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After visiting Borrowdale YHA my daughter decided she would like to go with a couple of friends at Easter so went to book a Private room and was stunned to see that instead of £35 it goes up to £99 and £129 if on the Fri Sat blatant profiteering at the expense of people that can only get away at school holiday time. Sent an email to YHA and got this usual corporate response 🙁
So much for the ethos of Youth Hostelling
Hi Richard,
Thanks for getting in touch. Our Revenue Team reviews the rates of our hostels on a regular basis, taking into account factors such as demand, competition and value for money along with ever increasing costs such as utilities, staffing and the ongoing maintenance of the YHA estate. In order for YHA to be around for many years to come it is essential that we take steps such as flexible pricing to become a financially sustainable organisation.
Flexible pricing means that we are now able to provide beds from as little as £8 per night, with private rooms from £29 per night, but we acknowledge this also means that when demand is high, the prices may be increased. To offset this, we regularly offer discounts of up to 50% when booking via one of our Flash Sales or promotions. These offers often cover peak periods such as the school holidays and weekends, ensuring that no customer type is disadvantaged by the period of availability.
It is hugely important to us that we continue offer our customers realistic, competitive & affordable prices, whilst taking into account the costs associated with operating a large, diverse network of hostels, ensuring that YHA remain a viable option for all, and continue to be so for many generations to come.
Thanks
The YHA Team
Feel free to leave a message
It’s supply and demand and they had to change the model to survive.
the solution your going to get if any is its 75 quid all year round.
as someone whos married to a teacher and has to pay the extra if i want to go anywhere with my wife im struggling to get worked up about it.
I understand peak supply and demand.
they have to try and keep occupancy up across the board while maintaining affordability.
as they say one method is - charge more at peak and less as quiet times.
now if only we applied that philosophy to the road tax system and charged people who contribute to rush hour chaos more for the privilege.
understand your frustration, 400% from base price to high peak does make you wince
surely the choice is that the cost is kept low and you are just unable to book during school holidays due to demand, or as said above, they close
I can understand a increase say £15 on top of the £35 but looking at the people using the YOUTH hostel 2 weeks ago it was more like your middle class taking over the bloody place coming in to rough it for the weekend!
Problem these days you don't need to be a member to stay at the YHA
Would member-only bookings at peak periods with a smaller price hike be a solution, e.g. £50 for Easter, members only? Might encourage more memberships, rewards those that have joined?
indeed but I think its something to do with Charitable status they cannot charge non members more but they can give a £3 off for members but thats not per person thats only applicable for one person booking
You want to go to a prime hostel at a busy time, if it was cheaper it would already be full. YHA need to keep the lights on which means balancing price and affordability
YHA do regular offers c 25% if you get the mailshots, hostel pricing is all over the shop so you need to be diligent checking what is available, done a weekend for two in Grasmere for £60, three nights for three in a en suite room for £100 at Pen y pass at half term
Either get less selective or dig deeper
Also check out the independent hostels
The member discount is for all people booked, I get it for the kids every time
The YHA has been middle class for decades, and they will be members as they use the discount
So much for the ethos of Youth Hostelling
Changed, like a lot of things. Count yer lucky stars- there were no private rooms in hostels back when I were a kid. And you weren't allowed on the premises during the day. And you had to help out with chores. Hotel facilities, hotel price strategies.
Rich, I see it the other way round. Holiday time, they charge those rates and they're full. That pays for the upkeep. All other times they struggle to get punters. They have to cut prices to get anybody in to cover the running costs.
I might be wrong, maybe the YHA directors spend most of the year holed up with Cy, CFH and Murdoch on Necker dining on endangered species, swigging champagne and mocking us plebs. Or not.
P.S. fully paid up YHA and Labour Party member.
It's much the sayme with The Caravan Club old chap. *said with posh poncy voice*
I checked some prices out the other day & were dearer in school holiday time, bloody rip off merchants.
YHA has been careful to make sure that the cheap bed in a dorm with self catering facilities in areas of natural beauty has been maintained . I still see plenty of people taking that up.
I wasn't going to get involved with this but here goes
I might be wrong, maybe the YHA directors spend most of the year holed up with Cy, CFH and Murdoch on Necker dining on endangered species, swigging champagne and mocking us plebs. Or not.
