Booking.com or Hostelworld: Which Should You Use for Your Next Budget Trip?

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How to Choose Between Hostelworld, Booking.com, or Going Direct

When planning a budget trip, many travellers find themselves torn between Booking.com or Hostelworld. These platforms are among the most popular for finding hostel stays, but which one is right for you? While your choice won’t make or break your trip, it can save you a bit of money—and maybe some unnecessary headaches.

When I first started travelling, I didn’t think much about how I booked my accommodations. I just picked whatever fit my budget and looked good (on paper… and oh my, what a difference a bit of Photoshop, or years of wear and tear, can make!). But after years of staying in hostels and seeing how wildly different people’s expectations can be, I’ve realised that I’ve been missing some key aspects. Some travelers rave about their hostel stay and the experience, while others leave horrified reviews—often for reasons that might not bother you at all.

Most of the time, I stick to Hostelworld or Booking.com because of their convenience and range of options. But there’s a third option that’s often overlooked: booking directly with the hostel or hotel. This can sometimes save you money, but it also requires a bit more effort and planning ahead.

In this post, I’ll break down the pros and cons of all three options: Hostelworld vs. Booking.com, and going direct. Whether you’re looking for a social hostel vibe, hunting for the best hostel booking site, or aiming to support small businesses directly, I’ll help you decide which method works best for your travel style. 

Let’s dive in!

Why Hostelworld Is the Best Hostel Website for Social Travelers

Hostelworld focuses on hostel stays (can you imagine, with a name like that!), and you can find over 16,500 places around the world. What makes Hostelworld the best hostel website for solo travellers is the fact that they have a communication platform where you can connect to others going to the same city or hostel. So even if your hostel’s common room is empty, you can still make new friends. You can join the chats up to two weeks before so you can plan well ahead!

Hostelworld also has hotels and B&Bs listed, but the focus is on the hostels.

What I like about Hostelworld is that the hostel reviews are written by people who usually stay in hostels. In that respect I feel like the ratings are more true to what to expect. This is different from Booking.com, where reviewers often bring hotel-like expectations to a hostel experience—like free toiletries or private bathrooms—and rate hostels unfairly.

Now that we’ve covered Hostelworld, let’s look at Booking.com and why it might be a better fit for some travelers.

Why Booking.com Is My Top Pick (Most of the Time)

I confess, Booking.com is the platform I mostly use. Why? One word: Genius (not me, the program). The Genius program is Booking.com’s loyalty system, and it comes with discounts and perks that make it hard to ignore. I’m already at the top level, so I don’t want to waste any of the benefits I’ve earned!

For me, the discounts alone make Booking.com the best hostel booking site for me in many cases. There’s more variety in what you can book too, because let’s face it, Booking pretty much has a monopoly in the hotel world, in Europe at least.

The one downside for finding hostels through Booking.com is that the reviews may come from people unfamiliar with hostel stays. This means that they give lower ratings because the hostel might not have free soap in the bathrooms or daily housekeeping. So whenever I’m booking a hostel through Booking.com I usually check the lowest ratings and see if the problems they’ve had are something I would have a problem with too. Most of the time the 1s or 2s are explained by “had to share a shower” or “no minibar”, so rather high expectations when you pay 15 € per night!

Booking.com vs. Hostelworld: Key Differences You Need to Know

Both Hostelworld and Booking.com are considered some of the best hostel booking sites, but they cater to slightly different audiences. I feel like I fall in between the two: Hostelworld is more for the backpacker looking for a good deal, while Booking serves also hotels and more expensive options.

Why am I both, you might wonder? It’s because while I mostly stay in hostels for my travels, I still occasionally like to clear my head and have some privacy. I’m an introvert, and sometimes spending too much time with people will leave me wanting to strangle someone spend some quality time alone. I tend to choose hostels that are not too party party, but when you’ve shared a shower and a toilet with 8 other people for weeks, it’s just nice to have it all to yourself, you know what I mean?

The main reason I personally use mostly Booking.com is that I like to have options. I don’t like spending too much time reviewing my options (doesn’t mean that I don’t sometimes spend too much time, but I don’t like it) so I feel Booking.com gives me a nice list of everything. Occasionally, apartments are more affordable than hostel dormitories, and in some destinations, hostel options might be limited (say when you travel to Lapland for example).

Comparing Prices: Hostelworld vs. Booking.com

So when should you book through Hostelworld and when via Booking.com? Are the prices different between the two?

