YHAgroup.org.uk

SYHA are reporting on their news page* that six of their hostels are now licensed to sell alcohol:

A number of our youth hostels now have alcohol licences, so you can buy a glass of wine or a beer to enjoy in the hostel in the evening.  Look out for the wine glass symbol on the relevant hostel pages – so far Edinburgh Central, Glasgow, Corrour Station House, Stirling, Crianlarich and Rowardennan Lodge hostels all have licences.  We are hoping to get alcohol licences for more of our hostels in the future, so you don’t have to bring drinks with you, but can still relax with a drink or two at the end of the day.

That last sentence raises the question “will hostellers still be allowed to bring their own drinks to licensed hostels?”. The rules are against this south of the border, and very unpopular rules they are too – as discussed before on the pages of this site.

I’ve written to SYHA for clarification on this matter, but a thumb through their Terms & Conditions brings some cause for optimism though (emphasis mine):

In licensed hostels beer, cider and wine purchased in the hostel are permitted within designated areas within the hostels as per the licensing laws in Scotland. The consumption of alcohol not purchased in the hostel is only permitted in the self catering dining rooms together with a meal at the discretion of the hostel manager. Guests are requested to consider the collective needs and comfort of others in the hostel (see Code of Conduct, section 1.3.5 below). Under Section 68 of The 1976 Licensing (Scotland) Act it is an offence for any person under 18 to buy or attempt to buy alcohol or consume alcohol. It is also an offence to buy alcohol for consumption by a person under 18.

Anyhow, I’m off to Scotland for some alcohol-fuelled hostelling…

* I’m not sure how new this actually is, but if they consider it “News”, so can I!

SYHA have entered into an interesting partnership with Perth College UHI (University of the Highlands and Islands), according to a story in The Courier.

The Association will operate the college’s on-campus student accommodation, serving students during term-time and opening up as a hostel during the holidays. The regular hostel in Perth closed some years ago, so this will fill that gap in the network, albeit for only part of the year.

Hostels have long operated in student accommodation both north and south of the border, in Edinburgh and in Durham for example, but this is the first case I know of where a hostelling association has been a provider of such services as well as consumers of it. Who knows, if it works in Perth we may see this approach down here too.

As our new chancellor prepares to plot our way out of the economic crisis, there’s one organisation that may be hoping he’s not too successful. Whatever pain the recession may be causing, it’s doing wonders for the SYHA, according to a report in The Herald:

Scotland’s largest youth hostelling association increased its membership by a third in May, taking the roll from 20,000 to nearly 26,500. The SYHA also reported it is receiving more bookings from within Scotland, suggesting that exchange rates, recession and flight disruption are influencing people’s holiday choices.

They’d already seen a similar effect last year, but this really is startling – membership up by a third in a single month? What I don’t understand is why have we not seen anything like the same effect south of the border? I know people will say that SYHA is cheaper, both to join and to stay at, but the difference isn’t really all that marked. Could it be that the alternative – flying to mainland Europe – is sufficiently more expensive when you start from Scotland to form a tipping point? No doubt the truth is more complicated than that. What do you think YHA could learn from its northern neighbours?

It’s been a long time since I heard anything about the community buy-out plan for Coldingham YH, which started with massive local support after the SYHA closed the hostel in 2008.

Well, the news is in, but it’s not good for those hoping to see this hostel reopen. The Berwickshire News reports:

Community efforts to buy Coldingham Youth Hostel and keep it running as a low budget tourism facility were thwarted when they failed to secure lottery funding to help them purchase the building, and now there are plans to turn it into two houses and two flats.

Read the full story to find out more.

When you check a mixed group into a hostel, do you take a careful note of who ends up in which dorm? A red-faced party visiting Lerwick YH probably wishes they had done so:

A mix-up among holiday guests sparked a major search and rescue operation in the middle of the night, with the coastguard helicopter, Lerwick lifeboat and a coastal search team called out to look for a woman who had been declared missing.

However the 72-year-old, from Yorkshire, was simply in a different room at the Islesburgh Youth Hostel from the one her companions thought she was in. A police spokesman blamed a “break down in communication between travelling companions” for the hunt being launched.

