Now you can check out our blog and make bookings from anywhere you have your phone!

Just log on to hostelsclubblog.com from your mobile phone and you will have access to all our articles and be able to book a hostel directly from your phone in our new mobile optimised version of the site!

Now you can always stay up to date with the latest travel news and travel tips from HostelsClub while on the move whenever and wherever you are!

HostelsClub promised to give a free iPad to the lucky Facebook fan for those that added our fan page to their favorites by June 1^st, 2010. All fans were eligible whether they liked us prior to this giveaway or not, but one fan in particular won the new iPad. The winner chosen is Hanson Cheng from Virginia, USA!! A Chinese-American college grad that loves to travel and enjoys the latest gadgets, Hanson was very surprised to see he finally won something!

He graduated back in 2004 where his first solo travels began in Puerto Rico and since then he has traveled to the Caribbean and all over the US. He believes that traveling within the States is great because the country itself is so varied with having all terrains, from snow-capped mountains to desert areas in Las Vegas to tropical zones in South Beach, Miami, for example. Hanson will use the iPad to surf the net for his future travels and to research more exotic destinations in the future. It will also serve as a backup for his pictures while traveling and as a GPS once he downloads all the apps.

Congratulations Hanson!

Enjoy the iPad and we look forward to our next giveaway!

The Toilet Tax!

Ryanair has recently announced that it plans to make the toilets on its flights coin-operated and charge passengers a euro to spend a penny. They also plan to have only one toilet per plane, allowing them to fit in extra seats and make more money per flight.  This will be done, of course, to make prices cheaper for everybody!

The toilet tax seems a pretty unfair idea, especially since Ryanair already charges over the odds for drinks on the planes.  It also strikes me a very difficult charge to enforce. Does Ryanair expect its hostesses to stand by the toilet making sure than people don’t share or hold the door open for the next passenger in the queue? What happens if the flight is delayed on the runway? Do passengers still have to pay, or does everyone get a free go after a few hours? Will we get a discount if we book it online?

How long is it going to take us to realize that a cheap ticket is only cheap if we don’t have to pay a load of surcharges before we get to our destination?

The pessimist in me thinks that soon we will be charged for breathing on airplanes. The realist thinks that this is an idea that will never actually happen. With the traveler’s motto of “be prepared” in mind however, here are a few suggestions for avoiding Ryan air’s toilet tax.

Go before you fly

Not only will you have to queue up on the plane to use the only toilet if you are caught short, but now passengers face another queue before boarding. Expect the entire passenger list to cram into the nearest airport toilet as soon as their flight is called.

Drink nothing

Airports can expect their revenues to decline as passengers fast as soon as they have checked in. Instead of buying a bottle of water for the flight, people will now make do with some dry crackers.

Practice Those Kegel Exercises

Frequent fliers will soon have the strongest pelvic floor muscles out there as they learn to hold it in until the end of the flight.

Go in groups

Families will try to visit the toilet in groups and spontaneous friendships will be made on planes, as people hold the toilet doors open for each other.

Take a supermarket token

Those handy little tokens that let you use a shopping trolley without needing a coin are going to be worth their weight in gold!

Due to the number of cancelled flights from Iceland’s Volcanic Eruption, HostelsClub will keep a credit on your account for original deposit made if you are unable to get to your hostel due to a disruption in your travel plans. You will then be able to use this credit anytime for a year. See our Volcanic Cloud Refund Policy for more information.

Look on the bright side, you get to extend your trip by another day or two, you can meet other cool travelers at the airport and you’re not alone! Only about another couple hundred thousand people stressing out, but you still have a credit you can use towards your next destination once the cloud clears!

Tell us you’re story! Where you are…Are you stuck in an airport or training it to the next city? Get home safely?

That’s right!! All you have to do is become a fan on HostelsClub’s FB page before May 31, 2010 to become eligible for your VERY OWN iPad!! Everyone is eligible (except HostelsClub staff and their family members), so all fans, current and future, can win!

HostelsClub will pick one lucky winner before the summer starts, so become a facebook fan today!

Travel in Style with your own iPad!

Holland the country known for cheese, wooden clocks, bicycles, lots of water and of course Queens day.

