With its Art Deco buildings, bikini-clad women and late-night party scene, experts say South Beach is becoming a hot tourist destination for young travelers looking for places where they could spend less money on accommodation and more on sightseeing.

Hostels on South Beach offer private bathrooms with each room and have individual wall units or central air conditioning for those hot Miami nights. Anywhere between three to 14 travelers are cramped in one room at a hostel, sleeping on bunk beds. A room with 12 beds can run for $18 a night per person; an eight-bed room is $18; $30-$40 for smaller rooms. Some also private rooms for two-three people, those are popular, hostel operators say, in the slow season when travelers want to save some money but still take in the experience.

At Jazz on South Beach Hostel, some rooms are divided by gender while other rooms are mixed. Depending on occupancy, and if there are any empty rooms, people who are traveling together can request to room together – just like they would in a hotel.

Visitors are provided with bed sheets, a towel and a locker to store their belongings while you’re out exploring some great destinations. Some hostels have a kitchen for visitors to prepare their own food, while most offer computers with Internet access and a lounge area to watch television.

Bobby Gera, General Manager of Jazz said that the point of the hostel is to meet other people. “Or they can just pay for the rest of the beds in the room,” essentially turning the dorm room into a private room.

Hostels has always been more popular in Europe and Asia, where the beds are seen as a cheap rest stop. Hostels on South Beach focus on creating a sense of community by organizing trips to the Florida Keys or Fort Lauderdale, enjoying the Miami club scene without waiting in line, or by hosting Sunday beach parties on the sand.

According to Hosteling International USA, a nonprofit hostel organization which oversees the largest network of hostels in the U.S., the hosteling industry in the U.S. generated $17.8 million for the 2007 fiscal year. Hotel experts note that the industry is going through a transformation, especially in South Florida, where discount hotels are now offering hostel room prices.