I started backpacking around the world in the dark ages before e-mail, so booking a hostel bed or even a hotel room in advance was too much of a pain to even try. It involved international calls or faxes, with limited ability to confirm. Those days are long gone of course, and now you can easily set it up through a service like HostelBookers. They have hostels in over 2,000 destinations, so you’re pretty assured of finding what you need. In the interest of disclosure I have to say they’re an advertiser on Perceptive Travel , but they would get my vote anyway because there’s no booking fee.
Just because it’s easy though doesn’t mean you always should book ahead. Plans change, the hostel looks better on the web than it really is, or you end up arriving a day late because of delays. Plus you can end up spending as much time surfing the net for a place than you would walking around after arrival and getting one that’s really a better value.
There are times it makes a lot of sense to book a hostel in advance though. If you’re arriving on a late flight, the last thing you want to do is trudge around in the dark trying to find a place to rest your tired body. Plus your first three choices might all be filled up by that time. If it’s Europe in the summer or Latin America the week before Easter, you’d better book as much as you can ahead of time unless you’re off the beaten path. Places get packed easily. If you’re a woman traveling alone, it can make sense to get the first night booked so you can get the lay of the land before searching around. Just remember that the best upside surprises are usually the lesser-known hotels that aren’t listed in every guidebook, so dig beyond the obvious.
[My disclosure policy .]
