Hostels generally offer dormitory no-frill style accommodation, separated by gender, with shared bathrooms. Most hostels offer real budget type of accommodation with only the very basics. Some hostels do offer private rooms, however, and occasionally these rooms may even have a private bathroom. Many hostels offer shared kitchens and living areas and some also have Internet access on site. Hostelling is a popular way for students and young people to travel, but most hostels nowadays don't have age restrictions any longer which means even middle aged individuals and seniors are welcome to stay. It's a bare bones way of traveling, but one of the benefits is that it does offer the opportunity to connect with other like-minded travelers. Often the atmosphere at hostels is very informal, casual and friendly, so even when traveling as a single person it should be quite easy to make new friends.

Some of the hostel websites also offer message boards, travel stories and various travel-related services such as travel insurance, rail passes, adventure tours, flights & car rentals. One very nice feature of some of the hostel websites is that they offer ratings of hostel properties that were completed by previous travelers, providing some insight into the quality of the property in question. Hostel websites generally allow you to search for availability by date and to make a reservation online.

As of March 2005, dorm-style accommodation can go for as low as US$ 25.00 per night, with most of the properties charging between US$30.00 to $40.00 per night. Private rooms range from about US$27.50 and up per person, with most of the properties coming in between US$35.00 and to US$ 70.00 per night per person.

Here is a list of some of the main hostelling websites:

www.hostels.com
The Hostels.com website indicates that it features the most comprehensive selection of hostels on the internet with almost 7,000 hostels listed.

www.hostelsclub.com
Hostelsclub refers to itself as a young and dynamic company providing the budget traveler with an online booking engine for destinations all over the world: Europe, North America, South America, Asia, Oceania, and Africa. Hostelsclub offers a wide range of accommodation choices for all budget travelers.

www.hihostels.com
Hostelling International (HI) operates a network of more than 4,000 hostels in over 60 countries. Their website indicates that the USA they offer the largest network of quality hostels.

www.hostelweb.com
Hostelweb specializes in the Western United States with over 67 hostels in 11 western states. Obviously not a choice for NYC, but certainly a good reference for western US travel plans.

www.hostelworld.com
Hostelworld.com provides online bookings at thousands of hostels worldwide. You can check out their hostel reviews, view photographs and read detailed descriptions of all their hostels. You can confirm reservations at a selection of youth hostels, independent hostels and international hostels in Europe, Asia, Africa, North America, South America and Oceania.

Happy hostelling...