YHA Reviews 

Avoid at all cost , especially if you are foreigners . I booked to lodge in this hostel and I was sharing room with 6 other females . Work brings me to Liverpool hence why I book this YHA Liverpool hostel , I suffer with insomnia and have been on melatonin medication to help me sleep . On my first night I was woken up around 2am by a total stranger standing in my face and swearing at me , asking me to either stop snoring or get out of the room , she called me all sort of names .... I woke up in total fear and shock shaking after the traumatic experience , I went to the reception but there was no one there . I could not return to sleep due to anxiety of this incident . At 6am I dressed up and went to the reception where I meet a staff , I explained the whole situation to him , he told me they will address the issue and apologies . I left for work 6am and returned 9pm to sleep . I asked at the reception if they have called the lady to order , he then told me they cannot address the issue because there was no evidence that the situation occured and there was nothing they can do about it , except if all the people in the
room came to report at the same time in the middle of the night .

Staff were dismissive and did NOTHING to help the situation . If this lady had punched me in the face , they still would not have done anything . The staff were extremely insensitive and racist .

I booked a private room for me & my children at Brecon YHA on 3.11.23 for 7.11.23. YHA took the money straight away but I didn't receive a booking confirmation so I emailed them on 3.11.23 to ask if it had booked & if they could send confirmation. They eventually replied on 6.11.23 asking me to confirm a couple of details, which I did straight away then never heard from them again.

I arrived at Brecon YHA at 7pm with 4 tired children & went into reception where they stated they didn't have a booking for me. I showed them that they'd taken the money from my bank & that I'd sent the email asking for confirmation. The lad on reception went off to call his manager & returned around 20 minutes later.

He said his manager would be here to sort the issue in 10 minutes. I asked if there was a room available as if there wasn't, I needed to drive 2 hours home & would rather head off than wait. He stated that it was 'out of his jurisdiction' to tell me & that his manager 'would only be ten minutes' in quite a stand-off ish way which was unreasonable as I under the circumstances, I had been understanding.

The manager arrived at around 7.45pm & informed me that without a booking confirmation I couldn't stay but could pay for the room again & stay...however... he noticed I had a dog & then informed me that I couldn't stay at all due to said dog.

The YHA promote that they are 'dog friendly & welcome dogs' however, dogs aren't allowed to stay in the hostels & they won't allow dogs to stay in vehicles overnight therefore I was turned away - after wasting my time for an hour - with 4 tired children at 8pm.

I still haven't received a refund & the YHA haven't replied to my complaint. I wouldn't recommend them to anyone.

The positives are a Beautiful location. Friendly helpful staff. Free entry to Abbey.

But hostel is tired and in need of refreshing. Cleaning wasn't great. Room was not cleaned properly whilst I was there. Heating did not work fully had to have all heater on for end one to work. Self catering kitchen also not great. No clear food storage area other than fridges, no bowls, 2 microwaves, but nothing suitable to microwave food in except huge glass bowl. Of all the hostels I have used over years this one is not the usual YHA standards.

Stayed at Langdon Beck with my daughter (aged 10) and this was an awful experience. Firstly the area itself is stunning. It is in the Pennines AONB and the walks and scenery are breath-taking.
We went for 4 nights and it was a last minute booking.
When we arrived, we were told we were the only guests until Tuesday, it is a small hostel and we were placed in a room at the top far corner of the hostel, furthest away from reception.
There were two toilets and showers on this floor. The toilets smelt of urine (badly) and lights were on a timer so halfway through the shower I had to get out and wave at the sensor to turn them back on. My daughter refused to shower because of this.

On Monday, guests arrived and a lone male was given the room next to us, despite there being several other rooms. This made us feel uncomfortable and I had to lock my daughter in the room every time I wanted the loo. On the following night, a group of 5 arrived and these guests were given an onsuite (which they seemed surprised at) something we had not been offered. Another lone male traveller arrived and he was given the room next to us as the other occupant left.
The guest clearly was working as he was getting up at 6:30am and leaving, to return at 6pm, eating food in his room. The walls were so thin we could hear him open can after can of drink and banging around. Several loud calls to his wife and screaming child, friends and more banging around, we finally settled down to a night of wall-vibrating snoring. Then again at 6:30am, banging as he got up and left.
Additionally the group that arrived took over the kitchen and dining area and this felt very intimidating to my 10 year old who just wanted to stay in the room in the evening. She is used to this sort of travel with YHA and through other outdoor/expedition types groups.
I complained to the manager as we were leaving and his response was he was sorry and would have moved us had we asked. He acknowledged that he had not even seen the guest next door to us (probably as he was up and out at the crack of dawn). I was disappointed with this reaction and thought it was really illuminating that a male manager would not consider the personal safety of female guests by placing lone male travellers further away. Rather it was up to me to raise the issue and then for me and my child to be moved.
I am disappointed as YHA in the name suggests it is the Youth Hostel Association yet my daughter was the only young person there. Everyone else was over 40.

All in all, if you are staying for one night and don't mind other people, loud snoring, noisy and smelly toilets, go for it, otherwise there are much nicer B&B's in the area.

