What Is The Difference Between Hotels, Hostels, Guest Houses and Apartments

Hotels

Establishments that provide their guests with paid accommodation and other amenities and guest services like maid service, fitness centre, recreational areas, in-house bar and restaurant etc. Depending upon their location, facilities, price and services, hotels are rated from one to five stars, or letter grading from ‘A’ to ‘F’, or they are rated using other rating schemes to categorize them. In most cases Hotels are more luxurious of all the other accommodations and, therefore, more expensive.

Hostels

Hostels are more often associated with backpackers and younger travellers looking for inexpensive, temporary shelter as well as a place for a shower and a meal. Hostels are more likely to provide a shared room. The luxurious facilities of a hotel is usually absent in a Hostel. While staying in a dormitory room with fellow travellers gives you an opportunity to make new friends and get firsthand advice on what to do and where to go, many hostels now a days have private rooms which are surprisingly modern, comfortable and budget friendly.

Guest Houses

A guest house is basically a house that has all the amenities and services comparable to a hotel but as the name suggests it’s like living as a guest in someone else’s house. Guest houses are generally managed by the owner of the house along with a team of trained staff. They tend to be cozier and one has the opportunity to get accustomed to the indigenous culture, food and locality. The most important perk of staying in a guesthouse is the feeling of spaciousness as the person feels like living in one big house rather than a single room. It gives a feeling of staying in a home away from home. Guesthouses tend to be cheaper as compared to comparative hotels. Thus, a Guesthouse provides a perfect blend of a homely environment with the facilities of a star hotel at a much lower price, making it a perfect choice for travellers looking for a longer stay away from home.

Apartments

For travelers looking for an accommodation that offers more independence, renting an apartment is the best option. Being low on cost as compared to many other types of accommodation and providing many perks like a kitchen, a private living space and a local home base to allow one to truly live like a local in a foreign city, apartments on rent have become quite popular these days. One can rent a shared accommodation, where you rent a room in someone’s house but have full access to the common areas like a paying guest; or a private apartment where one takes possession of the apartment for the duration of his stay. Apartment also known as flat (British) is a self-contained accommodation unit in a building that may have many such units.