Staying at hostel, especially in a shared dorm room, is a little different from staying at a hotel or an AirBnB. Here are few extra items, beyond your standard packing list, you should bring along in order to make your stay in a hostel more comfortable and enjoyable.
1. Shampoo and Soap with Soap Case
Unlike hotels, most hostels do not provide soap or shampoo for the shower. A few do, but they are rare. Bring your own soap and shampoo from home. Many stores sell travel size shampoo bottles. Using a plastic case to hold and contain the bar of soap is also helpful.
2. Travel Towel
Some hostels will provide towels and others will charge a small fee for the use of a towel. Either way, bringing your own is easy and convenient. Small, fast-drying travel towels work well and they don’t take up much space in your luggage. Plus, some towels at hostels can be pretty ragged or questionable, so bringing your own towel eliminates the guess work.
3. Flip Flops or Some Type of Shower Shoes
Shower shoes are a must while staying in hostels. Most hostels have communal showers and you don’t know where everyone’s feet have been or how often the bathroom gets cleaned.
4. Shower Bag
When you make the trek over to the showers, you’ll need a small bag to hold your toiletries and clothes. If you’re in a pinch, a plastic bag from the grocery store will work. Otherwise, consider getting a bag that you can hang near shower stall.
5. Ear Plugs and a Sleep Mask
Some hostel rooms are noisy while others are quiet, but you probably won’t know which one you’ve got until you’re trying to sleep. Assume your dorm room will have at least one snorer (statistically, it probably will!). Assume that some drunk dorm mates might stumble in at 3am muttering to themselves and flipping the lights on and off. Assume that some procrastinating dorm mates will do a 4am last-minute packing scramble before their early flight, crinkling plastic bags, zipping and unzipping every pocket in their backpack, and flipping the lights on and off all the while. Wearing ear plugs and an eye mask works wonders in minimizing the severity of late night disruptions.
6. Lock
Most hostels provide lockers for their guests, but many require the guest to bring their own lock. Although theft in hostels in not common, it’s a valid concern and does happen on occasion so locking up your possessions is a nice precaution.
7. Light
If you don’t want to be ‘that guy’ or ‘that girl’ that turns on the dorm light when everyone’s trying to sleep, consider packing a small light. Some people will simply use the flashlight feature on their phone. Other people use a headlamp. Headlamps are useful because they are hands-free. Either way, using a small light source shows consideration for your dorm mates.
8. Alarm Clock
At some point during your trip, you will probably need an alarm so you wake up in time for your flight, train, bus or excursion. Many people use the alarm clock on their cellphone. You could also purchase a sport watch or a small travel alarm clock.
Book (optional)
Sometimes you may have some downtime in the hostel, at the airport or on a train. Packing a book allows you to pass some extra time here and there. Many hostels offer neat ‘leave a book, take a book’ exchanges so you might be able to trade your book for a different one when you’re done with it. Alternatively, some travelers bring tablets or ereaders with them, which are smaller than most books and can hold 100s to thousands of titles.
Final Thoughts
If you’re traveling internationally, make sure you remember to bring a travel adapter. Also, some hostelers swear by traveling with a sleeping bag liner because occasionally hostels do not provide sheets. Also, although many hostels do provide sheets, sometimes sheets may not seem very clean. Bringing a compact sleeping bag liner gives some travelers piece of mind.