I’m writing this post because I’m going to India again, and I’ll be on my own for a few days.

As a girl, and a frequent traveller to India, I’d like to share my comments on accommodation as a budget traveller. When I visit India with my family, we mostly stay in hotels (read: cheap guest houses) and we haven’t couchsurfed so far. So I’d like to point out the pros and cons.

But let me first start with hostels.

Hostel

Why you should stay in a hostel:

#1 Safety.  The location of hostels in New Delhi is a lot safer than other areas where you find cheap hotels. These hostels are all in southern Delhi, further away from tourist attractions but also more modern and organized. Don’t worry that this will not look Indian to you, because it will still be India, just a more hipster side.  In case you haven’t noticed, India is a place mixed extreme wealthy people and people who live under poverty. It’s a complicated society, and in some areas for example, Paharganj which used to be  backpacker’s hub for cheap hotels now you’d see only local Indian men. It’s very different from what it used to be before 2011.  So in my opinion, I’d avoid Paharganj and choose hostels.

Hostels Examples (I haven’t stayed there):

In Southern Delhi

• The Madpackers Hostel  Score: 9.1/10 Price:$11-$14 per night. Address:S-39A, Third Floor, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi

• Jugaad Hostels Score: 8.8/10 Price:$11-$14 per night. Address: F-128, 4th Floor, Jhandu Mansion, Mohammadpur, R.K.Puram, New Delhi
• Moustache Hostel Score: 8.7/10 Price:$11  per night. Address:S-25, Greater Kailash 1, New Delhi ($10.6 on hostelbooker. Click the link)
• Bed and Chaï $13 (but only mixed dorm) Address:R-55 Greater Kailash, New Delhi

In Northern Delhi

(Go for it if you don’t mind chaos, and want to be closer to tourist attractions)

• Joey’s Hostel Score: 9.2/10 Price:$8.2-$11 per night. Address:1/49, Lalita Park, Main Vikas Marg (Next to Laxmi Nagar Metro Station), New Delhi  (It’s cheaper on hostelbookers, but there’s no female dorm option. Click the link)
• Stops Hostel Delhi  Score: 8.9/10 Price:$11-$15 per night. Address:4/23-B, Asaf Ali Road, Daryaganj, New Delhi => In Chadni Chowk
• Zostel Delhi Score 82.7% Price:$9.08 per night (no female dorm) Address:5 Arakshan Road, Oppo New Delhi Railway Station, New Delhi  => In Paharganj!
• Smyle Inn Score:81.6%  Price:$9.10 bed+breakfast (only female dorm) Address: 916, Gali Chandi Wali, Main Bazaar, Paharganj New Delhi
• Namaskar India Score: 80.8% Price:$12.3 (only mixed dorm) Address:8a/99, W.E.A, Channa Market, Karol Bagh, New Delhi
• Hostel New King Score:74.6% Price:$3.79 per night (only female dorm) Address: General Market, 15/16 Ramdwara Road, Main Bazar Pahar Ganj New Delhi
• Backpackers Hostel  Score: 7.1/10 Price:$8 per night. Address:7874, Arakashan Road ,Ram Nagar, New Delhi => In Paharganj!

Take a look of those hostels, in average each night costs about $11-$14 per bed in the southern area, and around $8 in northern area. Hostel New King is scarily cheap, but its review is passable. So if you are a gap year student, Hostel New King might work out for you.

South Delhi vs North Delhi?

It’s hard to say cuz it depends on how well you have adapted into Indian culture shock. But I’m purely talking based on my experience, the first time I went to India in 2011, there was no hostel so I stayed at Paharganj (North Delhi) where it used to be backpacker’s hub. It’s not a bad area, but just remember India isn’t about poverty. If it’s my first time in India, then I’d go for the North as I did. The chaos might be charming, it’s closer to historical places, and to New Delhi Railway Station plus exchange rate is great! But if it’s not my first time and if it’s at the end of my tour, I’d choose the South since it’s quieter, more modern and easier to get to airport.

