The Portuguese city of Lisbon once again proved to be the jewel in the crown for global budget-conscious travellers with an impressive number of five hostels securing top spots at the 11th Annual Hostel Awards.
The annual Hostel Awards (formerly HOSCARS), organised by leading budget travel website Hostelworld.com, is the biggest trade event in the budget travel industry. Attended by hostel owners, managers and staff from around the globe, the Hostel Awards honours the world’s top hostels, as voted for by Hostelworld.com customers.
Irish TV presenter Craig Doyle hosted the awards ceremony last night at a gala ceremony at the Dublin Convention Centre on the River Liffey with a record-setting audience of over 400 representatives from 44 countries.
The Hostel Awards is the only awards in the travel industry decided exclusively by guest reviews - a crucial differentiator in light of recent news questioning the integrity of online customer reviews on other travel websites. Over 1 million Hostelworld.com customers who booked their accommodation online and stayed in the properties in 2012 voted for their favourite properties and the winners were chosen based on their overall score in six categories - fun, cleanliness, staff, security, location and character. Other awards are given out in categories such as ‘Best New Hostel’ and ‘Best Alternative Hostel.
Hostelworld.com's CEO, Feargal Mooney, commented on this year's awards:
"The Hostelworld.com Hostel Awards ceremony has long been the most-anticipated event on the budget travel calendar. We pride ourselves on the fact that these awards are based only on reviews and ratings of those guests who have actually booked and stayed in the accommodation – it’s the only way to ensure a true reflection of a property's strengths and weaknesses. Congratulations to all of this year’s winners."
*For the full list of winners please visit www.hostelworld.com/Hoscars-2013
Top 10 Worldwide Hostels
1 Yes! Lisbon Hostel Lisbon
2 Home Hostel Lisbon
3 Travellers House Lisbon
4 Living Lounge Hostel Lisbon
5 Hostel One Paralelo Barcelona
6 Vagabonds Belfast
7 Cocomama Amsterdam
8 Hostel Riad Marrakech Rouge Marrakech
9 The Garden Backpacker Seville
10 Ostello Bello Milan
Best Small Hostels Worldwide (maximum 50 beds)
1 Hostel One Paralelo Barcelona
2 Vagabonds Belfast
3 Cocomama Amsterdam
4 Charles Bridge Economic Hostel Prague
5 Hostel One Sants Barcelona
6 El Viajero Cartagena Hostel Cartagena
7 Greg & Tom Party Hostel Krakow
8 Lisboa Central Hostel Lisbon
9 Florentine Backpackers Hostel Tel Aviv
10 Our Melting Pot Manila
Best Medium Hostels Worldwide (51-100 beds)
1 Home Hostel Lisbon
2 Travellers House Lisbon
3 Living Lounge Hostel Lisbon
4 Hostel Riad Marrakech Rouge Marrakech
5 The Garden Backpacker Seville
6 Ostello Bello Milan
7 Montreal Central Montreal
8 Grand Hostel Berlin Berlin
9 Global Village Belfast
10 Sant Jordi Alberg Barcelona
Best Large Hostels Worldwide (101-250 beds)
1 Yes! Lisbon Hostel Lisbon
2 Wombats City Hostel Vienna - The Lounge Vienna
3 YHA London Oxford Street London
4 Circus Hostel Berlin
5 City BackPackers Hostel Stockholm
6 Barnacles Temple Bar House Dublin
7 USA Hostels San Francisco San Francisco
8 Abraham Hostel Jerusalem Jerusalem
9 Bounce Sydney Sydney
10 Sleepzone Galway
Best Extra Large Hostels Worldwide (minimum 251 beds)
1 Castle Rock Hostel Edinburgh
2 Nomads Queenstown Queenstown
3 Wombats City Hostel Vienna - at the Naschmarkt Vienna
4 YHA Wellington City Wellington
5 SameSun Backpacker Lodge - Vancouver Vancouver
6 YHA London Central London
7 Chicago Getaway Hostel Chicago
8 Hostelling International New York New York
9 H.I. Chicago Hostel Chicago
10 Adelaide Hostel and Hotel Adelaide
Top Hostel Chains
1 USA Hostels
2 Sant Jordi
3 Wombats
Special Contribution Award – Roma Scout Center, Rome, Italy
About Hostelworld.com
The global market leader for over 13 years, Hostelworld.com is the leading provider of online reservations to the budget, independent and youth travel market and has been voted the most trusted hostel booking site in 2012 (1). It offers confirmed online reservations for over 30,000 hostels, B&B’s and budget hotels in 180 countries worldwide and is the only hostel booking site to offer a service guarantee. The site also offers budget travellers over 3.5 million guest reviews, award-winning travel videos & podcasts, free customised city guides, a travel social network and more. Hostelworld.com is headquartered in Dublin and is fully owned and operated by Web Reservations International Ltd (WRI). Start planning your next adventure at www.hostelworld.com
The global study from Hostelworld.com and Lonely Planet questioned over 5000 people in 141 countries.
