This move will be welcomed by hostellers who have special dietary needs, need to get away early in the morning, or just prefer to skip breakfast in the morning. It should also be good news for people of limited means, for whom the cost saving of not having to pay for a breakfast could be significant.

Or so you would think, but when I asked YHA Assistant Treasurer Helen Maurice-Jones whether prices would be brought down in line with a return to self catering, the best she could offer was: “We’re looking at that”. No commitment has been made to any price reduction as a result of this decision.

The removal of compulsory B&B is described as a “trial” rather than a decisive change in policy. If prices aren’t changed, it’ll just be a trial of whether YHA can squeeze an extra fiver a night out of people without delivering anything extra for the money.

Surely YHA aren’t going to turn a popular decision into a massive own goal?

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According to a story in the Press & Journal, there are plans afoot to open a 30-bed hostel on the mile-long island of Easdale, the smallest inhabited island in the Inner Hebrides (though not a SYHA hostel, as far as I can tell). The island has some B&Bs and holiday cottages, but nowhere else for visitors to stay if, for example, they want to take part in the World Stone Skimming Championships.

The plan has been welcomed by local businesses, but not by residents like Tina Jordan who believe it would undermine the business of existing holiday cottages and cause noise nuisance through “alcohol-fuelled activity”.

I can’t say I’ve found hostels to be hotbeds of alcohol-crazed rowdiness. After a day out on the hills, most of us don’t have the energy even if we had the inclination. Could it be that what Ms Jordan is really afraid of is – crivens! – poor people.

If everyone on the island is as welcoming as she is, I’m not sure I want to go there anyway.

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Personally, I’d be glad to see the back of this policy. Hostels are supposed to be catering (no pun intended) to people on a budget. Charging them an extra three or four quid for a breakfast that they could make themselves for much less does not fit in with this ethos. Furthermore, if you need to make an early start, or you have special dietary requirements, the breakfast you have to pay for may be of no use to you.

That’s not to say hostel breakfasts aren’t any good – I’ve had some excellent ones, but customers should have the choice of whether to buy one, or to make one (or even to skip one if they fancy a little extra time in bed or on the hill).

I also hope that any decision is applied even-handedly, to groups as well as to individuals. If it’s OK for a dozen individual members to make their own breakfasts, it should be OK for a dozen individuals who happen to be members of a YHA group. I know my own group has not been able to stay at some hostels because we’re not willing to abandon self catering.

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YHA have, at least, published a press release about its licensing plans. Curiously, it was issued the day after I posted my previous article on the subject on this website. I don’t think the two facts are related!

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• Alfriston
• Cambridge
• Cockermouth
• St Briavels
• Newcastle
• Saffron Walden

All have made some effort to obtain and express the YHA’s side of the story, but I suspect many readers will still be getting the wrong impression of the Association. Unfortunately, the YHA appears to operate a “good news only” policy on it’s news and press web pages – stories which aren’t 100% positive are left to third parties to explain, with whatever inaccuracies and distortions they introduce. So, in the absence of anything from Matlock, I’m going add to the ranks of those third parties (remember this is NOT an official YHA site) and give the story as I understand it, largely based on a briefing given to Central Regional Council last weekend.

The introduction of the 2003 Licensing Act swept aside a raft of existing legislation relating to the provision of alcohol and entertainment. As a result, YHA needs to apply for a licence for many of its hostels both to (continue to) sell alcohol and to allow live entertainment. Arguably, even a communal sing-song in a Common Room could be against the law if the hostel did not have the proper licence.

The licence application process is very convoluted, involving many pages of forms and consequently many thousands of pounds of expense. In order to try to contain the cost of the process somewhat, YHA has applied for the same licence terms for each of its properties rather than trying to tailor each one to the needs of that particular site. The 24/7 drinking licence they’re asking for across the board is simply the lowest common denominator – hardly any sites will be looking to serve liquor on that basis. It should also be pointed out that these hours apply to residents only – there won’t be people boozing at the hostel till the small hours and then staggering home and waking up the village (well there shouldn’t be anyway!).

Though they’re being applied for en masse, the licence applications will be considered individually by the relevant local authority. Where there are local objections, the terms of the licence can be trimmed back in response. Frankly, it’s not in the YHA’s interest to throw wild all-night parties at its premises, so they’ll be hoping the authorities trust them not to do so.

A related issue closer to hostel users’ hearts is the question of bringing your own booze to a hostel. Contrary to the impression sometimes given by the YHA, “bring your own” is not illegal under the new act. The problem is more subtle – as licensees, YHA staff could be considered legally liable for any drunken (mis)behaviour that takes place at a hostel, even if they didn’t supply the alcohol themselves. With a new act, and the absence of much case law, we can’t yet be sure that those staff would be considered liable, but it’s not reasonable to expect them to take the risk. For this reason they need to have control over the supply of alcohol to their guests.

That’s the reason, and it’s not one I’d want to argue with. However, I do query the prices of some YHA offerings. If my local corner shop can provide a decent bottle of plonk for less than a fiver, why can’t many youth hostels? Perhaps a better approach would be to allow hostellers to bring their own bottles, but for staff to charge a modest corkage fee for opening them (and reserve the right to refuse to open them if necessary)?. In my experience, staff generally turn a blind eye to hostellers drinking their own, ahem, blackcurrant cordial, provided they do it quietly and not too blatantly – running a hostel is enough work as it is!

I hope this post is enlightening on the subject of alcohol and youth hostels, I need a drink now…

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Colin Rich, YHA’s food and beverage manager, deploys some impressive legalese to explain that YHA doesn’t really want to sell booze all night every night, but just wants to be legally in the clear for any special events that might be hosted at the hostel. At least I think that’s what he’s trying to say – whether it’s the message the the burghers of Eastbourne will get is another matter.

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Now, this seems a little counter-productive to me. It surely can’t cost a lot of money to provide a cup that cheers on arrival (in fact, if staff are really expected to keep track of and report how many teas/coffees were provided on arrival as opposed to at mealtimes, that probably costs more in staff time than the drinks themselves). In return, YHA presents a friendly, welcoming first impression to its guests. Like that old advert used to say: “you never get a second chance to make a first impression!” Picture the scene:

Warden

Welcome to the hostel. You look frozen, would you like a cup of tea or coffee?

Hosteller

Yes please, that would be brilliant!

Warden

That’ll be 50p then.

Hosteller

Oh.

Is the YHA a warm, friendly organisation eager to attract new people into the fold, or is it just another penny-pinching budget hotel chain looking to get people through the door with apparently low prices and then squeeze every last penny from them with optional extras? I fear we’re drifting towards the latter.

Now, this isn’t an issue that I’d go to the barricades about. After all, you can always make your own cuppa in the Members’ Kitchen if you don’t want to pay for one. I do wonder, though, if YHA’s zeal to “increase the food and beverage spend per overnight” has gone a little far this time?

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