The top awards in the four worldwide categories were taken by hostels from European destinations: Soul Kitchen in St. Petersburg, Home Lisbon Hostel in Lisbon, Tattva Design Hostel in Porto, and Wombats City Hostel Budapest in Budapest.
An outstanding 79% of the Hostelworld Hoscars were awarded to hostels in European destinations, highlighting the continent at the heart of the budget travel industry.
The top awards in the four worldwide categories were taken by hostels from European destinations: Soul Kitchen in St. Petersburg, Home Lisbon Hostel in Lisbon, Tattva Design Hostel in Porto, and Wombats City Hostel Budapest in Budapest.
Previous worldwide winner, Yes! Lisbon, took home their 5th consecutive award from the Hoscars this year as 2nd Best Large Hostel Worldwide. Other hostels featuring in the top 10 of the core categories spanned across Europe, USA, Asia, South America and Oceania.
The Hoscars, organised by leading budget travel website Hostelworld.com, is the biggest trade event in the budget travel industry. Now in its 12th year, the awards honour the world’s top hostels, as voted for by Hostelworld.com customers. This year, a total of 264 Hoscars were awarded to winners and nominees around the globe.
The Hoscars is the only awards in the travel industry decided exclusively by guest reviews. Over 1 million Hostelworld.com customers who booked their accommodation online and stayed in the properties in 2013 voted for their favourite properties. The winners were chosen based on their overall score in seven categories – atmosphere, cleanliness, facilities, location, security, character and value for money. Other awards are given out in categories such as ‘Best Green Hostel’ (Environmentally-Friendly), ‘Best New Hostel to Hostelworld.com’, and ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’.
Hostelworld.com‘s CEO, Feargal Mooney, commented on this year’s awards: “The annual Hoscars have always been the most eagerly anticipated event on the budget travel calendar. We take great pride that these awards are based solely on the reviews and ratings of guests who have booked, stayed and experienced the hostel– it’s the only fair way to ensure a true and accurate reflection of the properties’ strengths and weaknesses. We would like to extend our congratulations to everyone involved and direct special congratulations to the European entrants, who have enjoyed a particularly successful year.”
The global study from Hostelworld.com questioned over 10,000 people in 141 countries.
Best Small Hostels Worldwide (maximum 50 beds)
| 1 | Soul Kitchen | St Petersburg |
| 2 | Budapest Bubble | Budapest |
| 3 | Adventure Queenstown Hostel | Queenstown |
| 4 | Hostel One Paralelo | Barcelona |
| 5 | Mosquito Hostel | Krakow |
| 6 | The MadHouse Prague | Prague |
| 7 | Lisboa Central Hostel | Lisbon |
| 8 | Lavender Circus Hostel, Doubles & Ensuites | Budapest |
| 9 | Lisbon Lounge Hostel | Lisbon |
| 10 | Barcelona Central Garden | Barcelona |
Best Medium Hostels Worldwide (51-100 beds)
| 1 | Home Lisbon Hostel | Lisbon |
| 2 | Travellers House | Lisbon |
| 3 | Yes! Porto Hostel | Porto |
| 4 | Goodmorning Lisbon Hostel | Lisbon |
| 5 | Living Lounge Hostel | Lisbon |
| 6 | Lisbon Destination Hostel | Lisbon |
| 7 | Ostello Bello | Milan |
| 8 | The Riverhouse Backpackers | Cardiff |
| 9 | Goodnight Lisbon Hostel | Lisbon |
| 10 | The Naughty Squirrel Backpackers Hostel | Riga |
Best Large Hostels Worldwide (101-250 beds)
| 1 | Tattva Design Hostel | Porto |
| 2 | Yes! Lisbon Hostel | Lisbon |
| 3 | M Montreal | Montreal |
| 4 | The Cat’s Pajamas Hostel | Berlin |
| 5 | Backpackers Villa Sonnenhof (Hostel Interlaken) | Interlaken |
| 6 | Kinlay Eyre Square Hostel | Galway |
| 7 | Circus Hostel | Berlin |
| 8 | Dream House Hostel | Kiev |
| 9 | LoLHostel Siracusa | Syracuse |
| 10 | The Siem Reap Hostel | Siem Reap |
Best Extra Large Hostels Worldwide (101-250 beds)
| 1 | Wombats City Hostel Budapest | Budapest |
| 2 | Hostelling International Boston – Chinatown | Boston |
| 3 | PLUS Berlin | Berlin |
| 4 | Wombats City Hostel Vienna – at the Naschmarkt | Vienna |
| 5 | Abraham Hostel Jerusalem | Jerusalem |
| 6 | Castle Rock Hostel | Edinburgh |
| 7 | Wombats City Hostel Munich | Munich |
| 8 | Wombats City Hostel Berlin | Berlin |
| 9 | Chicago Getaway Hostel | Chicago |
| 10 | H.I. Chicago Hostel | Chicago |
Other Award Winners Worldwide
| New to Hostelworld | MEININGER Brussels City Center | Brussels |
| Lifetime Achievement Award | Home Lisbon Hostel | Lisbon |
| Most Improved | Ostello Tramonti | Cinque Terre |
| Best Green Hostel | Twentytu Hi-Tech Hostel | Barcelona |
| Special Contribution | INOUT Hostel | Barcelona |
Photo caption: Soul Kitchen in St. Petersburg.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
