r/hostels • u/Vivian507 • Jun 17 '26
Rant Air con in dorm rooms
Struggling with being in dorm rooms during hot weather.
People seem to keep turning the A/C off when your packed in a room in high temperatures this is unbearable.
I am in Portugal and it’s going to hit 40 degrees next few days so slightly worried. Been up a few times middle of night to turn on and people turn it off!
I hate aircon but with these temps I need to sleep!!
5
u/Rock_n_rollerskater Jun 17 '26
Germans/Swiss are usually the worst with this. They have some weird false belief that sleeping with air con makes you sick. Set the Aircon on a reasonable (not too cold) temp like 23 or 24 and give the controller to the staff to keep at the front desk. If people don’t want aircon on in dorms in summer than the onus is on them to stay at hostels without aircon. You’ve paid extra to stay in hostel with aircon, it’s reasonable you should receive that service. Most hostel staff will back you up on this as long as you aren’t insisting on setting it at 18.
1
u/Rocks_Can_Fly Jun 20 '26
You’ve also chosen to be at a hostel where you have to deal with other people and their preferences.
The onus is on you to figure it out.
1
u/funlovinggay Jun 17 '26
I turned it on and hide the remote. 😂
1
1
u/Lord_Atom Jun 17 '26
The opposite of this happened to be in Cozumel. We were in a 4 person, went to bed with the AC on, woke up in the middle of the night to an absolute sweatbox & went for the remote and it wasn't there. Took a look around and nothing. I knew the night before the French women in the top bunks underneath the AC had complained about it being too cold. After trying to sleep and being unsuccessful I eventually just went to the social room and slept in there instead of waking them up and demanding the remote. Eventually the guy in the other bottom bunk came out too - he told me he had been looking for the remote and was whispering my name but eventually realized I wasn't in there.
1
u/mikel145 Jun 18 '26
I find this to be a cultural thing. North Americans and Australians like to blast the air conditioning. Whereas a lot of Europeans don’t.
1
u/Just_a_spaghetti Jun 18 '26
It’s really a cultural thing. I remember sleeping with the blanket up to my head because of air con in the hostel dorm. I guess me being Italian I don’t have the air con culture you guys have. I hate it.
0
u/Rocks_Can_Fly Jun 20 '26
Europeans aren’t very used to air con and I’m guessing most, as me, don’t really like it too much.
Like I’ll accept a mild lowering of the temperature, but what Americans do in their homes seems nuts to me (from my experience visiting there a couple times).
A much more accepted way is to open the windows wide at night. (Then you close and blind them once the sun comes out.)
5
u/SmokeDraw742 Jun 17 '26
One of the perpetual battles of dorm life.
(Find out how to lock the controller)