On the 30th of April 2010, Holland will celebrate the birthday of their queen. This day is called Queens Day by the Dutch known as ‘Koninginnedag’. Queens day was originally called Princess day, and was celebrated to highlight the national unit. Originally this was celebrated on the 31st of August, during the days the Dutch celebrated the birthday of their prior queen “Wilhelmina”. Today the Dutch celebrate the birthday of queen “Beatrix” on the 30th of April.

The birthday of the queen is celebrated throughout the whole country, but Amsterdam is definitely the place to be! The whole country is changed into one big orange party field. People come to Amsterdam on bikes and by boats to party. Also queen Beatrix goes to a different city each year, to celebrate her birthday with the countrymen. This year the queen will be in Zeeland!!

Around half a million people come to Holland to celebrate Queens day. Therefore it is seen as one of the biggest events of the year. Every one is dressed in orange. (orange is the color of the Dutch royals). You will find absolutely everything in orange from sweets, drinks, cars, houses and more! The other cool fact about dressing in orange and partying like a rock star is that everyone is allowed to sell their things on the street, so you can be sure to find flea markets everywhere aside from lots of open air parties, snack stands, bands, music performances including a big fun fair.

All the night clubs will have parties for sure!!

So, are you ready to celebrate Queens day in Amsterdam?

Book a hostel in Amsterdam today!

HostelsClub,  in accordance with Hostellling International – Boston Downtown, HI-DC and HI-New York hostels, are proud to announce that Ellen Yoshie Sudo Lutif won the 2010 USA Winter Special Free Accommodation Giveaway!!

We appreciate her choosing HostelsClub.com when organizing her trips and as a way to say thank you, HostelsClub.com and Hostelling International – Boston Downtown are going to give her a free stay for up to two weeks amongst the three top American East Coast cities: New York City, Washington, D.C. and Boston for up to two people in the dorm style bedrooms at those Hostelling International locations!!

HostelsClub wishes Ellen happy and safe travels!

Find out how to win and take advantage of more HostelsClub specials!

Check out The Hostel Life! It’s a new web based travel show about hosteling. The host Medhy is travelling around the world on a limited budget, and reporting it all on his website. The coolest thing is you get a say in where he goes to next.

You can check out his site to see the latest episodes and get some first hand fresh intel on places you want to visit, then participate in deciding his next destination.

Informative and entertaining!

This year for the first time, Hostelsclub.com attended the Vakantiebeurs Travel Fair in Amsterdam, Holland for the week of January 12-17th. In total, more than 117,000 people visited the Holiday Fair!
During the Amsterdam fair, many visitors and future travelers were given tons of options on where to go next, but on top of that HostelsClub.com was giving away free weekend accommodation for two in Venice!! And 6 people were the winners!

Congratulations to:

Will Katema
Badreddine el Mobarie
J. Nieuwenhuis
Lenny Poldervaart
Marco Haas
Layla Sala

They all won 2 free nights for 2 people in a lovely two star hotel in Venice, located just behind the famous San Marco Square!! And they won by just participating in a fun game at our booth!

Be sure to stay alert of the next travel fair HostelsClub.com will be attending so you too can win a chance at getting a free vacation package or other free giveaways!!

HostelsClub will be attending the ITB in Berlin on March 13-14th so be sure to pass by!!

HostelsClub.com is launching their American Winter Sale over the next six weeks. Clients from all over the world can participate in the generous discounts many American-based hostels are giving in order to give travellers a break from their recent holiday expenses.

This winter sale includes discounts such as 50% off in centrally located hostels in Manhattan to free nights in Fort Lauderdale to the chance to win two free week’s stay between NYC, Boston and Washington, D.C. There has been an increase in domestic travel inside the States and HostelsClub is well aware of travellers maintaining their passion for travel yet grudgingly having to decrease their travel allowances. While normal winter activities such as snowboarding and skiing weigh heavily on the pocket, saving on accommodations is definitely a move in the right direction to allow for expenses to be shelled out on the finer things such wine, grub and fun!

Here are a couple good sites for free things to do in the following cities:

Washington, D.C. - Top 100 Free & Almost Free Things to Do

Boston – Top 25 Free Things to Do

San Diego – Top 10 Free Things to Do

New York – Free Things to See & Do

Enjoy the Rest of the Winter season and take advantage of HostelClub’s Sale or visit www.hostelsclub.com for other promotions!