You can read the full story in the Shetland Times.

According to The Guardian this weekend, SYHA’s Lochranza YH, on the isle of Arran is due to reopen early next year after a half million pound makeover. New features include rainwater harvesting, energy-efficient lighting and heating, new kitchen and shower facilities and six en suite family/group rooms (as well as five regular dorms).

An outbreak of anti-social behaviour on the until-recently-bonnie banks of Loch Lomond is endangering vehicular access to Rowardennan YH, according to a report in the Stirling Observer. Speaking in support of locals concerned by irresponsible wild campers, local MSP Bruce Crawford said:

Having met with many locals and community representatives on site, I have no doubt that a solution must be found to the current problem surrounding access to the private road between the main road and the youth hostel.

The area has become a hotspot for some unruly visitors, who are unfortunately responsible for causing serious damage to the environment by sawing down trees to make wood for campfires and leaving vast amounts of litter, including beer bottles and the like, for others to clear up.

One solution proposed by some locals is to lock the gate on this private road, leading to obvious problems for the hostel and its visitors. SYHA are not keen on this, but have offered their support in finding an answer to the problem.

Inspired by the recent SYHA TV advert, a reporter from the Ross-Shire Journal has taken his young family on a short hostelling tour of Scotland.

Their zig-zag route across the country took in a cross-section of SYHA hostels: Carbisdale Castle, Edinburgh Central and Tongue. Carbisdale seems to have been a big hit:

Carbisdale Castle near Culrain is a jewel in the glittering crown of breathtakingly diverse hostels the SYHA has managed to bring under its wing since inception in 1931. Once you’ve feasted on the imposing exterior and convinced wide-eyed children that, yes, they really are going to sleep here tonight, it’s time to get to grips with the ghost…

What castle isn’t haunted, right? The SYHA blurb does nothing to discourage the legend — and nor does the collection of ghostly Italian marble statues lining the main gallery as you enter. There’s a spooky, otherworldly feel about the sprawling castle whose chequered history only adds to the experience.

Meanwhile, across the pond, the San Diego News Network have been sampling some historic YHA hostels. Their itinerary included Hartington, Whitby and YHA’s own castle: St Briavels. They come away impressed by how cheaply you can stay in some truly impressive buildings. They’re also pleasantly surprised to discover that you don’t have to be a youth to go hostelling. Indeed, as a perceptive hostel staffer points out:

“Without the over-40s, there would be no hostels,” said Anthony Rees, a YHA volunteer.  “Families, middle-aged and older travelers are some of our most enthusiastic guests.”

I do wish YHA’s marketing people would grasp this fact. Just about all the publicity material emanating from Matlock is dominated by pictures of children, young people and maybe the occaional parent. The age profile of people actually staying in hostels is much more diverse, and there’s a huge market of older people out there who don’t know that hostels are available to them as well as to youngsters.

I also hope that press coverage like this will encourage YHA to continue to look for and operate historic buildings as youth hostels. Purpose-built places may be easier and cheaper to run, but they just don’t have the “wow factor” of sleeping in a genuine castle!

In an effort, no doubt, to attract more cash-strapped scots through their doors, SYHA have produced a funky new TV ad:

Something I find interesting is that they brand themselves as “Hostelling Scotland” rather than anything to do with youth hostels. Is this a new thing?

Personally, I think it’s a good idea and reflects the age profile of the people you meet in hostels better than the Y word does. Maybe we can come up with something similar south of the border.

We’ve already seen a boost in YHA bookings due to the credit crunch, well the same is happening north of the border, according to BBC News:

Louise Nowell, head of sales and marketing at the Scottish Youth Hostels Association, said: “Our advance bookings are up 7% compared to the same time last year.

In an ordinary year I wouldn’t have expected the figures to go up as they have. There’s a reason for it – the economic situation.

The exchange rate is keeping Brits at home, foreign visitors are getting more value for money, and people are becoming more value-conscious due to the credit crunch. Suddenly we’re being seen as an affordable destination.”

It’s an ill wind that blows nobody any good!