DID YOU KNOW, that whilst we eagerly wait for the world to reopen, hostels around the globe have been doing extraordinary things?
Despite last year’s challenges, hostels have gone above and beyond to adapt, evolve and ensure you can stay safe and social (even from a distance!). They’ve also been working their magic to help build a better world, by supporting their local communities. #Legends
They cannot wait to welcome you back. Just as much as you can’t wait to grab your backpack, walk down the aisle and jump in your bunk! And so, for this year’s HOSCARs, we are here to CELEBRATE these incredible hostels, that have made their mark on the world in EXTRAORDINARY ways.
Our wise wanderlusting panel have picked the finalists, and now it is down to YOU to cast your vote.
Voting not only helps spread the love and recognise these #HostelHeroes, but it also enters you into our PRIZE DRAW! #WinWin
Voting is now closed.
We know that sociable experiences are at the heart of all great hostels. 2020 made hosting these experiences challenging, with distancing guidelines, masks, and rules that vary from country to country.
The Extraordinary Sociable Experience award will celebrate the hostel that has made the backpacker experience as safe and social as can be.
Yoga sessions and Spanish lessons. Kindness and high spirits a-plenty with these Mayan Monkeys.
Read their storyMixology, Munchies and Mochas! (Okay Espressos). Skill-sharing is caring at YellowSquare.
Read their storyMoonlight cinema and ‘Begadang Buzz’! Community vibes keeping the backpacking spirit alive.
Read their storyExploring homes in caves, cultural exchanges and Sacromonte sunsets. Bliss!
Read their storyGastronomy nights, rooftop fitness and DJ’s livestreaming Colombian electronic beats.
Read their storyCommunity matters more than ever now and hostels have stepped up to the challenge. They've been running volunteering programmes, doing charitable work, and hosting fundraising events.
All finalists have demonstrated the positive impact they've made, but who will win this award?
Opening its doors to fleeing refugees, this hostel became a lifeline in a time of crisis.
Read their storySurviving a violent uprising, a pandemic and Hurricane Etta, they facilitated emergency water for the community.
Read their storyCelebrating Caiçar communities, Hostel da Villa encourages integration and education, empowering and supporting young people.
Read their storyDriving social and community change, by building an outdoor playground and uniting wanderers and locals.
Read their storyPart of the ‘Reinventing Paris’ project, Jo&Joe focus on urban ecology, biodiversity and social exchange.
Read their storyProtecting the planet is on all our minds, and The Extraordinary Sustainable Hostel award recognises a hostel that’s delivering in this area.
The winning hostel will promote, inspire, and encourage its customers and staff to adopt a more responsible and sustainable lifestyle.
Cohort is plastic free, has a carbon-offsetting target of 2,500 trees, and loves toilet twinning!
Read their storyOrganic fruit gardens, upcycled everything, ingenious water irrigation and dorms created from the land.
Read their storyLocals, refugees and backpackers unite! This energy efficient hostel is educating the masses.
Read their storyBased in the world’s oldest desert, Salty Jackal are water conservation and composting champions.
Read their storyRewilding the land one tree at a time, homegrown veggies and herbs, renewable energy, and chickens!
Read their storyThe Extraordinary Inclusive Hostel award will recognise a hostel that has gone to incredible lengths to create an environment where everyone feels included and accepted.
Hostels are known to be welcoming places, but we want to find one that has truly celebrated individuality and diversity.
Flying the LGBTQIA+ flag in South Carolina, Modal is a creative hub and safe-haven for queer travellers.
Read their storyDraper wants to empower your inner entrepreneur! Inclusivity is a core value in this community of go-getters.
Read their storyAt ‘INOUT Hostel everyone fits!’ Championing accessibility and inclusivity, employing 50 team members with disabilities.
Read their storyEmber Hostel celebrates all ethnicities and identities, mirroring the diversity of its city. Representation matters!
Read their storyCelebrating all nationalities, ethnicities and genders, over hearty homemade dinners.
Read their storySimply making it through 2020 is worthy of an award but opening a new hostel during this time deserves a special shout out.
