Sleeping in a room full of strangers can sometimes be a bit of a challenge. Here are 5 things you can do to make your stay a bit more comfortable, and also to make sure that you are a considerate roomy!
1. Pack a dorm room ‘survival’ kit; eye mask, ear plugs and a torch (flashlight). These will guarantee you a better sleep, and the torch will make sure you don’t need to turn on the lights and disturb your roomies.
2. Always have a pair of thongs (flip-flops) for use in the shower. Believe me, hostel bathrooms can get pretty scungy and you don’t want to end up with athletes foot!
3. If you don’t want to queue for the shower, then try not to shower during peak times like mornings. Take your shower in the late afternoon or at night when most people are out of the hostel and you won’t have to wait.
4. If you are leaving early the next day (and remember that for many backpackers “early” can be any time up until even midday!) be sure to pack the night before. Don’t rustle about disturbing all your room mates trying to organise your bag at 6am! Besides, the room might be dark and you might run the risk of leaving something behind. Just be organised and pack the night before (and not at 1am either!).
5. Finally, don’t be THAT person who comes into the room when everyone is asleep, turns on the lights, rustles through a million plastic bags, thumps around loudly while walking from bed to locker to bathroom to bed, has a loud phone conversation, leaves the room for another hour forgetting to turn the light off on the way out, comes back and turns the light on again and thumps around a bit longer before finally passing out in bed- once again forgetting to turn the light off! Just don’t be that person! And if you are, remember – karma’s a bitch!