Sometimes it’s useful to look to other industries to get inspiration for how to improve efficiency and experiences. Sometimes you don’t need to look so far.
Historically, there was a clear delineation between hotels and hostels. But changing travel habits, the importance of community and modern technology is blurring these lines. Today, hostels are often at the forefront of hospitality innovation.
In episode 48 of Matt Talks, Mews CEO, Matt Welle, and Diogo Vaz Ferreira, hotel commercial performance and technology consultant, explore the fast-evolving hostel space. Read on for the highlights, including the valuable lessons that any hotelier – regardless of property type – can benefit from.
From five-star hotels to shared dorms
After 15 years in hospitality with brands like Hilton, Accor and Marriott, Diogo made an unexpected move: he joined Clink Hostels. The cultural shift was immediate. Hilton was very much suited and booted. At Clink, it was strictly no ties allowed, come as you are.
But the difference wasn’t just clothing deep. It was a mindset. Hostel operators, Diogo discovered, are more open with each other, less protective of their performance, and more willing to share challenges. All of this enforced the idea that the team was genuinely building something together.
Complexity behind simplicity
Managing a hostel is complicated. While traditional hotels focus on selling rooms, hostels sell beds, dorms, gendered-spaces, private rooms, co-working spaces… The number of variables is high.
That complexity shapes how hostels use data. Metrics like RevPAR and ADR don’t tell the full story. Instead, Clink looks at revenue per available bed (RevPAB), per square meter (RevPAM), and even total revenue per bed (TrevPAB). They analyze every meter of space to assess how it will best fit their needs. That flexibility drives both operational and commercial decisions.
And while ancillary revenue carries more weight in hostels (a €10 breakfast is a much higher proportion of the total spend), tracking it is harder. In hotels, everything is charged to the room and connected through the PMS (or at least, it should be). In hostels, you often don’t have room billing or the same POS integration.
That’s where technology plays a critical role. Mews is helping to level the game, says Diogo. The same way Ryanair made travel more accessible, I think Mews made technology more accessible to everyone.
Building a tech stack that scales
When Diogo joined Clink, he saw an opportunity to strengthen the tech foundation. The brand has access to the same high-quality integrations as any luxury hotel or global chain. Using Mews as its foundational operational system, Clink implemented:
- wi-Q for mobile ordering and F&B management
- Oaky and Mews Kiosks for upselling and automated check-in
- Bookboost as a CRM and communications hub
- D3x, an AI-powered chatbot and automation platform
- Duetto and Flyr for revenue management across different hostel types
Each integration adds new capabilities, but the biggest impact came from AI. They automated all customer support through D3x. At first, they used a hybrid model – humans with AI suggestions. When they saw the results, they went fully AI.
Response times dropped from two minutes to three seconds, and guest satisfaction improved. The speed was so much faster, Diogo explains. It had a big impact on satisfaction because the guests were super happy that [communication] was super-fast.
Voice, AI and the next generation of guests
Clink is already piloting voice AI for both guest and B2B interactions. For reservations and support, they’re using D3x. For group bookings and lead management, they’re working with a company called Ivar AI. In other words, they’ve experienced the power that AI tools can bring, and they’re doubling down.
That shift aligns perfectly with hostel demographics. Guests are typically younger, more tech-savvy and less patient. They can tell the difference between a good chatbot and a bad one. For them, AI isn’t new – it’s expected.
And this is of huge significance to hotels. After all, the hostel guests of today are the hotel guests of tomorrow. They’ll expect the same level of digital convenience when they move up the market. Hotels need to be ready for that.
Lessons for hotels
So what can hotels learn from hostels? Diogo sees three main takeaways:
- Be flexible. Hostels adapt quickly – to guests, to technology, to market shifts. Hotels are often slower because of their structure and legacy systems. Flexibility is key to staying relevant.
- Open up your tech. Don’t build everything in-house – partner with best-in-class providers who integrate easily. Open APIs and lightweight systems are the future.
- Think beyond RevPAR. In a hybrid world, revenue per guest, per meter, and per experience matter more than per room. Measure total value, not just occupancy.
Hostels, for their part, can also learn from hotels’ rigor in data and reporting. We have cool tools, but we should be a bit more consistent using those tools, Diogo admits.
Still, the energy and experimentation in the hostel sector make it an ideal testing ground for the future of hospitality. Hostels are where new habits start. If hotels want to understand what the next generation expects – faster service, smarter tech, more freedom – they know where to look.
Because in the end, whether it’s a bed in a dorm or a suite with a view, the goal is the same: make every guest experience seamless, human and unforgettable.
For many more insights from a great conversation, watch the full episode here:
Watch the episode
About Mews
Mews is the leading platform for the new era of hospitality. Powering over 12,500 customers across more than 85 countries, Mews Hospitality Cloud is designed to streamline operations for modern hoteliers, transform the guest experience and create more profitable businesses. Customers include BWH Hotels, Strawberry, The Social Hub and Airelles Collection. Mews was named Best PMS (2024, 2025) and listed among the Best Places to Work in Hotel Tech (2021, 2022, 2024, 2025) by Hotel Tech Report. Mews has raised $410 million from investors including Growth Equity at Goldman Sachs Alternatives, Kinnevik and Tiger Global to transform hospitality.
www.mews.com
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