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The 22 Craziest Party Hostels Around the World

Belize Insider Guides Budget Travel
by Matt Kepnes Dec 4, 2014

I’VE SEARCHED HIGH AND LOW, drank with the best of them, and endured sleepless nights by the toilet to find the best party hostels out there.

Here are 20 that will keep you drinking, dancing, flirting, and hugging the porcelain goddess until the sun comes up:

1. Surf N’ Sun

Location: Gold Coast, Australia.

With a swimming pool and open courtyard, the Surf N’ Sun packs the young, the wild, and the alcoholic.

Bar Crawls take place every night and the hostel offers punch and free club entry. Boxes of goon start flowing late afternoon when people come back from the beach.

2. The Clown and Bard

Location: Prague, Czech Republic

With a 36-person dorm room, this place is always hopping. There’s a bar downstairs with a two-for-three happy hour beginning at 7 PM and a live band filling the air.

Music gets blasting and four deck games of Kings have been known to break out as people forget there’s a city outside the hostel. If you’re in the 36-bed dorm, bring earplugs as this place does not follow any of the hostel sex rules.

3. The Flying Pig

Location: Amsterdam, The Netherlands

With its bar and pillow lounge, the Flying Pig is the spot for those looking to channel their inner Bob Marley. There’s a constant cloud of smoke seeping out into streets at all hours of the day and night. Don’t worry if you run out, there are two coffee shops across the street!

4. Base

Location: Melbourne, Australia

Base features a downstairs club that pumps out music every night. You won’t get any sleep as the music filters up the floors and entices you to come down and party until dawn.

The young and the restless fill the dance floor after drinking pitchers of beer and cheap, colorful shots. There are usually theme and karaoke nights that let you embarrass yourself all night long.

5. Loki

Location: Cusco, Peru

Located in a 450-year-old building, Loki is known throughout South America for its parties. With regular events, an open lounge, and theme nights, I wouldn’t expect any sleep here either. The bar is regularly packed so tight, you’ll be practically grinding against your neighbor.

Loki has another 2 hostels in Peru (in Mancora and in Lima), one hostel in Salta, Argentina, and one in La Paz, Boliva. All of them filled with party animals.

6. #11 Happy Guesthouse

Location: Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Why: Located by the lake in Phnom Penh, #11 Happy Guesthouse features a huge patio, two big screen TVs, a pool table, and one-dollar beers. Always packed, this hostel is filled with the party seekers who spend their days sightseeing and night drinking beer before heading to the infamous Heart of Darkness.

7. St. Christopher’s Inn

Location: London, England

A bar, karaoke, cheap drinks, and a license to go until 4 AM, all means that this hostel is bursting with partygoers and is one the busiest in London. After you drink it down, you can take it off at the rooftop hot tub. People here know where the action is, and if you play your cards right, it just might be your room.

The St. Christopher’s Inn Canal in Paris is worth checking out too: cheap drinks, live music, a Belushi’s Bar, and a basement nightclub open until dawn.

8. Kabul

Location: Barcelona, Spain

Located in the center of Las Ramblas, Kabul has a very open second floor where all parties happen. Happy hour officially begins at 7 PM, which is usually a few hours after everyone wakes up.

With a reputation for partying, this place keeps drawing those who start partying at 2 AM and sleep until 2 PM. This place gives new meaning to the term “late night.” I was called a quitter for sleeping at 5 AM.

9. The Rising Cock

Location: Lagos, Portugal

The Rising Cock is infamous for its parties and it’s well deserved. Two things happen at The Rising Cock: drinking and drinking.

Start your day with the hostel’s booze cruise on which the majority of people get naked, and then keep the partying going with drinking games at the hostel. If you can’t handle 24-hour partying, this hostel is not for you.

10. The Pink Palace

Location: Corfu, Greece

The Pink Palace is one of the world’s most famous party hostels in the world and with good reason: toga parties, cheap shots of ouzo, happy hours, and theme nights. After a day at the beach (which is just minutes away) or their booze cruise, you’ll be spending the night dancing at their club, Palladium, until the sun comes up.

The hostel has over 300 beds and there’s a good chance, you might not end up in yours!

