I finally stopped booking hostels with 4.8 ratings and actually slept
For like 2 years I picked places based purely on rating numbers and photos. Then last month in Chiang Mai I stayed at a 4.9 spot that turned out to be above a karaoke bar, zero sleep for 3 nights. Now I filter for recent reviews that mention quiet hours or street noise, and read the 3 star ones too. Anyone else have a booking rule they swear by now after getting burned once?
The trick that saved me was checking what the place is next to on the map, not just the reviews. A 4.8 hostel can be great and still sit on a main road where motorbikes run all night. Now I zoom in and look for side streets or anything marked like bars before I book.