Find a place to stay... hostels

[xuechengfeng]

Is it best to just book the hostels online from the comfort of my home half-way across the world, or is it possible to get more of a discount if you get to your destination and find a couple places where you can bargain? It seems like it's 15 bucks max, even in expensive places like HK, so I guess I shouldn't be too cheap, but I am on a budget.

[Senzhi]

I'll answer part of your question with a little true story:

I live accross from the Golden Gulf Hotel in Shantou.

In the past year this hotel has never been half booked ... every night I can see from my living room about three or four rooms booked.

Once I tried to book a room there due to a 24-hour electricity shortcut in my apartment (it's uncomfortably hot without airco ... and I also missed this site too much without internet )

The staff at the hotel claimed they were fully booked and only had their suite available.

But I can tell you ... you always see more staff than clientele there.

So be prepared to double standards: one for Chinese and one for foreigners. No matter how you book, they might always find a reason to push the price up.

[simonlaing]

I think it depends on the hotel and the location.

If you can call and speak in english to reserve the room as ask what their lowest price is they can give you a room.

If you show up , chances are that room will be booked up already and only more expensive rooms. This happenned to me once or twice when I wasn't clear I wanted to reserve the room for that night etc..

Then again I was traveling with two HK students and who got a discount on a hotel because they bargained, and didn't mind a room with a window of a wall. (Literally you pulled the curtains and got glass with brick. )

I find using the rough guide or lonely planet can give you the numbers. Some of the places the hostel cluster together which is nicer so you can price shop. As always try and arrive early to arrange the housing.

International hosteling will have places in the bigger cities and bigger tourist places. I would be careful about using Chinese sites. I

was in a hostel in Yunan and we had what we call the "hello" toilets. Basically mens and women's toilets, chinese hole toilets but with door less stalls. So as you're doing your business people would come in and realize you're a foreigner say hello. I have to say though we found stairs to the roof and got drunk watching Spring fesitval fireworks on the top of the flat roof with a Japanese guy who could speak english or CHinese. Great memory.

Have fun,

Simon:)

[Sarah_chen]

make a reservation, big agency like Ctrip always got lower price than what you got.once i was in inner mongolia, i booked hotel rooms through telephone and when i got the hotel, i find the room price is more expensive than i booked. so i think to find a reliable agency is important, some small agencies are always not accountable.so be careful

[Dani_man]

One time I tried to book a room in KaiFeng. There you have only one (!) hotel that suites foreigners' standard (even the rickshaw drivers said that).

I called them (twice) and they kept on saying that the dorms room of 50RMB are booked out, and only the double room is available.

I couldn't believe that, so trying my luck I went there directly , and surprisingly there was a dorm. And guess what - I stayed alone in a double room!

My suggestion, in the peak season, it's not recommended to try your luck, you can really find yourself in a yucky hostel. In normal time, it's better to go straight to the hostel (after making sure that on the phone they do have free rooms ).

But - One day a hostel in Qingdao was sure that there are no rooms. After checking in the internet - Voile! brand new rooms free to rent. but - of course - priced out (it was in the summer vacation). So, mind the hostels with the internet booking systems too! they like to do that trick.

I would be careful about using Chinese sites.

Me too, it's all advertisement. But some places really don't have any hostels on western wesites (BeiDaiHe), so it did help me. They have a kind of "touristic website" - a collection of all the sites and hotels in the area (sometimes in english version), very helpful.

As a rule, first try the western hostel booking websites, read the reviews (and write them too after your staying), and then make the phone calls to the hostel. If you see that the hostel phone number is hidden from you (unless you book the hostel), just google it and you'll find it in a jiffy.

Hope that helps