We talk a lot about thinking outside the box to earn money on the road, that reality is negotiable, and that it’s absolutely possible in today’s day and age to follow your dreams. And the dreams of a traveler can be anything from having more time to spend on the road, to volunteering with children in Africa, to opening your own hostel.

And that’s exactly what a team of British backpacking entrepreneurs have done. Opening a hostel that is.

With a dream that was born in the Australian outback and carried across the world in a backpack, Podstel isn’t really your average business start-up. Developing a business and designing a crowdfunding campaign while hitchhiking and backpacking 5,500 kilometres across an entire continent is certainly not without its difficulties, and whether it be intermittent WiFi or having no permanent base to work from, Team Podstel’s critics haven’t held back in telling them it can’t be done.

Team Podstel don’t do conventional.

But Team Podstel don’t do conventional. Despite the challenges, and in knowing that they are most inspired when doing what they truly love, the road really was the best office this hardy team of travel experts could think of.

A group of friends who have decided to open a hostel and have been traveling the world for the last 3 years searching for the perfect location, they are getting set to launch their crowdfunding campaign and will need the help of their supporters now more than ever. With the clock ticking, they will have 35 days to raise the £100,000 needed to open Podstel in Leipzig.

This week I chatted to Daniel Beaumont, Podstel’s founder. This is the story of the world’s first crowdsourced hostel.

What do you love the most about travelling?

Hands down, the people. They shape you, challenge you, make you laugh, and possibly even cry. It’s the people who will shape your experiences and help you create the stories that you will come to tell your grand kids in many years to come.

I also love  the “not knowing” spontaneous element of travel – not knowing where I will end up or who I will meet is quite a beautiful feeling. I think that’s the reason I left to travel in the first place. I didn’t like the prospect of routine as an investment banker and knowing how my day would pan out.

The best part of travel is hands down, the people.

The best part of travel is hands down, the people.

What inspired you to start travelling?

It wasn’t so much inspiration but rather a lack of fulfilment in what I was going to be doing. I was set to enter the investment banking industry and this didn’t motivate me in the slightest. I wasn’t passionate about it at all.

I hated the prospect of knowing I’d be sat in a cubicle each day working on something I wasn’t passionate about. So I decided I wanted to go and look for my passions.

At the time travel seemed like the greatest medium to test the waters. So despite being scared shitless and having no money to my name, I decided to make it happen by booking a one-way ticket to Australia.

As soon as I took the plunge, the inspiration begun to grow on the road. I’d meet so many inspirational souls who would stretch my realm and provoke me to rethink my own beliefs and values.

I decided to make it happen by booking a one-way ticket to Australia.

’d meet so many inspirational souls who would stretch my realm and provoke me to rethink my own beliefs and values.

What do you love the most about hostels?

Again, the people. All of the memorable hostels that I have been to (300+ now) in the past have always been unforgettable because of the people I’ve met and shared experiences with there. The place can be aesthetically beautiful and designed in the most immaculate way, but if there’s no vibe or community spirit, then there is no reason for me to be at the hostel – I might as well book into a hotel.

A hostel brings together diversity from all over the world – with a commonality that everyone shares – Travel. This is quite beautiful, and I think it’s hard to find an environment in society that shares the same magnitude of culture and diversity.

The best part of travel is hands down, the people.

The best part of travel is hands down, the people.

What inspired you to start up your own hostel?

My passions are education, self-development and travel. I couldn’t find anything that brought all these passions together so I decided that I would create a domain which did.

It wasn’t so much inspiration again, but instead the fact that nothing existed for me where I could combine my passions of self-development and travel at the same time. I searched long and hard but all I could find was retreats and then at the other end of the spectrum, hotels which were anything but sociable.

In addition, in most of the hostels I visited vibe, atmosphere and community seemed to be always missing so I decided that I would begin creating what didn’t exist.

Tell us about Podstel.

Well first things first is WHY we are doing it, and that goes as follows…

We believe in positive change through travel and education.

Travel and education are two driving factors for creating positive change. On the one hand travel broadens one’s experiences and education helps you develop the relevant skills to apply those experiences in a way that can benefit the world.

With this vision in mind, we are crowdfunding the resources to create an educational hostel with a twist. We will offer novel workshops, events and adventures (run by travellers/locals), which will provide travellers the chance to share their passions, experience new things and connect with likeminded people while they travel the world.

Travel and education are two driving factors for creating positive change.

The best part of travel is hands down, the people.

Why a CrowdSourced hostel?

Why not?