The Extraordinary New Hostel award will celebrate a hostel opening during the year, perhaps one that’s overcome challenges and has an inspiring story to tell.
A backpacker’s paradise. Stay in a ‘Tiny Dream House’, eat green and chill in their urban forest.
Read their storyCombo Milano opened this cool city retreat, boasting a tranquil greenhouse and two majestic courtyards.
Read their storyA little luxury on your travels… Two pools, walk-in changing rooms, and luxurious double-bed bunks.
Read their storyOnce a dentist’s office, this inclusive hostel has been transformed, with in-house art gallery and coffee shop.
Read their storyExpect famous Filipino hospitality, basketball courts, a theatre, swimming pool and SO much more.
Read their storyIf there’s one thing that 2020 has made us all realise, it’s that nothing is guaranteed, and survival often involves quick and creative thinking.
The Extraordinary Innovation award will recognise the hostel that’s innovated most, either by pivoting their business model, launching brand new services, or something totally different.
This converted church is arty, spectacular, and innovatively upcycled. Hallelujah!
Read their storyApocalyptic times calls for futuristic measures! Digital Nomads dance in socially distanced silent discos…
Read their storyCheck out Attic Backpacker’s 360-degree panoramic views and impressive business model pivot too.
Read their storyInnovative eco-warriors, saving the planet one invention at a time.
Read their storyA tale of resilience and passion. Maki Hostel’s innovation and entire hostel transformation!
Read their storyThey are all hostel heroes in our eyes, but this award is extra special. Our panel of judges looked through all the award entries and selected the very best. Which hostel should be crowned our Hostel Hero?
Supporting people and planet, Welcommon offers refugees accommodation and community, all while championing sustainable tourism.
Read their storyA lifeline to Lima’s ‘forgotten communities’, working with volunteers to provide emergency food, housing, and healthcare.
Read their storyAs tourism disappeared, El Rio Hostel worked tirelessly to set up a food bank and provide emergency food parcels.
Read their storyHome to 40 young refugees, JAM gave beds, employment, integration and emotional support too.
Read their storyAcross 21 locations, A&O stepped up during the pandemic, giving society’s most vulnerable a safe place to stay.
Read their storyAaron is a Canadian/American backpacker living in South America. He creates videos bringing awareness to first world countries, on how people live in ... less fortunate environments. He uses donations to directly help families become financially self-sustaining and documents the whole process on his social media channels. Read More
Marta’s passionate about traveling, so much so, that she’s dedicated her studies and career to the travel industry. She works as a specialized Digital... Marketer, partnering with some of the largest travel brands globally in her current role at Google. She cares about sustainability, animal welfare and making the travel trade a more inclusive industry to work in. She has a soft spot for destinations in South-East Asia and her favourite backpacking trips include Thailand and the Philippines. Read More
Pari’s travels have taken her around the world, from trekking in Nepal to backpacking across South America. Based in Sydney, she oversees the strategi... c direction of the World Nomads campaigns, scholarship programs and responsible travel initiatives. She also manages The Footprints Network – a non-profit founded by World Nomads which has raised over $5M for community development projects around the world. Read More
Reis is a TV producer and intuitive medium/healer. Although he frequently moved around as a kid, New Orleans is where he calls home, by way of Illinoi... s. In his free time, Reis navigates the world as a travel influencer while filming his "Where's Reis" series - with hopes of adding a spark of light into the world. Read More
Will has been on the road for thirteen years, travelling to far-flung lands on a budget. Today, he runs several online ventures, including The Broke B... ackpacker - the world’s largest budget travel blog. He is passionate about solving the plastic problem and cleaning up the oceans. Currently, Will is based in Bali where he is building the first Tribal Hostel - a place where broke backpackers, digital nomads and aspiring adventurers from all walks of life can come to find their tribe. Read More
All entries have been reviewed by our panel of judges who have an in-depth understanding of the areas our awards focus on.
The judges have shortlisted 5 hostels for each award, so 35 finalists in total.
Now the finalists have been chosen, it’s up to YOU to vote.
The winning hostels will be based on a combination of the judges’ votes, the publics’ vote and their Hostelworld rating during the relevant time period.