Ok I have heard different sides on the topic on booking hostels in advance. A buddy and I are going to the UK during June,'05.

I want to keep my schedule of when we go places very flexible, so if we meet up with some cool backpackers, hopefully tpunks, we wont have a problem adjusting things. :cheers:

We will start out with a detailed plan of where we want to go and what we want to do when we get there. I just dont like making reservations if i don't have to, as close to "no strings attached" as possible.

I plan to book on-line for the big cities like London, Edinburgh and a couple of others. However, is it a bad idea to just drop in at an idnependent hostel in the smaller cities?

What are the disadavntages and advantages to doing that?

hm well make sure you go with an open mind for one thing. I dont know where your qoute in your signature is from but from what I have gathered they arent big fans of that attitude.



Anyway about the hostels. Book your first couple nights then book as you go. Most of the smaller cities have more than one hostel in them so you should be able to find somewhere to put you up. But the smartest way to do it while keeping an open schedule is do book your first couple days then book a day or two before you leave for your next destination.

:cheers:

Thanks for the advice jake :thumbup:

I booked my hostel for when I first arrived from the airport, its just one less thing to worry about. From there on it was pretty much go with the flow.

Sometimes not all the good hostels are mentioned on websites, some are too new or too low key. Once you get comfortable with everything drop in a few cities with no reservations & see what you can find. Keeps the trip interesting.

What I liked to do was book my next hostel either the night before I was leaving my current city or the morning that I left the city. This way you are still be flexible, but you have the comfort of knowing that there is a bed waiting for you when you arrive into the city.

So it sounds like the genreal idea is to book as you go. :thumbup: Thanks for your advice tpunks :cheers: