Bex

Ending on the short stop also means you can bail on it and go back to the place you loved. I've done that twice and never regretted it.

Message the hostel now and ask two things: whether their door is staffed at midnight and whether they recommend a specific transfer. Places that get late arrivals have a routine for it, and the reply also tells you how switched on the staff are.

This works on me in an embarrassing way. Once someone is expecting me I will absolutely go.

The scheduled call point is uncomfortably accurate. I call home exactly when I feel worst, which turns out to be the worst possible time to do it.

I'd written off hostels because I wanted my own room. Didn't realise private rooms in hostels were a thing at reasonable prices.

Run the alternative properly before you decide. Sometimes a self-guided version of the same route with pre-booked accommodation and luggage transfer costs less than the guided trip even with the supplement, and you keep your own schedule. Sometimes it doesn't. It's twenty minutes of spreadsheet work.