# Hostelz Hostel Listings Scraper (`parseforge/hostelz-scraper`) Actor

Scrapes hostel listings from Hostelz.com by city or country. Returns each hostel as a flat row with its name, rating, price, and location details.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/parseforge/hostelz-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [ParseForge](https://apify.com/parseforge) (community)
- **Categories:** Travel, E-commerce, Other
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 0 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $19.00 / 1,000 results

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

Actors are web data automations that power AI and operations. They run on the Apify platform to scrape websites, process data, connect APIs, and automate workflows.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.
Actors are written with capital "A".

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.
The best way to integrate Actors is as follows.

- **AI agents and MCP clients** — the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/integrations/mcp.md) at `https://mcp.apify.com` (remote, streamable HTTP, OAuth on first use).
- **Agentic workflows and local Actor development** — [Agent Skills](https://apify.com/.well-known/agent-skills/index.json) with the [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): `npm install -g apify-cli`, then `apify login`.
- **JavaScript/TypeScript projects** — the official [JS/TS client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md): `npm install apify-client`.
- **Python projects** — the official [Python client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md): `pip install apify-client`.
- **Any other language** — the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md).

For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below.

For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt).

# README

[![ParseForge](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ParseForge/apify-assets/main/banner.jpg)](https://apify.com/parseforge?fpr=vmoqkp)

### Hostelz Hostel Listings Scraper

**Scrape hostel listings and prices from Hostelz.com for any city or country, up to a million per run.** Every listing includes its name, rating, price, and location details. No login or API key. Export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML.

Hostelz.com aggregates hostels from multiple booking platforms, but browsing manually across cities is slow and you cannot export the data. This Actor reads the public search results directly, filters by location, and returns each hostel in one consistent row. It works for any city or country Hostelz covers, from Barcelona to Bangkok.

| Who uses it | What they scrape Hostelz for |
|---|---|
| Budget travel bloggers | Compile the cheapest hostels in a destination for a roundup post. |
| Market researchers | Track hostel supply and average prices across European capitals. |
| Travel app builders | Seed a hostel database with names, ratings, and locations. |
| Solo travelers | Compare hostel prices and review scores for an upcoming trip. |

### What it does

This Actor collects hostel listings from Hostelz.com by search location and returns each one as a flat row.

- 🌍 **Location search:** enter any city or country name, like Barcelona or Thailand, and get all hostels Hostelz returns for it.
- 📊 **Structured output:** each hostel comes as a flat row with its name, rating, price, and location details, ready for analysis.
- ⚡ **Scale on demand:** set a maximum from 1 to 1,000,000 hostels per run, so you can sample a few or pull the whole destination.

Results export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML, or straight from the API.

### What you can do with Hostelz data

**🗺️ Build a destination price map.**

A travel startup scrapes hostel prices for 50 cities to populate a budget heatmap on their booking tool.

**📝 Research a blog post.**

A blogger pulls the top 20 rated hostels in Lisbon, with prices and review scores, to write a best hostels guide.

**📈 Monitor market supply.**

A hospitality analyst runs the Actor monthly across 10 countries to track how many hostels are listed and their average price.

**🔍 Compare before you book.**

A solo traveler scrapes all hostels in Medellin, sorts by rating and price in a spreadsheet, and picks the best value.

### Why choose this scraper

|  | What you get |
|---|---|
| **No API needed** | Reads the public search pages directly, no registration or key required. |
| **Any location** | Works for every city and country Hostelz.com covers worldwide. |
| **Fixed schema** | Every run returns the same fields, so you can merge runs without cleaning. |

### How it compares

No other Store actor targets Hostelz the same way, so the honest comparison is with the alternatives teams actually weigh.

| | Hostelz Hostel Listings Scraper | Build it in-house | By hand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Setup | Run it now, zero config | Days of engineering | None, but hours per pull |
| When Hostelz changes | Maintained for you | You fix it | You re-learn the page |
| Proxies, retries, anti-bot | Built in | Your problem | Browser only |
| Output | Fixed JSON schema, CSV/Excel export | Whatever you build | Copy-paste |
| Cost | Pay per result | Engineering time | Analyst hours |

### Configure the run

Drive the Actor with a city or country name, and set a maximum number of hostels to collect so only the top matches reach your dataset. The Input tab lists every parameter.

A first run with the defaults:

```json
{
  "searchLocation": "Barcelona",
  "maxItems": 10
}
```

A larger pull:

```json
{
  "searchLocation": "Barcelona",
  "maxItems": 200
}
```

### Pricing

Pay-per-result: **$0.021 per result** collected. You pay only for the results written to your dataset.

| Results collected | Approximate cost |
|---|---|
| 100 results | $2.10 |
| 1,000 results | $21.00 |
| 10,000 results | $210.00 |

New Apify accounts start with $5 in free credit.

