Homesick in a Hostel or PG: Your First Few Weeks

2026-10-09

The first night is usually fine. You’re tired, the room is new, and there’s a bag to unpack. It’s the third or fourth evening that gets you. The mess food tastes of nothing, the corridor is loud with people who already seem to know each other, and you catch yourself scrolling through old photos of your own room.

If that sounds familiar, you’re not doing anything wrong. Feeling homesick in a hostel or PG is one of the most common parts of moving away, and for most people it eases as the new place starts to feel like theirs. Here’s why the early weeks are so heavy, and the small, practical things that help.

Why the first few weeks feel the hardest

At home, most of your day ran on autopilot. You knew where everything was, what dinner would be, and who you’d see. In a hostel or PG, every small thing needs a decision. Where do you buy soap? Which washroom is free before class? Is it okay to keep the light on? None of it is hard on its own. Together, it’s tiring, and when you’re tired you miss home more.

You also lose a lot at once. Familiar food, familiar faces, your own space, sometimes even your language. Homesickness is about missing all of that, not only the people. That’s why it can hit you in odd moments, like smelling tadka from someone’s room or hearing a ringtone your mother uses.

What it can look like

• Thinking about home a lot, especially in the evenings
• Feeling low or teary without a clear reason
• Not wanting to leave your room, even when you’re bored
• Sleeping badly or skipping meals
• Counting the days until your next trip home
• Comparing everything here with how it was there

Most of this is a normal reaction to a big change. Our guide on what homesickness is explains it in more detail.

Small things that make a new room feel like yours

A room starts to feel like home when it holds your things and your habits. You can speed that up.

1. Bring a few everyday things from home. Your own bedsheet, pillow cover, or mug. Familiar textures and smells stop a room feeling borrowed.
2. Unpack in the first two days. Living out of a suitcase keeps you in visitor mode.
3. Put up two or three photos. A few are a comfort. A whole wall can turn into something you stare at every night.
4. Claim one corner. Even if it’s just your desk, make it the place where your day starts and ends.
5. Learn the practical stuff early. Mess timings, the warden’s number, the nearest chemist, and how to get to the station. Knowing your way around takes a surprising amount of worry away.

Build a routine before you build a friend group

You don’t need a best friend in week one. You need a few people you say hi to, and a day with some shape to it. Routine does a lot of quiet work when everything else is new.

Pick fixed times for waking up, eating, and one bit of movement, like a walk after dinner. Eat in the mess at roughly the same time each day, and you’ll start seeing the same faces. That’s how most hostel friendships begin, over repeated small hellos rather than one big conversation.

Easy ways to meet people

• Keep your door open when you’re in, if your hostel allows it
• Say yes to one plan a week, even when you’d rather stay in
• Join one club, sports group, or society, and go back more than once
• Offer something small, like chai, notes from a class, or help with the Wi-Fi

If you’re in a PG

PGs often have less built-in community than college hostels. Roommates may work odd shifts, and nobody organises a welcome night. It helps to make your own anchors. A gym, an evening class, a weekend walk group, or colleagues who also moved to the city. Our post on feeling homesick after moving for work has more ideas for that situation.

Some evenings you just want to talk without explaining the whole backstory. SelfMind is a private AI companion you can talk to by text or by voice, any time. It doesn’t replace your friends or family. It can help you get through a hard evening and work out what you need next.

Staying in touch with home without getting stuck

Calling home helps, as long as it doesn’t take the place of settling in. A few habits make the difference.

• Set a regular call time. A planned call every few days gives you something to look forward to, without you checking your phone all evening.
• Share the good bits too. If every call is a list of problems, it’s harder for you and for your family.
• Don’t save all the hard feelings for late-night calls. Talking it through earlier in the day, with someone here, often helps more.

We look at this more closely in Does Calling Home Help Homesickness?.

When it's more than settling in

For most people, homesickness slowly gets lighter as the weeks go by. It’s worth talking to someone if:

• It isn’t easing at all after several weeks
• You’re missing classes, work, or meals because of how you feel
• You can’t sleep, or you’re sleeping most of the day
• You feel hopeless, or you’ve stopped enjoying anything
• You have thoughts of hurting yourself

Your college counsellor is a good first step, and most colleges have one. iCall, a free counselling service run by TISS, takes calls at 9152987821, Monday to Saturday, 8 am to 9 pm. Our guide to telling homesickness and depression apart can help you put words to what you’re feeling. If a big life change has knocked you off balance for a while, you may also find our glossary entry on adjustment disorder useful. If you’re struggling right now, Tele-MANAS, India’s free mental health helpline, is open 24×7 at 14416.

How long does homesickness in a hostel last?

For most people, homesickness is strongest in the first few weeks and eases as routines, friendships and familiarity build up. There’s no fixed timeline. If it isn’t easing after a month or two, or it’s stopping you from attending classes, eating or sleeping, talk to a counsellor or a doctor.

Conclusion

Feeling homesick in a hostel or PG doesn’t mean you made the wrong choice. It means you left something that mattered. The new place becomes familiar slowly, one routine and one hello at a time.

Be patient with yourself in the meantime. And if tonight is a hard one, SelfMind is there to talk it through.

Frequently Asked Questions