting on the City Walls
Courtyard House to anyone who is looking to stay in Beijing on the cheap and
nice.
**These are my opinions and I have not
been paid to promote neither hostelworld.com or Sitting on the City Walls
Courtyard House. I just figure that a fantastic place and a fabulous website
deserve some recognition.**
