Hawaii is commonly known for its affordable accommodation and it provides us with many ways to save money. Hostels in Hawaii are not only intended for backpackers and they can be used by regular travellers. There are a variety of hostels in Oahu. The most popular are backpackers’ hangouts that are often found on the northern shore of the island. In Waikiki and Honolulu, we can often find hostels with private rooms. By staying in hostels, we should be able to save a lot of money during our vacation. If we value privacy and can’t sleep in the same room with strangers, we could easily find private rooms. However, we may still need to share the bathroom and kitchen. However, travellers should know that some items in Hawaii can be more expensive than what they find on the mainland. It is better to purchase local produce and products to make sure that we won’t too much money on something. Other than hostelling, we could also do camping in many areas. This is a great way of building connections with other travellers. In many cases, tents can be rented; but the total cost should be lower than staying in a hostel. Camping grounds should be equipped with same facilities, such as shared bathrooms and laundry area.
At the northern shore of Oahu, we can find many hostels near Haleiwa and Waimea Bay. These friendly hostels are great places for backpackers to stay. There are many options available, such as private rooms, co-ed dorm, beach house studios, cabins and others. They could provide deals, even during peak season. Some hostels allow us to freely use their snorkel gears and boogie boards. There could also be rents for pedal bike and we can participate in the whale watch sail runs. Beds in these hostels can be available until up to $30 per night, which is still quite affordable compared to other hotels in the island. However, cabins and studios can be significantly more expensive, reaching up to $120. Rates may vary depending on low or high season. Meals are available for $7 per person and often it is an all you can eat buffet; so many travellers can have one big meal during the afternoon to save money. Unfortunately, hostels in the northern shore of Oahu may not be bug proof, although they are often well kept and reasonably clean.
There are also hostels that we can find around Honolulu. Hostels in these places are often clean and safe. It is often a good choice, because we can use the more improved infrastructure in the area. If we prefer a cooler and quieter neighbourhood, we could choose hostels around Waikiki. However, we should be aware that during certain periods of the year, there are many college students in the area, so it won’t be as quiet and private as we want. When looking for hotels in Waikiki and Honolulu, we could choose the one that offers, large shared kitchen; laundry room and others.