• Print
• E-mail
• Add to My Trips

For young cost-conscious travelers worldwide, hostels are as much a staple as fold-up maps and books of foreign phrases. They date to 1909, when German schoolteacher Richard Schirrmann arranged for his students to stay in barns and empty schoolhouses in the German countryside to broaden their horizons.

Reader Ruth Kramer Ziony of Los Feliz emails: "I am a 64 year old, single, white, female and I have had wonderful experiences staying at hostels from Moscow to Istanbul! I was somewhat taken aback by...

(Follow the link for the rest of the story and to post your own.)

Now Hostelling International, the organization Schirrmann founded, is nearing its 100th anniversary with more than 4,000 hostels in 89 countries. But hostels are more than cheap, convenient places to stay. You'll find them in some interesting and unusual buildings -- castles, Buddhist temples or former prisons. Here, some unusual hostels in the HI network:

UNITED STATES

POINT MONTARA LIGHTHOUSE

Montara, California; (650) 728-7177, www.hostelbooking.com/dba/hostel060087.en.htm.

Details: 50 beds; single-sex dorms; kitchen, meals available; Internet access.

Wow factor: Lighthouses are often seen as fortresses of solitude -- not when they're hostels, though. Established in 1875 as a fog signal station and still in operation today, Point Montara now houses a 50-bed hostel. Guests stay in converted Coast Guard quarters on lighthouse grounds. Perched on a bluff overlooking the Pacific Ocean, Point Montara offers views and access to tide pools teeming with sea life.

UNITED KINGDOM

ST. BRIAVEL'S CASTLE YOUTH HOSTEL

Lydney, England; 011-44-1594-530-272, www.hihostels.com/dba/hostel018062.en.htm.

Details: 46 beds; meals available; close to bus stop, train station.

Wow factor: Moat? Check. Drawbridge? Check. You'll find the real deal at Briavel's Castle hostel, which dates to the 13th century, when it was a hunting lodge for King John. The rooms have a Gothic charm and in August, the hostel celebrates with medieval banquets.

EUROPE

ALTENA YOUTH HOSTEL

Altena, Germany; 011-49-2352-23522, www.hihostels.com/dba/hostel022064.en.htm.

Details: 60 beds, meals available. Close to train and bus transport.

Wow factor: Opened by Schirrmann in 1912, Altena is said to be the world's first youth hostel, and it's housed in a 12th century castle. Highlights: Some original rooms are on display, views of the city, and there is a castle museum.

COLDITZ YOUTH HOSTEL

Colditz, Germany; 011-49-34381-45010, www.hihostels.com/dba/hostel022641.en.htm.

Details: 161 beds; open 24 hours; breakfast included in price; meals available; close to bus station.

Wow factor: The nearly 1,000-year-old German castle was built as a hunting lodge for the king of Saxony in the 11th century, destroyed in the 15th century, turned into a mental hospital in the 19th and served as a camp for prisoners during WWII. Some prominent people -- the nephews of Winston Churchill and King George VI -- were held there.

PETER PAN YOUTH HOSTEL

Pomezia, Italy; 011-39-06-9190-0051; www.hostelbooking.com/dba/hostel031142.en.htm.

Details: Eight beds; kitchen; sailing year-round, weather and sea conditions permitting. Book early.

Wow factor: If you've ever felt a little sedentary on your travels, perhaps a stay at the Peter Pan sailing hostel will put some wind in your sails. Affiliated with Univelica, an Italian sailing school, the Peter Pan is the world's first sailing hostel. Guests aboard the Peter Pan enjoy views of the Tyrrhenian Sea as the ship's crew traverses the waters off Italy's western coast. For land lovers, the ship makes several stops along its voyage.

• • Terms of Service
  • Privacy Policy
  • Baltimore Sun
  • Chicago Tribune
  • Daily Press
  • Hartford Courant
  • LA Times
  • Orlando Sentinel
  • Sun Sentinel
  • The Morning Call
  • The Virginia Gazette

• Los Angeles Times, 202 West 1st Street, Los Angeles, California, 90012 | Copyright 2009