We are moving into an era focused on collaboration and open-source. Traditionally, businesses would hide innovation, resources and creativity from the public. No longer is that the case. Crowdsourcing platforms such as Indiegogo and Kickstarter have taken the industry by storm and redefined the way that new businesses are created.

I believe in people and sharing. Therefore, in my eyes it makes far more sense to work as a group. As a result, we want Podstel to be a reflection of all the different people we’ve met on the road.

Can you imagine a hostel that tells the story of 1,000s of different people from hundreds of countries?

Incredible.

What are some of the proposed ideas you have sourced from your crowd so far?

People have helped in many different ways so far. Whether it was helping to design the logo, marketing, social media, web design, blogging or networking – it’s all pushed Podstel in the right direction.

When we come to open the hostel, we’ll invite volunteers in to help design the hostel interior, run workshops, events and adventures. The hostel will be primarily run by volunteers (travellers) who will get the chance to learn how to run their own hostel. The most exciting facet in all of this is that it’s hard to imagine what type of ideas and people will come and help out at Podstel.

We are crowdfunding the resources to create an educational hostel with a twist.

We are crowdfunding the resources to create an educational hostel with a twist.

What will Podstel feel like?

Good question.

Podstel will feel like a home away from home. We want to make people feel welcome and valued. We want to adopt values of the home too: sharing, family, communal eating, trust and honesty.

To evoke these kinds of feelings we’ll have very welcoming staff, lots of memories and photos dotted around the hostel, use of warm lighting and welcoming colours, chilled music, and spaces where communities can form.

You believe creating a hostel which will serve as a catalyst for educating, inspiring and empowering fellow travellers. How will Podstel achieve this?

By creating a platform that facilitates the exchange of ideas, talents, information. We want to offer workshops, events and adventures to our guests which are based on 5 different categories: Self-Realisation, Entrepreneurship, Healthy Living/Lifestyle, Creative/Arts & Travel.

To achieve this we’ll activate the local community by bringing them in to teach and exchange with the traveller’s passing through. It’s an ambitious aim but very achievable with good organisation and a strong traveller’s network.

As soon as I took the plunge, the inspiration begun to grow on the road.

As soon as I took the plunge, the inspiration begun to grow on the road.

We’ll activate the local community by bringing them in to teach and exchange with the traveller’s passing through.

What kind of accommodation/rooms can travellers expect?

Dorm rooms with our exclusively designed Japanese pod capsules which will provide our guests with all the comfort and privacy they will need.

These Pods will have a light, plug socket, mirror and a curtain at the front. There will also be sufficient storage space underneath each pod.

How much will an average night cost?

About 15 euros for one night in an 8-bed dorm in Leipzig. One of our principles at Podstel is to always make our beds cheap.

We are travellers so understand that you’re all looking for a cheap place to crash!

When do you plan on opening your doors?

We are currently looking for a building in Leipzig. We will run our crowdfunding campaign in October 2015 to raise the funds for our first hostel.

After securing our property, we invite volunteers in to help from January 2016 onwards. The first Podstel will then be renovated and we aim to open officially by March 2016.

We aim to open officially by March 2016.

You’re opening originally in Berlin – why Berlin specifically? Will you expand to any other locations also?

This is kind of funny because we were meant to be starting up the first hostel in Berlin, however, we stumbled on a place called Leipzig and instantly fell in love with this place.

Leipzig sits 200km south of Berlin. It’s vibrant, creative, full of young people and very cheap. The city is well connected with great infrastructure and Ryanair are also flying here for less than £20!

It has everything that is needed for a Podstel to thrive, thus we made a group decision to settle in here and start working on building the first Podstel.

What are the different ways and perks for people to join the travel revolution and become involved?

There’s lots of ways people can be involved in the project. Whether it’s lending a helping hand renovating the first Podstel, building some furniture, teaching a workshop, or running an event.

Perks are going to be dependent on different price points. We don’t want to spoil any surprises but we’ll be offering an exclusive ebook, t-shirts and a chance to decide on features for the first Podstel. For now that’s all we can say.

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We are crowdfunding the resources to create an educational hostel with a twist.

We are crowdfunding the resources to create an educational hostel with a twist.

Daniel is a backpacking entrepreneur who has carried Podstel across the world in his backpack since finishing University in 2012. Dan’s main interests are philosophy, entrepreneurship and unconventional travel.

From adventures including motor biking 3,000km across Vietnam, hitchhiking 20,000km across North America and cycling the perimeter of Tasmania, Dan wants to empower younger people to pursue their own dreams and goals in life.

Follow Podstel’s journey by visiting their website www.podstel.com or liking them on Facebook.