Where to Open a Hostel
From Hostel Wiki
This page contains community-contributed ideas about places to start new hostels. Many of these ideas come from the hostel forum:
These are not necessarily good places to open a hostel, but this list is intended to be a starting point for people who are researching places to open new hostels.
Contents |
North America
Canada
- Windsor, Ontario
- Calgary, Alberta
USA
- Arizona
- Sedona - there are no hostels in this tourist destination between the Grand Canyon and Phoenix
- Phoenix - large city with only one hostel
- Tucson - large city with only one hostel
- California
- Big Sur, California
- Santa Barbara (currently only one hostel)
- Anywhere along the coast -- California State Route 1: "It is famous for running by some of the most beautiful coastlines in the world"
- Berkeley - near San Francisco, with a University of California at Berkeley. There are no hostels here that offer dorm beds.
- Connecticut - easy stopover between Boston and New York City
- Florida
- Georgia
- Atlanta - this city has the world's busiest airport, but only one hostel
- Hawaii
- a well-run hostel could do well anywhere in Hawaii
- Iowa
- Des Moines
- Kansas
- Kansas City
- Louisiana
- New Orleans
- Baton Rouge
- Maine
- Portland, Maine - there are no hostels in the largest city in the State of Maine. There is a large university in Portland. There are probably many towns in Maine where a hostel could do well. It's a very popular summer tourist destination.
- Massachusetts
- Amherst or Northampton, Massachusetts
- Boston needs hostels
- Michigan
- Detroit
- Mississippi - hotbed of American culture, especially music
- Nebraska
- Omaha
- Nevada
- Las Vegas - still opportunity here
- Ohio
- Columbus
- Cincinnati
- Pennsylvania
- Pittsburgh
- Rhode Island
- Providence - the capital city of Rhode Island is close to Boston
- Tennessee
- Memphis
- Nashville
- Texas
- Dallas - there are only two or three hostels in the 4th largest city in the USA
- Utah - spectacular national parks with many tourists, but very few hostels
- Wisconsin
- Milwaukee
- Wyoming - spectacular wilderness, but few hostels
- Yellowstone National Park
- Grand Teton National Park
Europe
The Mediterranean is apparently highly seasonal.
Croatia
- the coast
- Dubrovnik
- Brac
- Korcula
- Hvar
Montenegro
- There is only one hostel in Montenegro, and it's apparently closing
Italy
- Milano
- Torino
- Padua
- Pisa (?)
- Bologna
- Ravenna
- Verona
England
- Leeds
- Sheffield
- Lincoln
- Ludlow
- Norwich
- Shrewsbury
Ireland
- Waterford
France
- Bordeaux
- Toulouse
- Lille
- Lyon
- Paris
Greece
Impossible I am afraid. A 1993 law says that hostels are facilities for young people run by federations that are non-commercial.
Asia
Taiwan
Taiwan still has an underdeveloped hostel industry. It is a top-notch travel destination, but many of the hostels on the island are HI hostels that are not marketed through regular backpacker channels. The HI hostels seem to focus more on "youth" travel, with names like "Youth Activity Center".
China
- Qingdao - "Qingdao is very different feel and does have more of a coastal European feel to it...I also there is a great opportunity for anyone wanting to open a hostel here because there is only one in this big city." (from a traveler's blog)
India
- Mumbai
- Banglore
Africa
- Morocco
- Tunisia
- Egypt
- South Africa
Australia & New Zealand
- Add ideas here
South Pacific
New Caledonia
- Nouméa
Central and South America
- Add ideas here
Caribbean
- Add ideas here

