Call it serendipity. Just as hostels in Europe started to smarten up their act, offering designer double rooms along with the usual dorms, the you-know-what crunched and a whole new wave of travellers started looking for their chic on the cheap. Result: we’re all hostellers now.

Only there’s something we’ve overlooked. Hostels aren’t confined to cities: more and more are popping up by the seaside. Which, if you’ve looked at the price of hotels on the Med recently, is good news.

True, they’re not yet as sophisticated as their urban counterparts. You won’t find many with pools — but if you want to swim, that big watery thing with boats in it is a few steps away. The rooms don’t all come with flatscreen TVs, but if that’s an important consideration, you’ve missed the point.

What all our choices below have is private double rooms (dorms aren’t for everyone), great locations near the beach, a cool, laid-back atmosphere and outstandingly low rates. Which sounds to us like a recipe for an early-summer short break in the sun. Where did we put those shorts?

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CASCAIS BEACH HOSTEL
Portugal

Weekending Lisboetas adore Cascais, and no wonder. Only 15 miles from the capital, it’s pretty, with an intact old town and fine Victorian buildings along the seafront; there’s a small but active fishing fleet, so the seafood’s excellent; and there are three sandy beaches just minutes from the winding lanes.

Smack in the middle of it all, in a cute building close to the markets and the Praia da Ribiera, Cascais Beach Hostel is an absolute find. Opened in 2007, it approaches boutique-hotel standards, but at hostel prices. The spacious doubles are simple, cool and stylish, it has a lovely indoor lounge and an outdoor pool, and there’s air-con, WiFi, even a massage service. For all this, you pay... well, see below. We’re embarrassed to say.

Dorm beds from £16, doubles from £43; 00 35 1309 906421, cascaisbeachostel.com.

Fly to Lisbon with Ryanair (0871 246 0000, ryanair.com) or BMI Baby (bmibaby.com)

SUNFLOWER CITY
Rimini

Once Italy’s favourite bucket-and-spade resort, it’s now the national clubbing capital. Designer hotels have opened up all over — Ron Arad’s extraordinary DuoMo, and the first from the fashion chain Miss Sixty — to cope with the weekend influx of label-clad Roman party goers. Big names, big prices: Sunflower City is a fine budget alternative. It’s in a good spot, 200yd from the powdery beach and a short walk from the cafes of the charming town centre.

Inside it’s recently refurbished and rather natty: yes, some of the wallpaper is on the psychedelic side, but arrive back after a night at the superclubs around Misano Monte and it’ll look positively restrained. Dorm beds from £20, doubles from £45, B&B; 00 39 0541 373432, sunflowerhostel.com. Fly to Rimini from Stansted, Bristol or East Midlands with Ryanair (0871 246 0000, ryanair.com)

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