Hostelity in the US

I have just returned from a trip to the south of Chile where I stayed in quite a few hostels.  I also stayed in hostels for my other trips to Buenos Aires and La Serena.  These are the first times that I have stayed in a hostel and before coming to Chile, I did not even know what the word meant.  As I look at my bills from my variety of vacations, I am realizing that these hostels are a fraction of the price of a hotel in the US.  It is the perfect form of lodging for a university student, such as myself.  I now wonder why hostels rarely exist in the US and why they are not a popular option for traveling within the country.  This is evidently a cultural difference and I think that it can be attributed to the role of status in the mind of the American cosumer.  Lascu's marketing principles book explains that "often, the products consumed convey messages about the consumer in the same way that language does."  Americans definitely take this to heart when making purchase decisions and like to appear of high status.  This past week at the hostel, I met quite a few people who planned on traveling for a few years.  Some were Australian and others were European, but none were from the United States.  American workers seem to receive the least amout of allowed vacation time when compared to other western nations.  This contributes to why American vacations tend to be shorter than individuals of other coutries.  When traveling for an extended period of time, such as a year, budgeting is an crucial aspect which makes the hostel a viable option.  On the contrary, I believe that since American usually take less frequent and shorter vacations, they can often be associated with massive consumption.  In the rare instance, that an American is on a break from work, they want to "live it up".  This means saving up for a nice hotel room and a fancy restaraunt.  The idea of sharing a room with complete strangers when on a vacation, troubles Americans and conflicts with their self-perception of status.  As the economy changes and budgeting becomes a priority for more Americans, I am curious to see if more hostels emerge within the nation.  As for now, the American mind set is that a night at the Marriot beats a week at a no name hostel.