This is a story about growing up, as told by hotel stays.
Last month, I got to stay at this incredible eco-lodge in the Andean Forest.
It was connected to ancient hiking trails right alongside a river, in the prime location to find a spectacled bear. There were hot showers and cold waterfalls to splash in. Wildlife and wi-fi. The whole place pretty much felt like staying at one giant treehouse, and the food served on-site was all made from local ingredients with sustainability in mind.
It was a fantastic place to stay, and I was able to do so much without *technically* leaving the campus. After all, the campus did include several nature trails you could hike for hours, but still.
It felt like the exact opposite of decisions I was making in Luton twelve years ago.
At the time, I was in the middle of a European backpacking stint on an absolute shoestring budget, and I was taking any opportunity to cut the costs even further.
So, I flew into the Luton airport close to midnight. Rather than heading to a hotel for the night, I realized: I could save a whole 15 bucks by sleeping right there at the airport!
I just needed to find departure gates where I could blend in amongst the people who were actually waiting for something. I arranged my backpack to prop up my legs and enjoyed a wonderful four hours of sleep, made even sweeter by the prospect of saving… a very small bit of money.
But from my perspective, one uncomfortable night could buy me another night of traveling.
It helped that in my early 20s, my body was more forgiving of this decision.
I fell in love with travel pretty early, and during my study abroad stints, I discovered the magic of youth hostels. The ability to pay as little as $15 for a place to stay was a game-changer. The combination of these cheap hostels and budget airlines suddenly made my world open up wide.
Of course, hostels are always roulette wheels. You never knew when you would get the roommates who loudly stumbled in drunk at 4:00 in the morning.
But I had way more positive experiences. Like the time my whole hostel got up in unison to walk to a town square for the World Cup Final. Or the time I made friends from Cape Town I’d stay in touch with for years.
My logic was simple enough. My purpose in traveling was to see places. Not to stay holed up in a hotel room. If there was anything to skimp out on, it seemed like the obvious choice. If you’re making it all the way to iconic cities and epic locations, what’s the point if you’re going to spend it all in a generic hotel room?
And then… Airbnb!
Before it became the ire of housing justice everywhere, it was actually a pretty cool way to meet local families while traveling. In the early 2010s, I was an avid user. Most stays were about $20 a night, and I’d typically get to meet the person whose guest room I’d be staying in. Have a chat, get their recommendations.
And this is how I discovered my favorite pizzeria of all time, a proper Dutch breakfast, and a great hot springs hike.
I also had some Airbnb duds, like that Chicago apartment with no AC in the summer. Or the farmhouse in Memphis where perhaps not all the animals belonged. But at least there’s the story, right?
Things changed, however. As they do.
It’s safe to say that the Golden Era of Airbnb is done. And perhaps it’s debatable if it ever existed. But I really do miss that era.
These days, it’s unlikely I’ll meet the quirky local host, instead being let in by some key in a lockbox. And of course this is so that the faceless owner of the place can manage it easily among his portfolio of short term rentals, using contracted cleaning companies to quickly turn the place over. The furniture, even the names of the listings, all generic.
Another thing that’s different–I’m older. And between some genetic fortunes and a wee bit of a Peter Pan complex, sometimes it doesn’t always come across right away. But in a party hostel full of 20-somethings getting ready for a night out, I’d rather not explain that I got it all out of my system quite a while ago and I’m trying to call the kids before bedtime.
The era of cheap accommodations is done because not much seems to be cheap these days. And sometimes, if you have no choice but to pay more… you might as well get more for it.
I decided to fully commit to this mindset during my father-son trip to Finland last year with my oldest kid. I booked us one of those glass igloos in the Arctic Circle. It looked like ones I saw on Instagram feeds and figured that even if it was super cheesy, it wouldn’t be to a four year old.
Turns out, it was even better than I expected.
The glass igloo was one thing, but the campus of the hotel was even better. It had a couple restaurants and a bar on site. It had a sauna (because, Finland). And it had a massive snow play area. The place also had an ice hotel that you could rent. Maybe not ideal for a four year old, but they let us check it out anyways.
While we were dragging a sled around the site’s open fields, I realized that maybe it is worth it to actually go all out on accommodations sometimes.
Sometimes it can be much more than a place to sleep.
A few months later I was off on a work trip to Thailand. It was a fast-paced trip, as they tend to be. We visited a different village each day, so there was a lot of moving around. And with my family back home, I was trying to keep things efficient.
But I still found myself with a weekend in Laos. What to do?
Well, other than a quick visit to Kuang Si Falls and enjoying as much Lao food as possible, I focused on finding the most comfy place to stay that I could. I wound up at a place called MyDream, right on the NamKhan river.
And here, without work the next day or kids to wake me up, I got a rare full night’s sleep.
Here, I was able to spend half the day “staying in” without feeling guilty about it, or like I was missing out. It was actually pretty sweet.
Here, I also got an included breakfast that was so good it almost felt unethical to not have to pay extra for it.
Where does this story go next? Staying at those crazy five star penthouse suites? Living in a hotel full-time like Zack and Cody?
Probably not. Trendlines continue until they don’t, and if we’ve learned anything it’s simply that things change. I still have to sleep in airports every now and then… especially Doha’s for some reason. There are still times where I look for a cheap stay to save money, or because all I really do need is a basic place to sleep. Every location, and its costs, will be different.
But my flexibility on that is what’s changed. And my appreciation for mixing it up.
It’s hard to see change happening in real time.
One of the most discomforting truths about the world is also one of its most comforting: things won’t stay the same as they are right now. It’s a wild ride.
You might as well find a comfy place to sleep in whenever you get the chance.