Messy Bathroom

Staying in a dorm in a backpackers hostel is usually the cheapest accommodation and it is always the best way to meet fellow like-minded travellers.  If you are staying in dorm accommodation in Cape Town it’s the best way to find someone to join you on a hike up Table Mountain, go for a walk into town or to share a taxi downtown to go party.

However, the question when choosing your place to stay in Cape Town would be – En-suite or communal bathroom facilities?  The debate rages on but for me it is clear. 

Who is sharing your dorm? Just ladies you say? It may be a female-only dormitory but when I was travelling, it was the girls-only rooms that were usually the untidiest!! So, this probably means that the bathroom that they use would be messy and untidy as well. If the room is en-suite, then there is no need to pack everything away in the bathroom after they have used it. Imagine…. Messy toothpaste tubes, open soaps and make-up debris all juggling for space in that en-suite dorm bathroom.

If we used the communal bathroom facilities then we do our business, have a shower and pack everything up again into the washbag and head back to my room. Easy.

Mixed dorm – God forbid! Imagine a big man going to the loo in the middle of the night after a curry? The mind boggles. The noises, the smells and just the general idea of it happening within a metre of where I sleep. No way.
And I haven’t even mentioned the times when your fellow room-mates may have eaten something not so fresh and they get the dreaded runs. Or what happens when he/she comes back from a club at 3am and can’t hold down their liquor.
I bet those bathrooms only get cleaned once a day when the room is serviced. At least with communal facilities you will always be sure to have a full toilet roll and regular cleaning.

Now with that in mind, surely it is easier to pop down the passage and do your business and come back. So whether you want to point Peter at Pewter, go for a tiddle, drop a load, have a dump or just have a think – communal bathrooms are definitely the way to go.
When I am in need of backpackers accommodation in Cape Town I go to Ashanti Lodge and stay in their female-only dormitories – that are NOT en-suite. They have 6 and 8 bedded rooms and they all have sinks in the rooms for preening yourself, have a shave, brush your teeth, put on make-up and make sure you are all fresh and pretty to face the day! My favourite place to stay in Cape Town for sure!