Weary travelers who venture through Houston will soon have an inexpensive but comfortable way to spend their nights when the Hostelling International USA’s new location opens its doors this weekend.
The Morty Rich Hostel — located at 501 Lovett Blvd. in Montrose — will host an open house this Sunday from 2 to 4 p.m. to give away prizes and introduce the new 50-bed hostel to Houston and its residents.
General Manager Grace Dodier, a Corpus Christi native and former assistant general manager of the HI-USA Austin location, hopes the new hostel will make visitors feel welcome as well as educating them on the importance of hostelling.
“We are hoping to spread the word that hostels are another form of affordable accommodation,” Dodier said in a recent email. “The added bonus is that guests get the opportunity to meet people from all over the world.”
The new hostel is associated with Hostelling International USA — an outlet of Hostelling International, which has over 4,000 hostels in over 90 countries.
According to its website, HI-USA is a non-profit organization that was founded in 1934 and intends to promote understanding of the world through hostelling and operates nearly 60 hostels nationwide.
The Morty Rich location is the first HI-USA location in Houston and takes over the former Lovett Inn Bed and Breakfast – once the home of Former Houston Mayor Joseph C. Hutcheson, Jr.
The hostel — open 24 hours a day throughout the year — will house guests in shared dorms and private rooms and offers guests a self-catered kitchen and pool, and is within walking distance of many of Houston’s most popular restaurants, bars and museums.
Employees who are acquainted with the city will attend to those visitors who are not accustomed to Houston.
“Houston is a great city, but sometimes it can be a bit overwhelming to travelers,” said Dodier. “The staff’s job is to help break down the city and everything there is to do here, and make it accessible to people who might have never been to a city this large.”
Morty Rich hopes to attract not only nationwide visitors but also entice travelers from around the world. Dodier believes — based on her time at the HI-USA Austin location — that the Houston location will attract many foreign visitors.
“ I think that the Houston market for travelers could potentially have completely different demographics (than the Austin location),” she said, “I suspect that we will get many more travelers from the Latin American countries.”
HI-USA’s new location joins the Houston International Hostel — located on Crawford Street in the heart of the museum district — as the only hostels catering to frugal visitors traveling through Houston.
To attend the grand opening this Sunday please RSVP at [email protected] or visit their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/HIHouston.
To make reservations or to learn more about the Morty Rich Hostel, Hostelling International USA, and to become a Hostelling International member please visit www.hiusa.org/hostels/usa_hostels/texas/houston/60150.
