Riga has Top Hostel in the World

First of all it was Australian day now The Australians have done it again.

A world first for Latvia !!

F.... and his hostelry have just been awarded the title "best Hostel in the world" as voted by the people who stay in it.

The award ceremony was held in Dublin last night

Unreal - it only opened in March of this year, and is now officially the best in the world.

PS - this a world exclusive for ScotinRiga

For all of you want to check out the hostel see the link to the right.

Just found official confirmation

Friendly Fun Frank’s Backpacker Hostel in Riga, one of the Latvian capital’s most popular hostels, has won the much coveted award of ‘Best Hostel in 2005’, as voted for by Hostelworld.com customers.

Speaking at the award ceremony, owner of the hostel Frank Kerry said he was “over the moon” when asked how he felt after winning the award. “We’ve only been open ten months and we wouldn’t have thought in our dreams that it would be possible.”

Frank added it is the personal touch that makes his hostel so popular. “It is a personal place. When people first come in we greet them, give them a complimentary drink and give them the dos and don’ts about Riga. Basically we look after them from the moment they walk in. From the outside our building is nothing. But when backpackers walk in, they’re surprised. They’re welcomed with a drink and taken by the hand from the time they enter to the time they leave. Obviously they appreciate it because you see the reviews and the comments they make.”
More than 500,000 hostel users voted selected the winning hostels from more than 10,000 properties featured on the Hostelworld.com. The customers, who booked their hostel stays online, were surveyed after their stay and asked to grade their hostel based on six different criteria: character, security, location, staff, fun and cleanliness.

The coveted “Hoscar” Awards ceremony was part of Hostelworld.com’s 2nd annual Hostel Conference which was hosted in the Hilton Hotel, Dublin and featured speakers on a variety of topics relevant to the hostel industry including yield management, branding, crisis management and low cost airfares.

The awards were presented at a ceremony in the Temple Bar Music Center in Dublin and were attended by more than 300 hostel owners and managers from around the world.
Here is the full list of winners:
1. Friendly Fun Frank’s Backpacker Hostel, Riga, Latvia
2. Picasso's Corner Backpackers Hostel, Malaga, Spain
3. Mama's Hostel, Krakow, Poland
4. Oasis Backpackers Hostel, Granada, Spain
5. Athens Backpackers, Athens, Greece
6. Wombats City Hostel, Munich, Germany