So if I have to choose, paying $1 extra and I’d get better location and breakfast and better review, there really is no possibility that I’d not choose The Madpackers over Juggad. And I’d rather save myself from troubles by paying INR250 extra than taking risk at Moustache this time.

#2 Finding a travel buddy

In Indian standard, hostel is not cheap. So it’s definitely not the place to stay for a month! Instead, think of it as a way to take care of yourself in a relatively more secure environment, and that in this way you might find a travel buddy.

The hostels target a very niche market, that is international tourist who is new or have their reservation to India. So if you fall into this category, consider this.

(Honestly, for girls, I’m considering staying in a hostel this time that I’m visiting India. It’s really because I don’t want to see the chaos in Paharganj and I don’t think it’s that safe at night there anymore in my opinion!)

Why you shouldn’t stay in a hostel:

Price Disadvantage. If there’s 2 of you, you can enjoy privacy in a cheap hotel with actually less money! If you are in a mood for a more comfortable stay, it won’t cost you a leg. With $25 you’d find a nice double-room. Also, you wouldn’t need to sacrifice your privacy and sleep pattern (people coming at 3 a.m.).

But, should you stay in a double room in a hostel? Besides money, management is a big issue. I recently stayed in another new hostel called Hosteller Saket. It was $20 for a double room without breakfast… and the experience was horrible.. HORRIBLE!

Untrained Hospitality. As I said, hostel is a novel idea in India, and so hostel owners are really young and won’t have previous experience in hotel hospitality. It’s still experimental! Infrastructure wise they remodel old buildings, so it ‘looks’ like a hostel. But of course some hostels still look crappy and dirty. But in terms of service, you can’t simply ‘remodeled’.  It takes a long time to know how to cater the needs of customers. It’s not simply as a ‘place to hangout’. It’s business!  So as hosteling is not mature in India yet, you pay at premium, but you receive less service in return. For example, no elevator (and no porter), no room service, no furniture inside the room, AC not working, toilet cannot be flushed etc. When you have a problem, suddenly hostel staff ‘changed’ to ‘Oh this is India, what can we do?’ attitude while a few hours ago they were still acting like they were the coolest and smartest people in the world. Well, basically my impression was, your individual need as a customer is not as important as their ‘hostel project’ and the ‘new hostel trend in India’.

Should You Rather Stay in a Hotel?

Since I’m already talking about hotel, let me do a comparison on hotel too. In New Delhi, or in India in general, your accommodation option will most likely be hotel. Why? Because it’s cheap! When my family travels as 4, we pay around $33 for a decent quadruple room. So if you are 2, it pretty means you don’t have to stay in a hostel.

Why you should stay in a hotel:

It’s dirt cheap. A basic double room in New Delhi can be 800INR only (that’s like $12 for 2 persons). On the internet you’d see the prices are inflated a bit and that’s because they have to pay whichever portals that you use commission. But the difference won’t be huge, don’t worry! Once you are comfortable with India, you can move in to another place.  In cheaper cities, like Dharamsala it can be as cheap as 500 INR. Sometimes it’s unbelievably cheap! And hotels are high in supply, so you can keep your travel schedule super flexible!

If you are 2, that means instead of paying $13 + $13 for a dorm bed, you can stay somewhere for $26!

Why you shouldn’t stay in a hotel:

Things are not so safe in budget hotel. And where those cheap hotels are, the neighborhood is a mess! And it can be scary for young female traveller to stay in cheap hotel… I did it once when i was younger in a cheap hotel listed on LP in Paharganj (near the railway station in New Delhi). I think it probably has higher risk than couchsurfing for female solo traveler…. if you are completely on your own. And apparently this is a new situation to me this time to feel more alerted. I hope I’d be okay though!

So, should you pay $26 for 2 in a messy area, or $13 +$13 for a dorm-bed in a nice area? It’s your choice!