My favorite hostels

During my travel career I have stayed in many hostels and some of them have stood out for me. Usually on longer trips I use mixture of hostels and couchsurfing and on many short trips I have stayed with friends so I don't have experiences of hostels in every town and city I have visited. But these ones that I will list in this blog post have been good experiences for me. Maybe you have stayed in one of them and you disagree with me but for me these places were nice and they could changed since I visited them. I think people like to complain more about their accommodation so that's why I wanted to make this list.

Hostel Majdas, Mostar, Bosnia & Herzegovina

Hostel Majdas was absolutely wonderful experience. Yes, I mean experience, not just a stay. Hostel is nicely located near the old town of Mostar in peaceful neighborhood. The owner Majda is full of knowledge about the town and gives you information where to visit in Mostar and best places to go eat out. Breakfast is included in the price and it's homemade! Also in the evening there is some traditional Bosnian dish to be served, I had really good soup! Hostel also offers day tour around the Mostar region which is very recommendable! The guide Bata really knows how to keep you interested during the whole 12-hour tour and places visited are really beautiful and unique. I'm not telling you too much, you have to experience it yourself!

Website:
http://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/Hostel-Majdas/Mostar/73679

Roommates Penang, George Town, Malaysia

When I stayed in Roommates it just had opened few weeks earlier. We had a lot of luck for finding this place. We arrived to Penang without any accommodation and thanks to locals tips we found this place. Since then it seems to have became the top place to stay in Penang and that what it was for us back in January 2012 already. I'm not surprised it's success. The staff was incredible friendly and helpful. They gave us tips which are best places to eat in George Town which is definitely one of the top eating destinations in the world! Rooms were comfortable with nice beds. Roommates is not big place but it makes it easier place to meet other travelers. You can also find my face advertising their place on their Facebook site.

Website:
http://www.roommatespenang.com/

Happy Seven Hostel, Gdansk, Poland

Sometimes you find good hostels in surprising locations. I had no expectations for the hostels in Gdansk so I was really happily surprised. We arrived to Gdansk without any reservations and decided to choose the best sounding hostel from my Lonely Planet guidebook. It turned out to be a really good decision. Happy Seven is great place to stay! They have really nice room full of couches for hanging out and watching films. The staff is really helpful and gave us very good advice. The best thing in the hostel is that every room has difference decoration. We stayed in the Travel room which was amazing. We loved it instantly! We also saw that there was Music, Film, Sport and Warehouse themed rooms. Hostel is well-located next to the center of Gdansk and is really clean.

Website:
http://www.happyseven.com/menu_en/strona-glowna_en.html

Reggae Mansion KL, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

I only stayed one night in Reggae Mansion but that was really nice night! I arrived to Kuala Lumpur in the middle of the night and I have to admit the center of the city is quite scary at that time. Thankfully I knew the location of this hostel and went straight there to ask room and they helpfully organized me a bed. The rooms are really comfortable and the bed are designed so that you have a lot of privacy in them, you have a kind of private hole in the wall. I wanted peace and that's is what I got. But the hostel is also center for partying and they have really nice rooftop bar so maybe I was just lucky with my roommates. In the morning they provide really nice breakfast and hostel was also very clean.

Website:
http://www.reggaehostelsmalaysia.com/mansion/

Nomad Cave Hostel, Göreme, Turkey

In Cappadocia I ended up staying in Nomad Cave Hostel which is located in the village of Göreme. Like it names suggest its rooms are all located in caves which is already really cool. However most accommodation in Göreme offers cave rooms. I also liked how the bathrooms of the hostel were outside but I was there during the summer, in winter I might have thought otherwise. The hostel has nice areas to relax and watch the view over Göreme which is one of the coolest looking villages I have seen thanks to the rock formations which Cappadocia is famous for. The staff is really knowledgeable of the area and they offer the best hostel breakfast I have ever had. Turkish breakfast in general is amazing and they had the best parts of it.

Website:
http://www.nomadcavehotel.com/

Backpackers Hotel & Efe Guest House, Safranbolu, Turkey

This place is the only budget option in the small town of Safranbolu. Safranbolu is famous for it's Ottoman era wooden houses and it's really cute place to spend a day. This place offers one dorm room and seems to be really popular among Asian visitors as I was the only non-Asian guest in whole place. They have good breakfast in the morning which is made by the family who runs this place. They also prepare in the evening food which you can have for extra cost. I enjoyed the dinner with other travelers. It's really cool to stay in this historical house and the room had beautiful view over the town. I also had to thank their excellent wifi connection as I needed to do university course selections during my stay. Oh, and they picked me up from the bus station for free!

Website:
http://www.backpackerspension.com/en/index.html

Old City Hostel, Lviv, Ukraine

Their website says they are the best hostel in Lviv and that is true! The staff was amazingly helpful and me and my traveling companions are really grateful for their help for us during our sometimes really weird troubles. The hostel is really clean and located perfectly in the old town. Also it is really easy to get there from the airport and the train station. Beds were also really comfortable. The hostel definitely saved us during our trip to Ukraine.

Website:
http://oldcityhostel.lviv.ua/en/

Buffalo Backpackers, Pristina, Kosovo

If you're looking for the most laid-back place to stay in Kosovo, this is it. Buffalo Backpackers was so laid-back that I almost ended up staying there for long time. Staff is made up from locals and foreign volunteers and they have good information about the country. Thanks to them we find out a "secret" bus connection to Montenegro. If you're looking for good company this is also good place for it as they have nice areas to hang out and talk to other travelers. I made good friends while I stayed here. Also the location is good near the center in a house which is only for the hostel use.

Website:
http://www.buffalobackpackers.com/

Travellers Home Hostel, Sarajevo, Bosnia & Herzegovina

Bosnia seems to be a good place for hostels! I really enjoyed my stay in Travellers Home. The rooms were clean and beds were comfortable. The staff was incredible friendly and helpful, they helped me to get a bed when I wanted to stay one more night and the hostel was fully booked. Yes, it was so nice I stayed one extra night! The hostel is located in the center of everything, very short walk to old town and lots of cool places to go eat and drink are nearby. I also met some of the nicest travelers I have ever met in this hostel. Experience the amazing city of Sarajevo with the help of this hostel!

Website:
http://myhostel.ba/