Lack of awareness has long been hostel’s greatest enemy in America, but that has started to change. At this point, most of the mainstream media has begun to devote coverage to the trend: it’s gotten coverage in The New York Times, The Washington Post, USA Today, and more in the past 2 years. Why does that matter? Because it helps to combat the negative stereotypes people have about hostels. It opens up the very idea to a new audience, and it can even make them seem interesting and hip.