5 Types of People You’ll Find in Every Dorm Room

Hello Wonderful People!

 

The hostel is a wonderful invention; cheap accommodation where fellow travellers can easily meet each other, share their backpacking tales and go for a few bevvies. However, if you've stayed in a hostel for longer than one night, you will start to recognise that every dorm room has its characters. Here are 5 examples of these wondrous creatures, who all seem to appear in every hostel.

The Odd One Out

I can absolutely guarantee that there will always be one oddball in a dorm room; if there isn’t, the likely hood is it’s you. SORRY. The odd one out will be easy to spot, they are either much older, keep them selves to themselves or are completely barking mad. My worst dorm room experience happened in Brisbane where a fellow roomie painted a huge red smile (think Heath Ledgers Joker) on his face every day. He also loved to get up in the middle of the night to dry his already dry hair. I was also lucky enough to have him on the bunk below me.

The One That Lives There

You can spot a full timer’s bunk a mile off. They will usually have the bottom bed and it will always have a spare bed sheet draped around it like a makeshift curtain. Lifers live and probably work at the hostel. They will have their own little hostel clique and don’t take well too backpackers. I once stayed in a lovely hostel in Sydney, but it 90% full timers and it really ruined it for me. When you’re backpacking part of the fun is making new friends, and the best place to do that is in your dorm room. However, if you’re stuck in a room with full timers then they usually aren’t interested in making new friends, as they’ve already got them. Plus, they usually have jobs, so are rarely up for going out and don’t like it if you do and come back in the early hours of the morning.

The One That Leaves The Light On

We are all guilty of leaving the light on once in a while, but there is usually a repeat offender in every dorm. The amount of times I’ve been tucked up in bed, fast asleep and someone has come into the dorm and left the light on is countless. I’m not expecting people to scrabble round in the dark, but a little consideration for your sleeping roomies is always nice. Don’t run into the dorm, grab something you’ve forgotten then run out again without turning the light off. And don’t stumble into the room at 4am and pass out on the bed without turning the light off, just because you can sleep in a stupidly bright room, doesn’t mean everyone else can.  

The Messy One

This person’s bunk is pretty easy to spot. It will be surrounded by clothes/ shoes/ make up/ food/ toiletries; you name it, it’ll probably be there. Their bed will also be completely covered in crap and their empty backpack will be slumped in the middle of the room. This can make navigating the dorm pretty tricky, especially if it’s dark or you’re trying not to wake anyone up. Your stuff is also bound to get mixed up with theirs at some point too. And you will definitely hear them moaning that they can’t find anything amongst their mess. Living out of a backpack can be pretty annoying, but packing all your stuff every couple of days is even more of a ball ache. So make your job easier by keeping most of your stuff in your backpack. Not only will packing be easier, you fellow roomies might not hate you as much.

The Average Joe

This person is probably just like you (unless you fall into one of the above categories) and you’ll definitely end up going out for drinks/ food/ sightseeing with them. Your Average Joe roomie is a fellow backpacker, who is up for a good time and is generally up for a good time. These people are fellow, like-minded travellers who are only stopping at the hostel for a few nights and are up for seeing and doing everything. Your Average Joe is the perfect dorm-mate; they are pretty considerate of everyone else in the room and are nice and sociable. You’re ideal dorm will be full of these people and you’ll become new found bezzies for a few days, you’ll go on a few messy nights out together and check out the local attractions. Then you’ll part ways as you set off to your next destination, ready to play dorm room roulette again. Who will you end up with next?