Ok, I'm trying to figure out if I need a sleep sack or not. I plan on staying in Hostles, and I'm not on a tight budget, so I can afford a good hostle. I do think, however, that I will be doing a bit of train travel. I might try and sleep in my seat (1st class) or get a couchette (sorry for the spelling). So with all that in mind, should I get a sleep sack? If so, should I get the silck (easy to clean, more $$$, smaller and weighs 6oz.) or the cotton (harder to clean, cheaper, larger, weighs 20.5oz) What are the bennifets of a sleep sack? Is it worth the space in my backpack? Will I use it or even need to use it? Has anyone else used it?

Thanks,
Lee :thumbup:

I decided not to get one and just brought an old sheet that I didn't care much about so I could always sleep on it. Sometimes people sew a sheet together to make a sack but I'd just lay the thing out, always on the same side so at least I was on something that was mine. It worked out fine and I was glad I didn't have anything that would take up more space. Plus at the end you can just throw it out.

I would say it is not worth it. At many of the better hostels, you will be provided with one for free. Not all hostels give them out and in the cleaner ones it is not really needed.

As for the trains, I have found the bedding in the couchettes to be pretty clean. It is quite a tight fit in the beds, so another sheet would probably just be more of a problem. As for sleeping just on the seats, I don't see how a sleep sack would really help.

I didnt use a sleep sack and although I brought a sleeping bag, I never used it unless I was sleeping outside. I never had a problem just using the sheets the hostels provided until the second to last night I was in Europe. It was the Bax Pax hostel in Berlin and I was sleeping in a VW Beetle that had been converted into a bed. The hostel was really clean and the bed seemed to be as well to the naked eye, but that thing must have been infested something fierce because I had bug bites for the next week. So I would advise not sleeping in anything infestable like that, but beds are usually ok.

Thanks for the feedback. I'm just worried about the bed bugs. How do I avoid them??

lavendar oil for one - you can use a cottonball/pad to wipe down your mattress (remove sheets, of course)... also do some inspection in/around the bed area - pull it away from the wall if possible, check the seams of your mattress: look for reddy/brown what will be blood stains; perhaps read canadian dude's thread on the matter... try the health thread.

good luck :blink:

Unless you plan to sleep on the streets or something then no. in pampolona sleeping bags were like gold. Tecias even got stolen.

I found the hostels to be clean. youll be fine.

may the force be with you.

If you're going to Sweden, you have to rent (or buy) sheets there. Not a big deal if you're on a generous budget, just good to know about. Mostly in Eastern Europe (which is where we mostly travel) sheets are included.