A Spanish hostel that greets backpackers with a complimentary drink, free breakfast, and guided tour of bars that offer free tapas — a dying institution — has been named the world’s best hostel for its food offerings.
It’s a highly specialized list curated by influential food blog The Daily Meal, but one that would be particularly useful for young or budget-conscious backpackers used to slumming it in less than stellar conditions.
Standard grease bombs like burgers and fries are replaced with regional specialties like a maple whiskey mousse in Vermont, organic oatmeal and fruit in San Francisco, and an assortment of Moroccan breads and locally harvested honeys in Marrakech.
Frugal gourmet travelers, meanwhile, may want to take note of the Oasis Hostel in Granada, Spain, which took the No. 1 spot for organizing free tapas tours twice a week, during which backpackers are given a guided tour of the best bars in the city — among last places in Spain to offer complimentary tapas to their barflies.
The favorable review is also shared by online reservation site Hostelbookers.com, where more than 900 people gave the property a 91 percent rating.
The hostel also offers a range of free activities such as street art and cave tours, yoga classes and nature tours.
Esencia Nativa hostel in El Salvador was also given nods for welcoming guests with fresh fruit smoothies and for its onsite restaurant that overlooks that ocean and serves everything from typical Salvadorian breakfasts and freshly caught seafood to homemade pizzas and veggie burgers with homemade hummus.
Rounding out the top five food hostels are Villa Salis Hostel in Sète, France; La Hamaca Hostel in Honduras, and Ostinatto Hostel in Buenos Aires.
Rounding out the top five food hostels are Villa Salis Hostel in Sète, France; La Hamaca Hostel in Honduras, and Ostinatto Hostel in Buenos Aires.
Here’s the list of the top 20 hostels in the world for their food
1. Oasis Hostel in Granada, Spain
2. Esencia Nativa hostel in El Salvador
3. Villa Salis Hostel in Sète, France
4. La Hamaca Hostel in Honduras
5. Ostinatto Hostel in Buenos Aires
6. Be Hostels in Barcelona
7. Malabar Farm in Ohio
8. Menaggio youth Hostel on Lake Como, Italy
9. Hostel Tevere in Vermont
10. Hostel Pangea in Costa Rica
11. Mosquito Hostel, Krakow, Poland
12. Canadian Backpackers Inn, Toronto
13. Green Tortoise Hostel, San Francisco
14. Villa Saint Exupéry, Nice, France
15. Osa Mariposa in Oaxaca, Mexico
16. Hostel Nari-Nari in Marrakech
17. Betel Box in Singapore
18. Oasis Hostel in Lisbon, Portugal
19. Kex Hostel, Iceland
20. PLUS Berlin Hostel
