Hostels in Great Britain are an affordable royal treat

GREAT BRITAIN — We are standing in The Roost, a stylish apartment which doubles as a honeymoon suite, our jaws literally dropping. Not only is there a galleried en-suite bath, second-floor master bedroom with vaulted ceilings, private kitchenette/living room and a plasma TV, but the cost per night is just $78 to $120, depending on the season.

Not bad for a pad in a historic 17th century English manor house in the UK’s lovely Peak District, a walker’s paradise — and a quick bus ride away from bustling Buxton, the setting for a yearly international Gilbert & Sullivan festival.

The catch? Hartington Hall is actually a youth hostel, one of the Youth Hostel Association’s flagship properties.

The YHA has transformed many such National Trust manors, abbeys and even castles into affordable accommodations in stunning urban and country locations.

Take St. Briavel’s Castle in the Forest of Dean. Built as a hunting lodge in 1205 by King John, it may be the the only hostel with a moat.

The YHA has tweaked its image and broadened its market, attracting more experienced travelers, couples, families, and the over-50s.

“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.”

Many of the approximately 280 hostels in England, Wales and Scotland are offering inexpensive private or family rooms  –with your own key, 24-hour access and at least a sink. Some offer en-suite bathrooms, inexpensive cafes, Internet stations,  game rooms and even licensed bars.

With the world in recession and foreign travel now a decided luxury, we decided to visit the United Kingdom the way the younger set does. We  traded hotels for hostels and pubs for hostel cafes. Could a couple of gray heads spend like students and enjoy  it?

You betcha we could.

Fit for honeymooners

We had set our hearts on Hartington Hall’s The Roost, but Lynn and Roy Loveday beat us to it. They had been married at the hall — and were returning to celebrate their first wedding anniversary in The Roost.

“It was the wedding of my dreams,” said Lynne Loveday, 55, a science and special education teacher. “Our (reception) was totally private; the food delicious and the entire bill just a quarter of what a hotel would charge.”

Our double room, one of 19 in the Hall, was markedly more Spartan than the Roost - but was warm, spotless and cheap.

The night we stayed it seemed that every kid in England was there on a school outing - but the staff knew how to make everyone comfortable. The kids ate first and disappeared into the game room, and we settled in for an absolutely terrific buffet meal, better even than one we later had in a swank hotel.

We learned later that the Hall’s Eliza’s Restaurant won the 2006 Derbyshire Food & Drink Award for Best Restaurant within an Attraction.

After dinner, we took our wine into a massive, oak-paneled room with an original fireplace and period decorations, and settled down to enjoy the highlight of hostelling — trading stories with other wanderers.

Rooms with a view

Atop a cliff 199 steps up from the town of Whitby, Abbey House, a 19th century, 22-bedroom mansion, holds commanding views of the sea, its harbor and the medieval ruins of a famous early Christian abbey next door.

Having just undergone a $4.3 million retrofit, the flagship YHA property blends modernized ensuite bedrooms with intact period fireplaces and beamed ceilings. Guests can relax in the tea room or licensed bar; dine on locally sourced and creatively prepared meals, or just play games and watch television.

“This one’s a beauty,” said Rees. “Just look at the outstanding quality of the decoration.”

Mike Lincoln agreed. A ship’s cook from Middleburgh, England, Lincoln said hostels are his lodging of choice because of the “camaraderie and the food. The last time I stayed at the Abbey, my cribbage game lasted eight hours, and conversation went on forever.”

Living like a king

OK, the bathrooms aren’t ensuite; there’s no breakfast in bed and anyway, you’ll have to cook your own. But where else can you lay your head in a 13th century castle 800 feet above the Wye Valley?

Pick the right weekend at St. Briavels Castle, and you can chow down to a hearty medieval banquet complete with entertainment, and maybe even be chosen to play lord or lady.

The best part of this unique hostel is the innkeeper. A gifted storyteller, he’s magic at bringing the castle’s history to life, scary at telling ghost stories and brilliant at creating games and crafts that evoke life as it once was in the castle.

Hostels’ smart  future

Two years ago, Smart City Hostels in Edinburgh, Scotland, opened what could be the prototype for hostels of the future.  All bedrooms have ensuite bathrooms  – and the hostel is accredited by Green Tourism. Beds cost from $14 to $44 per person per nigh depending on the time of booking and expected demand; a large room can be rented for exclusive use.

What does a five-star hostel offer? We reserved two nights to find out.

Smart City won  high marks in our  “must-have” criteria — location, safety and amenities.

Situated right in Old Town on Blackfriars Street,  the hostel is just off the historic Royal Mile, making attractions and shopping a snap to reach. That makes it easy for parents whose kids get worn out sightseeing, and gray heads who just get worn out.

At Smart City, we met many intrepid retired women from all over the world, who were knocking about the UK on their own and staying at hostels for cost savings and the chance to connect with other travelers. In addition to secure, 24-hour reception services, lockers and baggage storage, electronic key card access and CCTV, the hostel features a women-only floor called Smart City Girl.

On the amenities front, the big pluses were the cafes — one where guests could surf the Net and the other for surprisingly tasty meals, wines and beers that saved hassle and money, while giving us mingle time.

At that second cafe, we toasted German schoolteacher Richard Schirrmann who founded youth hostels in 1930 — when he  saw the advantage of using empty schools to house young people traveling during summer.  We decided he’d love how his idea has evolved.

Get details on accommodations and pricing at www.yha.org.uk and www.syha.org.uk.

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