A hotel room for less than a dollar a night sounds almost impossible. But in Dhaka, Hugh Abroad found a place where travellers can sleep on a boat for around 120 Bangladeshi taka, or about 90 cents. The foreign travel creator recently shared a series of videos from the unusual stay, showing viewers what the boats are actually like inside.
A Room Costs Just 120 BDT A Night
The accommodation is made up of boats placed on the river, with small rooms and bunk-style beds. Hugh first gets a tour of one of them and heads upstairs for a look at the river view.
The boats are also home to people who stay there for much longer than a night.
During his tour, Hugh meets two men who tell him they have each been staying on the boat for around two months. One says he runs a small business in Dhaka. Hugh estimates that sleeping on the boat could cost less than $30 for an entire month, calling it one of the cheapest monthly rentals he has come across.
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There is space to hang laundry too. Some of the beds have mosquito nets. The rooms, however, are extremely cramped.
In one video, Hugh takes viewers inside a room where a suitcase and backpacks are packed into the tiny space. He struggles with the heat and says it feels like around 40 degrees Celsius.
Then comes the bathroom. "Yuck. Oh my God, the smell," he says while looking at the toilet. "It's a hole in the ground. Oh, God." He also points out the smell and wonders if the waste goes directly into the river. Hugh later decides he wants to actually stay for the night. But when he goes to ask about getting a room, he finds that the manager is asleep.
Rather than give up, he looks for another boat. He is directed towards a newer one, which looks freshly painted compared with the earlier boats. Hugh steps inside and asks if he can stay for one night.
He is quoted a price of 120 Bangaldeshi taka for a single person. But the room is not available immediately. He is told it will be available at 8 pm, so he decides to look around while he waits.
The newer boat has around 20 rooms, according to Hugh's estimate, with about 10 on each side. The rooms are still tiny, but they appear to have some basic facilities. One room he sees has a fan and a window. The doors have padlocks on the outside. Hugh also shows viewers how people bathe on the boat, using buckets to pull river water up and wash themselves.
Internet Has Questions
The videos have since sparked a strong reaction online. Some viewers joked about how uncomfortable the accommodation looked. One person wrote, "I feel like prison is more inviting." Another said, "There's a sense of adventure, then there's tempting fate. This is a bad idea, totally unnecessary."
Others reacted to the conditions more dramatically, with one comment reading, "Sleep with one eye open." Another viewer joked, "I got malaria, tetanus, and diarrhea just watching this."
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But not everyone was against the idea. Some people pointed out the extremely low price. "Honestly, for less than a dollar, it's worth it," one person wrote. Another simply said, "Honestly, for a dollar a night, not bad lol."
There were also questions about why someone would choose such basic accommodation if they could afford something else. One commenter wrote, "If you have money, then why do you stay in a $1 hotel?"
Another praised Hugh's willingness to try places most tourists may not consider, writing, "Bro is so brave to go these damn places."
And, as expected, the price itself became part of the debate. One viewer asked, "So what are you expecting in this price?"
The videos have given viewers a close look at a side of Dhaka accommodation that is far removed from conventional hotels.
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