California dreaming at low-priced hostels

With 30 bucks and an open mind, you can stay in some prime spots in California — on the Pacific Beach boardwalk in San Diego, for example, or overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. We're talking hostels, once regarded as the province of backpackers and bedbugs, but increasingly go-to places for a growing base of travelers.

More than 250 hostels are scattered throughout the U.S., including 60 in California, offering a more social and budget-friendly alternative to hotel travel.

These days, travelers expect more than "no bugs and hot water," says Maria Argyropoulos, vice president of operations for USA Hostels, which has locations in San Diego, Hollywood, San Francisco and Las Vegas. "Hostels throughout Europe and Australia are becoming way upscale, and that reflects the changing nature of the client. Now, travelers almost expect budget luxury."

And "budget luxury" is what they get. Hostels in the U.S. range from sleek, modern 200-bed high-rises in city centers to quaint 25-person beach cottages, and many are safe, clean places to stay. Most have 24/7 front-desk reception and security, and provide lockers to store belongings. Rates change according to season, number of beds in a room and location, but expect to pay $25 to $35 for a dorm bed in the summer, and $70 to $100 for a private room.

Today, hostelers contribute $1.4 billion to tourist revenues worldwide, and though the words "hostel" and "youth" are often paired, hosteling is by no means a young-person exclusive. As the struggling economy has widened the range of those seeking budget accommodations, hostelers note a corresponding increase in the age of patrons.

Hostelling International, the brand name of the nonprofit International Youth Hostel Federation, leads the market in quantity and quality of hostels, with 4,000 "HI" hostels in 90 countries. But there also are mom-and-pop hostels in many cities.

Here are some well-regarded California hostels:

Los Angeles area

HI-Santa Monica is a large hostel, with 260 beds. The kitchen of this building is expansive, dorms are bright and spacious, the activity board is brimming with freebies and you're about a block from the beach.

Many of the hostel's numerous activities revolve around the Rapp Saloon, a local landmark nestled below the hostel. The saloon's activities are open to travelers and residents alike, and range from the Friday open-mike poetry night to salsa lessons.

www.hilosangeles.orgBanana Bungalow Hollywood is of another era. Owner Joe Fazio describes the converted two-story 1960s building — formerly the Movietown Motel — as "retro, funky, cool." That it is, although it's also modern, clean and unapologetically tacky. You'll find an AstroTurf courtyard in the back and a movie room with blue-vinyl theater seats.

The "deluxe" private and dorm rooms (140 beds) in this Hollywood hostel are garishly colored according to theme, though the effect is, well, groovy.

Fazio also owns the 140-bed Banana Bungalow West Hollywood, just off the Melrose strip. Housed in a former retirement home, the WeHo location isn't quite as California-cool as the original, though the outdoor thatched-roof Tiki bar is impressive.www.bananabungalowus.com Surf City Hostel keeps it simple and $25 buys you the best deal on ocean breezes in the South Bay.

It has a stellar location at the end of the Hermosa Beach promenade. There are crisp linens on the beds in the 60 rooms, half of which enjoy an unobstructed ocean view. It's run a charmingly frazzled man — French-born Odile Brock, who has been managing the place for 15 years. www.surfcityhostel.com

San Francisco

HI-Fisherman's Wharf, housed in historic Fort Mason at the edge of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, slopes down to a walking path with a panorama of the waterfront and Golden Gate Bridge. Cafe Franco, a funky coffee shop open to the public, provides free breakfast for hostel guests or $6 dinners (and lunch) of hearty vegetarian cuisine.

HI-San Francisco City Center, with 162 beds, is tranquil Fort Mason's bustling counterpart. Formerly the seven-story Atherton Hotel, the hostel still sports the hotel's regal dark wood interior, and rows of international flags flutter from the lofted ceiling over an ornate mahogany bar.

Get details on both hostels at www.sfhostels.com

The Elements Hostel could exist only in the Mission District in San Francisco. The bright yellow and orange building, looming over vibrant Mission Street, houses the 29-room hostel, Medjool Restaurant and the popular Sky Terrace, a 360-degree-view rooftop bar and restaurant. The interior is a hodgepodge of turquoises and reds, eclectic and clean enough, though it doesn't quite feel like a hostel, because it lacks common areas and a kitchen. www.elementssf.com The Green Tortoise is a cavernous 150-bed hostel looming over funky North Beach. All the hostel's carpets are from Las Vegas, and the ballroom is a place you'd expect to walk in and find, as owner Gardner Kent puts it, a cancan show. Though cancan shows are not officially on the activity roster, this ballroom, with floor-to-ceiling windows, is where Green Tortoise hosts thrice-weekly free dinners, live music every Sunday night and a weekly beer pong tournament. www.greentortoise.com(Green Tortoise has a sister hostel in Seattle.)

San Diego

HI-Point Loma is on a hill above downtown San Diego in a quiet residential neighborhood. With 53 beds, it's more like a bustling B&B than a Hostelling International. About half of Point Loma's guests are from the U.S., many of them youth groups on retreats.

Banana Bungalow San Diego announces itself. The 90-bed hostel is breezy, beachy and comfortable, but you'll probably spend most of your time on the busy deck — from free barbecues twice a week and daytime people watching to sunset parties and live performances by local bands.www.bananabungalowus.com The USA Hostels San Diego building began life in the 1800s as a brothel, though the 23-room hostel in the Gaslamp Quarter has been through a few remodels since then. Guests walk up a grand central staircase to their lodgings, ranging from a cozy split-level private room — the bed is lofted above a mini-living room — to wood-paneled dorms.

www.usahostels.com