11. The Sunflower City Backpacker Hostel and Bar

Location: Rimini, Italy

Minutes from the sandy beach, the Sunflower City Backpacker Hostel and Bar claims to have the cheapest beers in town, and that’s reason enough for all of us to include it on our list of crazy places to stay at. If you’re still having second thoughts, the pub and disco crawls, the DJ, and the bar where the party never stops should seal the deal.

The Sunflower Beach Backpacker Hostel and Bar, in the same town, is just as wild, and you get to add “live concerts” to the list of fun!

12. The Yellow

Location: Rome, Italy

With a bar downstairs and semi-nightly pub crawls, it’s pretty easy to meet people at the Yellow. It’s not a huge hostel making the close quarters also convenient for meeting fellow travelers.

13. Ostello Archi Rossi

Location: Florence, Italy

This place has been popular for a long time as evident by the walls covered by the names of past guests. A big courtyard and common dining area keep people mingling and drinking vino rossi.

There are some clubs down the street and, when they close, you can move back to the courtyard to keep the party going. The rooms are a little away from the action so you can actually get some sleep if you want.

14. Wombats

Location: Berlin, Germany

Known for its partying, Wombats rarely sees anyone over 25. With an ultra-chic bar, everyone breaks out their best attire and pick-up skills here. Cheap drinks keep travelers mingling all night long. If you can’t meet anyone here, you can’t meet anyone anywhere.

15. The Jazz on South Beach

Location: Miami, Florida, USA

Located right near the beach, The Jazz on South Beach has an excellent bar that hosts the bold and beautiful of the area. This is the place to stay if you’re looking to be seen in South Beach.

16. Carnival Court

Location: Capetown, South Africa

There’s no chance of a good night’s sleep at Carnival Court. Located near a lot of bars (there’s also a bar in the hostel), this place is a hangover waiting to happen.

It’s wild here and everyone is looking to break a new drinking record. The staff will point you in the direction of the parties but you just might have trouble walking there as the fun here starts well before the sun goes down.

17. Carpe Noctem Vitae

Location: Budapest, Hungary

You’re supposed to “seize the night” and you will. Carpe Noctem targets the young, solo travelers and take them out every night on pub crawls, karaoke nights, cheap drink nights, and live music nights.

The place is very relaxed and friendly; it’s the perfect spot for those who want to have some fun with fellow travelers.

18. Millhouse Hostel

Location: Buenos Aires, Argentina

The music is on 24 hours a day at the Millhouse and the atmosphere is extremely social! Each night has a different activity such as dance party, karaoke night, and tango lessons.

Definitely a hostel for those that want non-stop fun and excitement right at home! Just be aware that the most commonly heard line in this hostel is: “Were those moans from the porn shop next store or did you get lucky last night?”

19. Auckland Central Backpackers

Location: Auckland, New Zealand

Located right downtown, this hostel draws upon the fact that it is part of the Base chain. That means that all the craziness of Melbourne spills over with people getting down and dirty all night long. It will give you another reason to keep staying longer in Auckland!

20. India House

Location: New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

A funky converted house that was nearly destroyed by Hurricane Katrina, the India House features eccentric local characters and travelers who just can’t leave. Maybe it’s Bourbon Street. Maybe it’s the jazz. Maybe it’s the beer-vending machine in the kitchen. Whatever it is, people here know how to have a good time.

21. Yuma’s House Belize

Location: Caye Caulker, Belize

Located right on the beach, Yuma’s House Belize keeps people in close quarters. Everyone here is into island living – sun by day, drink by night.

Though the crowd tends to be a bit older (30ish), you wouldn’t know it by the way people party here. It is way off the beaten path but it’s worth it.

22. Balmers

Location: Interlaken, Switzerland

Who knew Switzerland was a place to party?! Voted one of Europe’s top ten hostels, Balmers will satisfy your desire for wild nights after a day of skiing, ice climbing, hiking, or even paragliding.

The biergarten (in the summer), the brand new nightclub, the live music, the international DJ’s, and the theme parties will keep you entertained. I promise.

This article was originally published on July 1st, 2008.

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