### Free users

Free-plan runs return up to 10 results as a preview. [Upgrade your Apify plan](https://console.apify.com/sign-up?fpr=vmoqkp) to collect up to 1,000,000 results per run.

### Run it

1. [Create a free Apify account with $5 in credit](https://console.apify.com/sign-up?fpr=vmoqkp).
2. Open the [Hostelz Hostel Listings Scraper](https://apify.com/parseforge/hostelz-scraper?fpr=vmoqkp).
3. Set your inputs and any filters, then click **Start**.
4. Export the results as CSV, Excel, JSON, or XML from the **Dataset** tab.

Run it programmatically through the [Apify API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2) (`run-sync-get-dataset-items`) or the [ApifyClient](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js) for JavaScript and Python.

### Use with AI agents (MCP)

Give an AI agent live access to Hostelz through the Model Context Protocol. Add the Actor to Claude, Cursor, or any MCP client:

```bash
claude mcp add --transport http apify "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=parseforge/hostelz-scraper"
```

Then prompt it in plain language to run the scraper and read back the results.

### Troubleshooting

**Why am I getting no results?**

Check that the location name is spelled correctly and matches how Hostelz.com writes it. Try a well-known city like Barcelona first. If the location is valid but still returns nothing, Hostelz may not have listings for that area.

**The run stopped before reaching my maxItems limit.**

The Actor stops when Hostelz has no more listings for the given location. Your maxItems limit is an upper bound, not a guarantee. Try a broader location like a country name instead of a small town.

**Some hostels are missing from the results.**

The Actor scrapes what Hostelz shows on its search pages. If a hostel is not listed on Hostelz, or if Hostelz pagination skips it, the Actor cannot collect it. Try a more specific location search if you are looking for a particular hostel.

**The run is taking a long time.**

Large maxItems values and locations with many hostels will take longer. Reduce the maxItems to speed up the run, or let it complete. The Actor processes pages sequentially to avoid overloading the site.

**I get an error about the location input.**

Make sure the searchLocation field is not empty. It must contain a city or country name as a text string. The Actor cannot run without a location to search.

### FAQ

| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| What is Hostelz.com? | Hostelz.com is a hostel search engine that compares prices and availability from multiple booking sites like Hostelworld and Booking.com. This Actor scrapes the listings Hostelz displays for any location. |
| Do I need an API key or login? | No. The Actor reads the public search pages on Hostelz.com, so no account, API key, or authentication is required. |
| What locations can I search? | You can search for any city or country that Hostelz.com returns results for. Try Barcelona, Madrid, Thailand, or Berlin as a starting point. |
| How many hostels can I scrape in one run? | You set the maximum, from 1 up to 1,000,000. The Actor stops when it reaches your limit or when Hostelz has no more listings for that location. |
| What data fields does the Actor return? | Each row includes the hostel name, rating, price, location details, and other fields Hostelz shows on its search results. The exact fields are listed in the sample output on the Actor's page. |
| Can I export the data? | Yes. You can export your dataset to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML directly from the Apify run console. |
| Does this Actor scrape reviews or availability? | No. It collects the listing data shown on Hostelz search result pages. Individual reviews and real-time availability are not included. |
| Is this Actor affiliated with Hostelz.com? | No. This is an independent scraper built on Apify. It is not endorsed by or affiliated with Hostelz.com. |
| How often can I run this Actor? | You can run it as often as you like. For regular monitoring, you can schedule it to run daily or weekly from the Apify console. |
| What if Hostelz changes its website layout? | The Actor is maintained to adapt to site changes. If you notice it stops returning data, report the issue and it will be updated. |

### Related actors

Browse the full [ParseForge collection](https://apify.com/parseforge?fpr=vmoqkp) for more scrapers.

🆘 **Need help?** Email parseforge@protonmail.com with your run ID, your input, and what you expected.

⚠️ **Disclaimer.** This Actor is unofficial and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Hostelz.com. It collects only publicly available data. You are responsible for using the collected data in compliance with the source's terms of service and applicable data-protection laws, including GDPR, CCPA, and PIPL. Do not use it to collect personal data unlawfully.

# Actor input Schema

## `searchLocation` (type: `string`):

City or country to search for hostels (e.g. Barcelona, Madrid, Thailand).

## `maxItems` (type: `integer`):

Maximum number of hostels to collect per run.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "searchLocation": "Barcelona",
  "maxItems": 10
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

No description

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "searchLocation": "Barcelona",
    "maxItems": 10
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("parseforge/hostelz-scraper").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = {
    "searchLocation": "Barcelona",
    "maxItems": 10,
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("parseforge/hostelz-scraper").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "searchLocation": "Barcelona",
  "maxItems": 10
}' |
apify call parseforge/hostelz-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,parseforge/hostelz-scraper"
        }
    }
}

```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/lauEgi2VfITPkIe9g/builds/CeJqAP4na0J8GlvC5/openapi.json