To manage a hostel, it is initially important to establish exactly what is a hostel. A hostel a place for both group and individual travelers to stay with a choice of either dormitory accommodation or private room, on a budget price. Travelers should also be able to access common areas and communal facilities.

There is a number of aspects to consider when you want to manage a hostel Quebec, and these include the day to day running of a hostel, marketing your hostel and awareness of your competition. Here we will discuss issues relating to the day to day running of a hostel.

24-hour Reception

Reception needs to be an inviting place. Staff needs to be friendly and knowledgeable of that area. Reception is often the first point of call for travelers, so staff needs to be able to answer questions. Reception also needs to be a place of knowledge with posters, leaflets brochures - lots of ideas for travelers. Music in reception is also a must but remember to keep it eclectic to meet everybody's unique tastes. Keep a guestbook or suggestion box at reception for comments and any problems a traveler may have. It is better to hear any grievances first and resolve them before they end up on travel forums. This is also an excellent way to establish how happy visitors are with staying at your hostel.

Clean and Usable Kitchen

Travelers need a kitchen complete with utensils, washing up facilities and plenty of storage space. If a kitchen isn't clean, people cannot use it which then raises questions about the cleanliness of the rest of the hostel. Remember that food is a communal activity and helps travelers to meet each other to make this area one that is usable.

A very comfortable bed

Travelers sleep in different beds on a regular basis and so when a good comfortable one comes along they will try to stay in it as long as possible.

TV Room

A TV room in a hostel raises a debate. Some argue that television deters people from getting to know each other, others suggest TV is a home comfort that gives people a chance to chill out. Think about who is staying at your hostel. Many hostels with travelers on working visas will have people staying long term while they are working. The TV is often a relaxing evening activity for people after work. In poor weather, movie days or nights can be a common activity. Think about how often people talk about what's on or what's happened on TV, does it deter people from communicating with each other.

Internet Access

WIFI is now essential in a hostel. Travelers are not the same as they once were. Laptops are now an essential item to travel with, and WIFI is expected. For those without laptops, a hostel needs to provide easy internet access with facilities to Skype, upload pictures and burn to cd and download music to iPods and mp3 players. These are essentials for travelers now, so a good hostel needs to provide this for them.

Daytime Activities

In addition to staff being fully capable of suggesting activities to travelers if a hostel can offer day trips to travelers at a budget price it can increase its chance of extended stays and positive word of mouth. Remember that sometimes travelers are only around for a few days and so need to fit in as much as possible in just a short space of time. Offer them the chance to see the sights but without the hassle of finding out about and booking them themselves.

Evening Activities.

Many travelers and backpackers like to relax in the evenings and meet some of their fellow travelers and like-minded people. Offering evening activities is an excellent way to make travelers feel comfortable to meet others. However, remember to assess who your visitors are if an operation isn't popular and think about why that is. Also, remember that travelers now come in all different shapes and sizes with lots of different interests. Evening activities need to reflect the demographics within your hostel.

Each of these aspects of running a hostel needs to be constantly watched. As it was said previously the hostel and traveler market now operated on a colossal scale and reputation counts for large part of a hostel's marketing. Don't offer or advertise something you can't achieve and take the time, or ask staff, to speak to visitors and travelers. Be interactive so that you can get feedback and gauge an idea as to the different kinds of travelers your hostel attracts.