(CNN)  -- Skier Paul Wampach, a 49-year-old manager from Chicago, Illinois, hardly matches the stereotype of a hostel dweller: an under-30 backpacker from outside the United States who can't afford fancy lodging.



Travelers looking to meet new people might consider staying at hostels, say experts.



For the fifth time in two years, Wampach plans to head to the Fireside Inn in Breckenridge, Colorado, where he's booked a dorm-style room for less than $40 a night during his ski vacation.



"If I'm traveling by myself, there's no reason to splurge," said Wampach, who is single and described himself as neither rich nor poor. "That $40 or $50 [I save on lodging] goes to food, beer and ski-lift tickets." And amenities such as Internet access and a hot tub at the hostel add creature comforts to the trip.



Wampach's travel habits are consistent with a growing number of travelers called "flashpackers."



They are usually over 30, in mid-to-late career and can afford higher-end hotels but instead choose budget options -- albeit better-furnished and well-kept ones -- because it fits their lifestyle, said Mark Vidalin, Marketing Director for Hostelling International USA, a nonprofit network of hostels. Flashpackers also tend to stay connected by traveling with gadgets and seeking accommodations with free Wi-Fi, Vidalin said.



The term "flashpacker" likely originated in Australia, and combines the term "flash" -- meaning "stylish" -- with "backpacker," according to Vidalin.



Flashpackers and regular backpackers are booking hostels at U.S. vacation destinations in full force this year. Attendance at hostels has been consistently rebounding from lows following the September 11, 2001.



This year's turbulent economy appears to be fueling demand for hostel space.



Heading into ski season, Loree Weisman, the owner of the Crested Butte International Lodge and Hostel in Crested Butte, Colorado, said her hostel bookings are trending ahead of the town's other lodging options -- and up about 25 percent from her bookings by the same time last year.



Amid the unsteady economy, she said, people "don't want to give up a vacation, but they might need to adapt a vacation."



Instead of canceling pricey vacations due to economic fears, many travelers are rejecting accommodations with private bedrooms and bathrooms.



They're going for hostels with their dorm-style bunk beds, community bathrooms, and, most importantly for many hostel dwellers, shared living spaces.



"There's a sense of community, and there's a social aspect to it that's pretty significant," said Jim Williams, editor of "The Hostel Handbook" and a former hostel owner. "That is the heart of hostelling. You don't go to a hotel and lock the door."



Wampach agreed, saying that hostels offer "a tremendous way to meet people from different cultures and talk to people you wouldn't normally talk to."



But the communal atmosphere of hostels leaves many travelers skeptical, particularly Americans, Williams said.



"Americans have privacy issues. If you suggested to most people they were going to share a room with five other people, most of them wouldn't want to do it," he said.



What if a roommate snores or what if he smells or doesn't stop talking? -- these are legitimate questions for travelers considering the hostel option, said Williams.



Frequent hostel dweller Mandy Creighton, 30, said she enjoys the overall hostel experience, but it's a "huge challenge" to "walk through the room and to my room without having to talk to 20 people."



Creighton and her partner, Ryan Mlynarczyk, 32, who are documentary filmmakers from Sebastopol, California, are bicycling around the United States for a year and stopping in ecologically sustainable communities along the way.



Their choice to stay in hostels is rooted in a desire to maintain a green lifestyle by sharing resources as well as saving money.



Mlynarczyk experienced the other side of the privacy issue when he stepped
What are "flashpackers"? What are flashpackers? What are many Americans uncomfortable with? What is the "heart of hostelling"? What is a "flashpacker" ?
usually over 30, in mid-to-late career and can afford higher-end hotels but The term "flashpacker" likely originated in Australia, and combines the term "flash" -- meaning "stylish" -- with "backpacker," the communal atmosphere of hostels "There's a sense of community, and there's a social aspect to it that's pretty significant," They are usually over 30, in mid-to-late career and can afford higher-end hotels but
question: What are "flashpackers"?, answer: usually over 30, in mid-to-late career and can afford higher-end hotels but | question: What are flashpackers?, answer: The term "flashpacker" likely originated in Australia, and combines the term "flash" -- meaning "stylish" -- with "backpacker," | question: What are many Americans uncomfortable with?, answer: the communal atmosphere of hostels | question: What is the "heart of hostelling"?, answer: "There's a sense of community, and there's a social aspect to it that's pretty significant," | question: What is a "flashpacker" ?, answer: They are usually over 30, in mid-to-late career and can afford higher-end hotels but