It’s not necessarily easy to compare prices between Hostelworld and Booking.com, because sometimes each of them give random discounts for things like in-app or mobile reservations. Your best bet is to check the exact same dates, and make sure you’re comparing the same room size, too!

From what I know, the accommodation provider has to pay a bigger commission to Booking.com than Hostelworld, so sometimes the prices will be higher in Booking.com – they will then compensate by giving you in-app discounts or your Genius discount.

Here’s a quick example I found while searching for the best price on Tree House Hostel in Riga for a random Monday in January 2025. The room is what I would normally reserve: a 6-bed female dorm.

Platform	Non-refundable	Free cancellation
Booking.com not signed in	24 €	25 €
Booking.com (Genius level 3 discount)	21 €	22 €
Same as above, but on mobile	19 €	20 €
Hostelworld	21,60 €	24 €
Hostelworld with 5% discount (I don’t know why it gives me that!)	20,52 €	22,80 €

So as you can see, you can save some cents here and there, by being wise where you book. Some travellers think Booking.com is more expensive, but it depends on discounts and promotions.

You do have one more option, though!

When to Book Directly with the Hostel

A third option is to go directly to the hostel. My approach is (and it has only bit me in the ass twice, hooray) to book one night via Booking.com or Hostelworld and then extend my stay if I like the place. But a word of warning: do not try to play this game during the high season! You might be left sleeping under the stars, and not in the beautiful, romantic way.

I’ll be honest—this is my favorite way to save money. Hostels often offer cheaper rates when you book directly through them — this saves them the commission they’d otherwise pay to platforms like Hostelworld or Booking.com.

How to Book Hostels Directly

If you decide to book directly with the hostel, you can do it in many different ways: via their website (if they have one – I’ve found that the cheaper places quite often don’t), by email, phone or WhatsApp for example

Or you can turn up at the door, if you’re feeling adventurous (or travel without a phone or laptop, like an elderly guest I saw at one of the hostels! Mad respect). This option doesn’t work in many places that have turned to a self check-in system with COVID times, so it’s best to check ahead of time to see what their reception working hours are. But just turning up at the door will give you a chance to feel the vibe of the hostel before committing!

If you’re reaching out to hostels directly, remember to include important details like your dates, group size, and preferred room type. Receptionists are busy people, and sending vague messages like “Hi, I’d like to book a room” won’t get you far (am I talking from experience, you might wonder. Yes, yes I am). The staff isn’t going to reply to you personally and list all the options and prices for the next 2 months. Prices can vary even during the week – weekend being more expensive – so have a look at what options the hostel has before you message.

Choosing Accommodations Made Easy: My Insider Tips for Travellers

Unless I have someone trustworthy recommending me a place to stay (like I do for you in this post about my favourite hostels in Riga, hint hint), I’m often faced with too many options. And often, what might work for a friend, will not work for me, as we can be looking for different things for our hostel experience.

If you are stuck on how to choose a hostel, here’s my train of thought when I’m looking for options:

1. I always look for either a capsule place, or a hostel that offers female-only rooms. I’ve found that men usually snore louder, and I feel safer in women-only dorms. Sometimes I choose private rooms, for the you know, privacy.
2. If I’m searching in Booking.com, I will select the rating to be at least 8.0.
3. When I see something I think I might like, I check their latest reviews (you can choose in which order you want to see them). Or if I’m booking waaay in advance (kinda rare, but happens), then I will read reviews for the same place the time of year I’m going. There’s no use reading reviews of how hot the place was in the summer, if you’re going in January.
4. I will also look at the lowest scores to see what people had beef with. If it’s cleanliness or loudness, that’s a big deal for me. If they say the place was too quiet or they didn’t like how you had to leave your shoes at the door, then I most certainly don’t mind.
5. After all this, maybe comparing a place or three, I will go with my gut instinct. 

I wish I had a fool-proof system, but this is the best I’ve come up with so far! Most of the time it’ll lead me in the right direction. If you have better suggestions, please come tell me in my Facebok Group Hostel Life & Travel: 35+!

The Verdict: Which Booking Platform Is Best for You?

So, Booking.com or Hostelworld? Or should you skip them both and go direct? It really depends on your travel style:

• Choose Hostelworld if you’re looking for the best hostel website for social travel, with reviews tailored to backpackers.
• Choose Booking.com if you want variety, loyalty perks, and discounts.
• Book directly with the hostel if you’re confident in your choice and want to save a little extra.

In the end, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. I’ve found that using all three options at different times works best for me.

The key is to know what you’re looking for and to compare prices carefully before hitting that “book now” button!