Zostel Expands to 20+ Destinations Across Europe with Safestay Partnership

Zostel has just announced a major expansion into Europe through a partnership with Safestay, one of the continent’s largest hostel groups.

Scale:
24 Safestay hostels across 20+ European cities will be listed on Zostel.com, while 82 Zostel properties will appear on Safestay.com.

Reach:
Together, the networks cover 8,000+ beds across Europe, the UK, India, Nepal, and Thailand.

Community:
Zostel’s nearly 3 million travellers now gain direct access to Safestay’s European destinations without relying on third-party booking platforms.

Timeline:
About 20 properties will go live within a week, with full rollout by June 2026.

Standards:
Both brands commit to minimum service benchmarks—covering safety, security, fire standards, equality, and data protection.

Strategic Impact
- Expected 40–50% growth in international bookings for Zostel over the next year.
- Projected INR 8–10 crore incremental revenue by 2027, thanks to stronger direct bookings and reduced OTA commissions.
- Strengthens Zostel’s positioning as a global community-driven hostel brand, while Safestay gains access to India’s booming outbound travel market.

Leadership Voices
- Aviral Gupta (Zostel CEO): “With Safestay, our community now has local friends across 22 European cities. One global community, not just one global brand.”
- Larry Lipman (Safestay MD): Called it a “capital-light, scalable model” that opens new customer segments and long-haul markets.

This move is perfectly timed: India-to-Europe travel grew 17% in 2025, with more travellers combining Europe and India in one trip.