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Jacobs Inn

Hostel Tips & Tricks

hostel tips & tricks ! according to dermo and others !

These are some general rules and advice for staying in a hostel or backpackers, we all want our Hostel experience to be enjoyable and stress free…so these are some quick Hostel tips & tricks in order to keep both you and the staff at the hostel on sweet terms..

A note on us; All of us here have been working the desk of some of Dublin’s busiest tourist hostels for too many years to mention . Me, I have also stayed in hostels around the world so I hope I can give you some good pointers on how to maximize your stay from both sides !

tip # 1: book the right date!

There is nothing worse than seeing the face of a person arriving at the desk with the sudden realisation, after we tell them that they have reserved the wrong date!. Pay attention, seeing someone’s face drop to the floor is not a pretty sight! For example one of the most common errors is reserving the day you have made the reservation rather than the actual date you want to stay..uhoo spaghettiooo L. We do our utmost to accommodate all these kinds of problems so don’t worry most staff don’t want to see you go homeless for the night.!

tip #2 : be nice!

Being polite and being nice, saying your please and thank you’s believe it or not go a very very long way!. The respect factor ups about 50 points if they appreciate your time as precious and vice versa.

tip #3 : ask questions! (or read our blog !!)

Local knowledge is key to any enjoyable stay, the whole purpose of our job at the desk is not only to check you in but to be your very own personal tourist guide! For the most part we know the cheapest best and easiest way to get to places, what’s on in the city and where the best venues and gigs are. Of course we do love the good old classics, like how do I get to the airport! Which we incidentally get asked approximately 300 times a day…and believe it or not, yes we do know how to get to the airport! Although I have to admit I like mixing it up a bit and giving people long directions to the bus stop that is 5 seconds away..in the end I tell them it’s at the end of the street..don’t fret, we are not that cruel!

tip #4 : respect fellow travellers.

Being in a dorm room with 10 or sometimes more people can get a bit out of control , but if everyone sticks to their space and tries to keep the noise down at night makes for a good atmosphere. My advice is try to get to know your fellow roommates, you may even end up going out that night and having a life long friend!. In my case that’s exactly what happened! Phil! You saved my life!…:)

tip #5 label your food!

Putting a label on the good old grub keeps the housekeepers away and also the local food nabbers! They assume otherwise someone has just left it there and will not hesitate to add that extra key ingredient that you may have to their spag Bol! Keep it tidy..keep it dated!

tip #6 have fun!

Go out on the town, try to immerse yourself in not only the touristic things but also the local spots. The locals know the very best spots and if you ever come back to your destination, you may even have a place to stay! Imagine that! Snuggles all round!

tip #7: take advantage of the free stuff!

Free Breakfast, free walking tours, free Wi-fi, free museums…if something doesn’t involve some monetary transaction, why not take advantage of it. The best way to stick to your budget is not to pay…simple rules! But I live by them and I can say I’ve had some amazing trips on a dime!

tip #8: get social within the common areas!

See that thing called your phone or Laptop..unless you are booking a flight or calling mom to say hi, close them, shut them off and talk with your fellow travellers. I see it all the time people in a foreign country online and supposedly having the best time ever…online! And not moving from the couch. Get out enjoy the sights and only use the gadgets as a necessity! Better yet talk to the guy or girl next to you, like the dorm it can evolve to some of the best friendships ever..that or the worst but at least you tried!

tip # 9: reserve early

The sooner you know your expected date book it! For some reason we here at Jacobs and Isaacs are just so darn popular these days that without fail we are booked up every weekend.. I put it down the great staff and facilities but I may be slightly biased on this front!

tip #10: come back!

My motto is places don’t go anywhere, people do so try not to cram everything into the one trip, always leave something unfinished so that if you do ever come back, you have something new and interesting to do. I’ve lived in Dublin for 8 years and I still haven’t seen everything or every pub…although I have tried, tried so hard! We have the best bars in the world and as you can imagine there are over 1000 within the city limits of Dublin alone…imagine that for a pub Crawl!

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