Latest Government guidance
The UK and Welsh Governments have recently announced new restrictions that may affect bookings in the coming weeks and months.
All hostels in Wales during the circuit breaker period will be closed from 6pm Friday 23 October until the start of Monday 9 November 2020. Hostels in England in tier three (very high) are closed.
The regulations for England can be found here and for Wales here.
Our immediate priority is to resolve the matter for guests due to stay with us before 14th November 2020.
If you have a stay booked to arrive before 14th November 2020 that can no longer go ahead as originally planned, please amend the booking or request a transfer or cancellation. Please be assured, bookings made directly with YHA will be covered by our Covid-19 Flexibility Guarantee. If we do not hear from you, we will attempt to contact you by phone and email.
If you have a booking with an arrival date after 14th November 2020, we ask for your patience. Please do not contact us yet. Our phonelines are extremely busy while staff deal with bookings in priority order.
This page will be updated regularly as we have more information to share for new and existing bookings. Thank you.
Updated 19th October 2020
We are pleased to welcome guests back to our amazing network of hostels. We have reopened selected properties in England and Wales in line with the respective Government guidance, and meeting the criteria and standards we have set for ourselves. These criteria include that we are confident we can open safely; that the public and our partners in the communities we are located in are supportive; and that we can do so viably in a way that safeguards our charity for the future.
Yet the nature of our organisation — particularly the duty of care we have to our supporters, guests, beneficiaries, staff and partners — compels us to progress with caution and careful consideration in the best interests of the charity and those it serves.
As we welcome guests back to our hostels, our focus is on making sure everyone feels safe in our spaces. We have introduced Covid-19 secure enhanced cleaning and safety procedures at every hostel. We will keep guest rooms and public areas such as corridors and receptions at the highest standard of cleanliness throughout your stay. We’ve introduced new measures to ensure social distancing guidance is easy to follow, and we’ve made many of our services contact free.
Guest safety measures include:
Social distancing
Stay physically distant from other hostel users in line with Government guidelines – signs are in place to remind both staff and guests
Enhanced cleaning
Staff have been trained to deliver frequent Covid-19 secure cleaning and disinfecting protocols throughout the hostel
Hand sanitizer
Hand sanitiser stations are positioned throughout the hostel, with signs reminding guests of the importance of frequent hand cleaning
Contactless payments
Please pay with contactless mobile or card payments wherever possible, or with a payment card, to avoid cash transactions
Book with confidence
Our Covid-19 Flexibility Guarantee provides the reassurance you need to book your next stay with YHA.
In addition, we have:
- Introduced new internal signage to provide clear guidance to guests
- Installed protective screens at reception
- Initiated new operating procedures that ensure once you have checked in, your bedroom or Exclusive Hire property won’t be entered by a team member for housekeeping, other than for essential maintenance
- Kept communal spaces such as self-catering kitchens closed, although we are opening some of our dining areas, laundry facilities, locker rooms, drying rooms and lounges where we can; this does not affect Exclusive Hire properties
- Removed non-essential and difficult-to-clean items from rooms and public areas, including seating and most storage lockers in bedrooms
- Introduced a food and drink takeaway service at many of our catered hostels where we are unable to offer dining and bar facilities