Please tell me what I need to know about youth hostels.

[onitlikeacarbonnet]

I took my 2 dc (age 10 and 12) to Alnwick for a couple of days during the Easter break. I booked the youth hostel on a whim but they loved it so much I’m considering a YHA membership.
But I have some reservations regarding costs and suitability for families (esp as a single mum).
Alnwick was in a nice building, central, and had great facilities for families but it was quite expensive (£100ish for a family room) when a b&b could be cheaper.
I’d appreciate if you could please help me make up my mind one way or another by giving me all your pros and cons.

Would a membership get you a better rate? I suppose YH's have facilities like kitchens, communal lounges, ping pong tables etc sometimes so it's about the group experience. They have changed a lot. They're often in great locations for outdoorsy activities.

Do they all have family rooms? Bear in mind they don't provide single sex facilities. Individuals can use the toilets, showers etc that they feel most comfortable using I.e, you could get a male using the female showers and toilets and dorms.

Personally I wouldn't touch YHA with a barge pole for this reason.

Youth hostels in the uk aren’t the cheap option they used to be. I used them mainly in Europe when the kids were small but tended to use independent ones.
I honestly think you may be better with a family room in a hotel or b and b.

If it's cost that's your motivator Premier Inn and travel lodge probably work out cheaper (and cleaner).

Some don't have family rooms and many don't have en suite so it would restrict where you could go.

Yes, they have family rooms. Under 12s must be in a private family room, they cannot stay in a dorm even if accompanied by their parents. 12-15 year olds can be in a dorm but must be with an adult of the same gender. Some family rooms are en-suite, others have shared facilities.

Oh I LOVE youth hostels. They’re often the most beautiful buildings and can have amazing grounds. Some have cafes / restaurants but they’ll also have good self catering facilities too. Membership is a no brainier - it’s cheap and you can easily make it back with the discount from a short stay. The bunk bed vibe might not do it for you and I don’t think I’d go with really young kids but pick the right one and they’re brilliant. And can be loads cheaper than a hotel, depending on where you are.

oh and I’ve always had a private bathroom when I’ve been with the kids.

I stayed in a few (family room) and didn’t really like their beds especially the metal frame around. However most of them are situated conveniently so clearly a bonus.

Another YH fan here. Get a family room with its own loo and shower. Beautiful buildings and it’s much more relaxing having access to a kitchen and common space than in a hotel. I’ve just been playing around with availability and prices and it’s marginally cheaper than premier inn with membership

I recently stayed in a London hostel, in a private room with my son for less than half the price of a hotel. I'll definitely do it again.

We liked youth hostelling , interesting places and buildings. But in the end didn't always feel like a budget option, also i began to get paranoid about bed bugs-never saw any though. My children were younger and I also over thought about who else was there, how to supervise in the communal areas without looking like a paranoid parent. Loved Boggle Hole.

Every single time I've looked to stay in one (me and two kids in family room en-suite) it was cheaper to get a hotel. Perhaps in London it's cheaper.

The advantage would be rural locations, although I've never found them the cheapest option there either!

So it comes down to specific locations and the atmosphere.

The benefit over a hotel is having somewhere you can cook. For me, who wants to cook and wash up as little as possible, that's not a selling point.

Have a look at the budget hotel chains. Some include kids' breakfast. I've found if you download their apps and join the loyalty programme (free) you get about a 10% room discount over Booking. Depending on where you're looking on going, that may be better.

Avoid YHA St Paul's unless you don't mind being woken up every 15 mins by the bells!

Other than that we love YH, always been the cheapest option in the places we've stayed. Always had a private room with dc, sometimes with en suite. Generally the communal showers (as in individual but multi-use) are on the same corridor as other family rooms so I've been OK about sharing, no disruption from other families.

Need to book well in advance for the cheapest rooms, and the YHA website can be a bit clunky.

We've had a couple of good breaks away in them. You do need to research to find one with the right facilities, but we've been able to get an ensuite room for 5 for £50 per night which is far cheaper than any hotels or BnB I've been able to find in the same location. Having a kitchen so being able to do breakfast yourself is a good money saver. The ones we've stayed at have had lots of outdoor space for young DC to charge around, and they are full of families so nobody bats an eyelid at them doing that.

I'd always check price Vs other options though. Our membership paid itself back on a single stay, so isn't the simplest option to wait until you want to go somewhere again where they are the best option?

We camp at youth hostels and love it. Brilliant locations, the kitchen etc. Also - it's just got a lovely communal feel at the Starr and end of the day with people chatting about where they've been and what they're doing. Nothing too full on but quite nice, especially when I'm on my own with the children.