Recent stay at Grasmere was a great experience, the staff are friendly and helpful. The building whilst showing its age is a delight and standard of cleanliness was impressive. You can leave your car in carpark and travel on foot or by buses, cuts down on stress. Highly recommended

The staff were friendly and welcoming. Accommodation was clean, comfortable and safe offering a peaceful nights rest. Location was central. All that you expect from a YHA Hostel.

I took out an annual membership with YHA, specifically so I could use the St Pancras Hostel, 5 minutes walk from my office.

A few months later, YHA sold St Pancras, renamed it "Kabannas" and doubled the price. Good one. 👍

I can no longer afford to stay there. YHA refuse to refund the annual membership, despite me highlighting the above, and that there was no way of me knowing that the ownership of St Pancras would change when I originally took out the membership.

"Membership is taken out for the entire network, and we cannot guarantee its use for a single hostel I am afraid and therefore no refund is applicable."

I will be recommending others against taking out an annual membership with YHA.

I am happy to remove this review if I can get my annual membership refunded.

The location & simple warm dry cosy facilities, that help you enjoy your time in the Lake's for longer.

I really enjoyed my 2 night stay at Trafford Hall near Chester. The staff were welcoming, friendly and helpful, the facilities were clean and comfortable and the outdoor space was vast and very lovely! A big field, a wood, an orchard, gardens and lots of outdoor seating. All of this made my stay very peaceful and Chester is a great city to explore nearby.

Bigs up to YHA Ennerdale. What a fantastic hostel and staff. Stayed here in June and returning next weekend. Do yourself a favour when the world gets too much...book a stay here. The hostel is miles from civilisation, quiet and peaceful and surrounded by hills. The staff were friendly and professional and provided a first class service. Thank you YHA Ennerdale!

Returning customer to Treyarnon Bay- I was there in April and booked my weeks visit now whilst I was still there. I’ve booked again for next April during this stay. I can’t comment on bedrooms as I take my own tent but the social areas and self catering kitchens are great as is the food and drinks - just a great experience and the staff really make it - first time I’ve had the pleasure of the staff entertaining us and there was some lovely singing and guitar - outstanding! Can’t wait to return.

My go to place for a bit of peace and wellbeing. Beautiful, spotless building, excellent rooms, surrounded by stunning views and the friendliest team I've come across.

Hostel staff were very helpful when I needed some help in the campsite. It's a very beautiful and peaceful location. The driveway was not as bad as I expected from reading other reviews. I have a Ford Focus and I'm a nervous driver but I managed it.

Great hostel in a great location. The hostel is comfortable clean and relaxing. The staff especially are brilliant always happy to help and approachable. Very informative and chatty. I have always had a great experience when visiting this hostel. Looking forward to going again soon.

Recently booked at Streatley but due to health issue couldn't make it. Was not allowed refund or to change dates.

On the advice of the YHA I emailed them as I was not happy with there refusal to refund me for a camping pitch and breakfasts that I was unable to attend because of my son having an accident on the way there, below is their reply.
I have to accept they are not very understanding and have held me to their terms and conditions, there has been no consideration for what would have been fair and reasonable.

YHA Customer Resolutions
13:05 (3 hours ago)
to me

Dear Mark,
Thank you for your email regarding your reservation at YHA Truleigh Hill.

This booking was made under YHA’s Promotional Booking terms and conditions, which state that no amendments or refunds can be made and offers are non-transferable. When you proceeded to make the reservation online, there is a link which states that ‘Promotional terms & conditions apply’ and it is your responsibility to read the terms and conditions. Therefore, as you agreed to the Promotional terms and conditions and received a 20% discount on your reservation, you are unfortunately not entitled to a refund.

As you may be aware, the YHA is a children’s charity and we aim to enhance the lives of young children through travel and adventure. Therefore, it is essential that we continue to be a financially sustainable organisation and most importantly achieve our charitable ambitions. We are of course very sorry that on this occasion we are unable offer you a refund for your booking. We understand that that this will be disappointing to you, but in fairness to all of our customers we do have to remain firm with our terms and conditions.

We are sorry that this is not the resolution you were hoping for, but we do hope this email clarifies the situation.

Thanks again for taking the time to contact us.

Zoe

This review is specific to YHA Truleigh Hill.
Superb value for money. Stunning location! Very helpful, enthusiastic, sociable, polite, warm, welcoming staff.
Clean rooms and communal areas. Reasonable choices of food (very good value for money there too) and they are genuinely working hard to navigate the dietary requirements minefield and cater for all needs, including some plant-based choices, gluten-free choices and decaff coffee and tea.
The South Downs Way is literally on the hostel's doorstep, with stunning views of coast, country and city as you walk to Devil's Dyke, where the paragliders frequent and you can pick up a pint or a cuppa, an ice-cream, or slushie and even a bus to the city. It's a fabulous place to stay and I'd recommend it to everyone.
I've stayed in both a dorm room and one of the superb safari tents and can't fault either types of accommodation.

Excellent location, staff and breakfast ! The contact centre were extremely helpful with my booking and membership.

YHA Castleton - fantastic - did the whole trip by train and bus, this YHA is well placed for public transport - though services on the hour so plan ahead recommended. Team were great, with useful local knowledge on walking (plus walk leaflets). Food was standard, very swift and plenty of it despite hostel being full. Liked the atmosphere in the public lounge too.

There's always a warm welcome and an interesting mix of guests of all ages, along with clean budget accommodation in some lovely places. Being able to self cater is a bonus