Question about sleeping in a hostel dorm vs a cheap motel outside the city, which one really costs less?

Noah Clark · 2026-10-27T08:35:05.523441+00:00

Last month I did a 5 night trip to Chicago and I had to pick between a $38 a night hostel dorm downtown or a $72 a night motel out by Midway. I picked the motel because I wanted my own bathroom and a door that locks, and honestly I'm still going back and forth on it. The room was clean and quiet, but the train ride in ate about 45 minutes each way plus $5 a day in fares, so that cheap motel quietly added up to more than I planned. The hostel folks I met at a coffee shop said they paid $38 flat and walked everywhere, but they also said the 6 bed room was loud until 2am and one guy snored like a lawnmower. My take is the motel won for sleep but lost on money, and I think next time I'd split the difference with a hostel private room. So which way do you all lean, is the extra travel time and fare worth your own bathroom, or do you eat the noise and pocket the savings? Really curious what numbers people have run on this.

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Question about sleeping in a hostel dorm vs a cheap motel outside the city, which one really costs less? | Budget Travel Hacks - Hub Chatter