Remember the old (and not always clean) jokes about the traveler who must sleep in the barn? Well it's no joke any more! In Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, every traveler is invited to take a roll in the hay as hay hotels (or "heuhotels") are growing in popularity. As the name suggests, hay hotels allow you to sleep in the hay in the barn.
Like all lodging, hay hotels can range from luxury accomodations to bare essentials with fewer amenities than a hostel. You can even choose to sleep among the barn animals.
Without the need for new construction, heavy laundry bills or other forms of high energy consumption, hay hotels are also an effective means of low-impact, sustainable tourism.
And the best part? No beds to make! In the morning, you simply fluff the hay with a pitchfork.
