Hostelworld.com has revealed the most desirable, undiscovered locations in the world.

Over the past year, the “roads less travelled” which have seen the five largest increases are:
Marrakech, Morocco

Sanya, China

Tarifa, Spain

Dubrovnik, Croatia

Kingston, Jamaica

Marrakech, Morocco’s rose city, with its exotic Souk markets, has had a four-fold increase over last year, of backpackers exploring the alleyways and sampling the delicious food. Sanya, China’s tropical paradise has had a 140% rise of backpackers, keen to sail, fish, scuba dive, or just relax in the hot springs. Tarifa in Spain is hiding virgin beaches, beautiful landscape and a Moorish style city with enough bars, restaurants and pubs to quench any party goers thirst. With a 70% rise of visitors its popularity is growing quickly.

Dubrovnik’s old city is home to some of Croatia’s most beautiful architecture, with the historical city’s popularity growing by 60%. Kingston, home of Bob Marley, has had an increase of 40% of backpackers enjoying the Jamaican experience: meeting Rastafarians, playing dominos in a rum shop or visiting a Kingston dance hall.

Niamh Ni Mhir, CMO of Hostelworld.com said; “Where backpackers and hostels lead, the rest of the tourist industry follows. In past decades, hidden gems could stay undiscovered for many years.  For instance, when Thailand was first discovered by backpackers some of its islands remained untapped for more than twenty years. Now, people are becoming increasingly adventurous in their travel and want to discover new places for themselves. Hostelworld.com can help you find a budget place to stay in these destinations, but if you want to visit these gems when they are still relatively quiet, our recommendation is to go soon.”

Hostels offer a good alternative place to stay with bookings through Hostelworld.com having increased steadily year on year 1999 and now reaching 100,000 hostel beds booked online every single day. This is due to growing market demand, particularly in emerging regions such as Eastern Europe, Asia and Latin America, an extended concept of ‘youth’, with young travel habits extending into people in their 30’s and the boundaries blurring between youth accommodation and other offerings, particularly budget hotels. The website also offers more than 1 million customer reviews enabling backpackers to make decisions based on the recommendations and advice of fellow travellers.

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