It’s 6:54 AM in the morning of August 14, 2013. I have just got back to my room after a 2-hr poker session. Okay, now don’t tell me that I can’t splurge time this way with just one day left for the launch. After all, maintaining work life balance and having a good time is why I have joined this team. We are sitting on 1156 Facebook followers as I write this, and to our surprise, A LOT of them think that Zostel is going to be an online portal or some smartphone app that would connect travellers with hot chicks and cool chefs and what not. Good job with the teasers I must say, or is it that nobody expects a bunch of business school facchas to start something this ‘’heavy’’, as many call it.

So, to burst these myths and explain our concept to you, I have been asked by Zostel to write a post on what is a ‘super-awesome-cool’ hostel. I would love to go gaga about how great it is, only if it would have paid my advance on time, but now I would just keep it much unbiased, informative and try to wrap it up before the 8AM breakfast.

It’s a fairly simple logic. If you stay in a hotel, you get a room which has a separate washroom, balcony, TV, superthick mattress, minibar, etc. There is laundry, food and other such services on call. It’s a nice pack of offerings but in return they charge a heavy premium for all the investments they do in putting you up in a fancy enclosed room in an empty corridor.

Now this model runs smooth with many, but suppose you are someone who travels just to take a break from the monotony, to experience some adventure, to press that CTRL+ALT+DLT button in your mind before you resume the same old hustle bustle of life. Then? A stay in a hotel would still involve you to pay the price of the TV in the room that you never watched, the rosewood study table that you never sat on, and the insane Mini bar bill because one night you were hungry at 2AM.

Some wise man in the far flung land came up with a solution – how about having bigger rooms, with bunk beds where a lot more people can stay and the overall cost of serving per person reduces. Eureka! Hundreds and thousands of such places started opening up in Australia, New Zealand, USA and Europe. Some call it youth hostels, some backpacker’s hostels while others simply budget hostels. Who would have thought that what was invented as a solution to high prices, would someday achieve a CULT status in terms of the kind of social ambience it provides. It’s a different feeling when you bring down the walls and start sharing your experiences with fellow travellers. People have solved the biggest issues of their life over what started as a casual talk with a stranger. People have found their soul mates while backpacking across these hostels. This is something that no hotel in the world has ever been able to achieve.

Team Zostel has decided to bring this concept to India, and they promise to do it even more effectively. Not because most of them are from IIMs and IITs. Not because they have direct access to more than 30 years of experience in the Hospitality industry. But simply because they are all bloody young travel freaks who want to put an end to these travel stay related problems which they themselves have been facing.

In addition to the bed, a typical hostel also offers other essential services such as a common room (with a variety of games, books, TV/DVD player, evening events), Air-Conditioning, Wi-Fi, Laundry, Community Kitchen, Tour Planning, etc. Different hostels can have a different pricing model for these services, however, at Zostel you can avail all of the above at pretty nominal prices.

Being located in the tourist cities of Rajasthan, you can expect a good mix of Indian as well foreign, Solo as well as Group travellers to chill with.

Trust you guys have got a fair idea of this concept. For further clarity and to know whether they are genuinely a ‘super-awesome-cool’ place to hangout or not, you got to visit Zostel!!

Have a Good day!! {time for some Aloo Paratha}

*for those uninitiated with Didi’s reference, watch this!