GL hostel Competitors

Sonder is revolutionizing hospitality through innovative, tech-powered service and inspiring, thoughtfully designed accommodations combined into one seamlessly managed experience. Welcome to the future of hospitality. Officially launched in 2014 and headquartered in San Francisco, Sonder is making a world of better stays open to all with a variety of accommodation options — from rooms to suites and apartments — found in more than 30 cities spanning eight countries and three continents. Sonder’s innovative app empowers guests by making self-service features and 24/7 on-the-ground support just a tap away. From simple self check-in to boutique bathroom amenities, we bring the best of a hotel without any of the formality.

Founded in 2000 by Oliver Winter, a&o Hostels is Europe’s largest independent hostel chain with over 40 locations across 28 cities in 11 countries. Combining the best of hostels and hotels, we offer a variety of accommodation including single and double rooms, family rooms, dorms and female-only dorms alongside 24/7 service, lively common areas, coworking spaces and an all-you-can-eat breakfast buffet. Our diverse guest mix includes backpackers, solo travellers, families, school groups, business travellers and senior guests, making a&o a welcoming space for all. Growth remains strong with recent expansions into Brighton, Brussels and Antwerp plus the newly opened a&o Firenze Campo di Marte in early 2025. As a company, we’re committed to making travel both affordable and sustainable, having reduced CO₂e emissions per guest per night by 78% since 2015, now at just 3.32kg per overnight stay—one of the lowest in the industry. Beyond hospitality, we are passionate about education, arts and sports. Through our a&o educare initiative, we support equal access to education, while a&o Kunsthalle provides a platform for emerging artists. We also actively sponsor youth sports teams, helping to foster talent and community spirit. Backed by investment from Stepstone and Proprium, a&o continues to expand and modernise, ensuring budget-conscious travellers have access to high-quality eco-friendly stays across Europe.

Hostelworld is the world's leading Social Travel platform - a social network-powered OTA on a mission to help travellers find their people and create unforgettable moments together. Founded in 1999 and headquartered in Ireland, we're a team of around 270 people serving hostel partners across more than 180 countries. Since launching our social network in 2022, we've welcomed over 3.4 million social members who aren't just booking trips, they're messaging, finding events, meeting up and becoming powerful brand advocates. This community generates a rich proprietary dataset of 16 million+ chat messages and 17 million bookings, powering AI-driven personalisation and network effects that no generalist OTA can replicate. We are not just another OTA - we created an entirely new category – Social Travel. If you want to shape the future of travel by putting people and shared experiences at the heart of it, you'll fit right in here. Its hard to encapsulate what it's like to work in Hostelworld but here are a few of the amazing benefits we offer: Competitive salary & benefits Enhanced annual leave plus 3 Wellbeing Days per year Paid family leave (maternity, paternity, surrogacy & adoption) Agile working (plus a Working from Abroad Policy!) Support for your ongoing growth & development Inclusive people policies (sickness, menopause, compassionate and fertility leave) A chance to give back to your local community with 5 paid volunteering days Check out our Careers page with our open vacancies here: https://global.hostelworld.com/careers