Worked for us as a family with three kids. Fantastic locations - the ones in the Lakes, Snowdonia and on the coast in South Wales especially... and if you can travel with friends even better. Kids loved the freedom and space. I often took the kids on my own for a couple of days. Liked the balance of catered and members' kitchen.
If you receive their mailing, they'll often have 25% off deals on top of members discount and the discount for bringing children.

We had a phase of youth hostelling when the dc were a bit younger. The buildings are often really lovely (eg we stayed in one that is a castle) and the locations great. Plus the kitchen is handy.

But ultimately we stopped because the price just didn’t reflect the ‘budget / basic’ vibe. Once you can stay in a premier inn for half the price & not sleep on a wipe clean mattress or share a bathroom the location and kitchen just don’t make it worth it.

My parents gave me life membership to the YHA as a 21st present and I've had so much value out of it (that's about 37 years so far!) We took our children from the age of 2 upwards.
The best holidays were when they were teens and we booked the adventure packages. A week's stay, full board (no cooking or washing up for us) which included canoeing, rock climbing, ghyll scrambling, high ropes and low ropes and abseiling. In the evenings there would be night hikes, den building, barbeques and camp fires, quiz nights and table tennis. They loved it all and we had great family holidays together. Usually on Dartmoor or in the Lake District. Now they've left home DH and I use the YHA for city breaks and hiking. Many have their own restaurants and bars and are great for relaxing in.

I don't understand the comment about single sex showers. Each (single) shower is in its own lockable room, or at least they are in all the YHAs I've stayed in. It's been a while since I stayed in a big city YHA though so maybe they're different. The difference to Premier Inn etc is they have self-catering facilities and communal dining rooms, plus they're often located in rural areas with lots of outdoor stuff to do nearby. They can be great value if you book well in advance.

My top tip would be earplugs. YHAs can be very noisy, especially if your room is above a communal area.

I've been Youth Hostelling for about 40 years.

They really, really vary.

I love YHs, and particularly so when the dc were the sort of ages your are, and will be over the next few years.
As a pp said, there are often things they can do whilst there - like football / pool / table tennis tables.
I always prefer to self cater - the kitchens and dining rooms are usually sociable places. But you can mix things if you want to - buy the main meals, but still have the opportunity to make your own drinks / make a packed lunch etc so you aren't paying out for those things all the time.
There are so many beautiful buildings, and others which are just in beautiful places.
If you use them, it is definitely worth getting membership - you then pay less for each booking, even before all the e-mails they send out with further discounts throughout the year.

Hi sorry I didn’t mean to disappear. Thanks for all your input. Lots of food for thought. But I’m still not sure 🙈

Cost is the main driver and it’s why I’m dithering. Weighing up the basic convenience of a yh over the “luxury” of a hotel or b&b.
In my mind, I’d like to take the dc away more than I have previously (I do feel like my lack of confidence has restricted their experiences since we were a 2 parent family 😔) but, realistically, unless it’s very cheap, it’s probably not doable more than once or twice in the next year and that’s where I’m trying to figure out whether I’d make the membership outlay back in savings while not spending more than I would in a Travelodge overall.
Its great to hear your recommendations though and I’ll definitely look at some of these. And would appreciate any other specific locations you’d suggest.
I guess I’m looking for a short break unicorn.
Thanks all.

Only one I've stayed in as a family of four was Malham, which was good. Although the room was boiling (it was a hot summer though). We had access to a bathroom, but it wasn't en-suite.

I think if you factor in the cost of meals then YH are bound to be cheaper surely
Depends where you want to go as well, not many Travel Lodges out in the sticks. If you have a family room in a Travel Lodge are there lounges, games rooms etc that you can access or do you have to just stay in your room?

Do you camp? Many YHs have camping fields and you can use the kitchen and communal areas in the YH. Can be very reasonable but relies on you having camping equipment or being able to borrow it. Some have camping pods too but these get booked up very quickly.

Use them quite a lot.
Best thing is the shared kitchen so you can cook.
We also like the communal attitude - last time we went away, I chatted with families and people from around the world in the lounge.

We had a family room. I think they are very social and relaxed.

I think they're only cheap if you stay in a dorm.
Any kind of private room and a hotel/gest house. B&B is cheaper and all of those come with a TV and kettle in the room usually.
Also breakfast is not unlimited in a hostel. If you're the last one down for breakfast you can end up with nothing whereas in a hotel it would be topped up.