No they are very nice normal people based in Matlock just trying to do the best with a unique organisation and some very unique properties. They don't have shareholders and the money goes back into the buildings or helping kids get out.
So my limited knowledge on this was about 5 years ago YHA had some serious issues, theses were
A brand and proposition that didn't connect with its target audience (Youth) it's main customers were older people, most people had forgotten about YHA or didn't know what it was
Tired infrastructure and old buildings with expensive upkeep
A few key Hostels (London) etc were proping up the rest of hostels
Unable to compete on price as was it's traditional proposition (Travel lodges etc at £30 for a room were as cheap and newer, cleaner better equipped etc)
I think the choice was change or sell off a load of properties
So they had to change and they from what I've seen they've done a pretty good job of it.
It's meant pricing changes, focus on location, experience and facilities rather than just competing on being 'cheap'
They modernised a lot of the buildings
And they still do all the good work of getting under privileges kids out into the country, run school groups etc. which Travelodge won't do (alongside trying to keep the buildings going)
They still get it wrong though if you book well in advance you can still get YHA Ambleside for cheap on Fred Whitton weekend.
I worked with them for over 3 years and I saw nothing but good people always trying to do the right thing, they had to make some difficult choices and this included pricing choices.
It's a good organisation, not a corporate and from what i saw it deserves some support.
Have you trie4d the Derwen****er indy hostel (Barrow House) along the road Rich? they have private rooms with 6 beds too.
No problem with a bit of demand pricing to keep the bills paid. Love the YHA, would hate to see it go under or contract further. Remember the Scouts and Guides have activity centres too which can be rented for group get togethers and are in some top locations.
Borrow dale has always been an expensive hostel. It .is very nice but I've always been too cheap to book it. The plus side is that we go to other hostels and get to see different places and have as much adventure
The Independent Hostel network is picking up some old YHA locations and offering a different way of getting out there
more like your middle class taking over the bloody place coming in to rough it for the weekend!
Middle classes not allowed in the countryside? Only the poor allowed? I think you are in that middle class bracket Rich even if you do regularly sleep rough but use good kit instead of an old newspaper.
YHA need to make hay so they can spread it over the rest of the year to cover the lean times
blatant profiteering at the expense of people that can only get away at school holiday time.
And have a read here about their blatant profiteering 🙂
https://www.yha.org.uk/yha-impact
and top tip, pick a quiet weekend, book a family en-suite and take the kids here.
https://www.yha.org.uk/hostel/ilam-hall
Real life stay in a castle and if you time it right it's bargain!
Really is just supply and demand. If they dropped their peak prices they'd need to raise off season prices, except they'd then be uncompetitive in the off season.
The only fix is to address the massive inconsistency in demand: i suspect that well over half their market is trying to travel in the same quarter of the year. Staggering half terms would go some way to improving this.
I'm married to a teacher and now have kids so have been on the receiving end of this for years but I don't begrudge the businesses who are simply responding to market forces. If you think they really are profiteering go and set up a business that undercuts them.
The thread title is pretty unfair to center parks , virtually any travel or holiday related activity goes up during school holidays and other prime times . It's known as supply and demand .
Rich - you are a tight fisted ****.
Love you,
Sparkle.
"And have a read here about their blatant profiteering "
I thought you had to win it in a raffle to be blatantly profiteering ...
and to complete the bingo on this one
why not swap the price tag with a term time one before you go to the checkout 😉
Hang on, is that £99 for the whole private room (sleeping four)? At Easter?
And how much were the dorm beds?
Friday and or Saturday at Easter? So two nights at most of the four day weekend which is, lets be fair, one of the busiest times of year for anywhere because everyone* is off work, not just kids and teachers.
Many places in the lakes esp. wouldn't even let you book for only one or both of those as it effectively writes off the room for the whole weekend.
*granted there are exceptions but they're comparatively few
I love Borrowdale YH, it's awesome. That is all.
I can understand a increase say £15 on top of the £35 but looking at the people using the YOUTH hostel 2 weeks ago it was more like your middle class taking over the bloody place coming in to rough it for the weekend!
How dare they. If I use the YHA I demand only uneducated scum are present.
"and to complete the bingo on this one
why not swap the price tag with a term time one before you go to the checkout "
Ouch, someone's got a long memory... 😉
1964 it ain’t.. You live in the 21st century, unless you do still live in 1964.
You can’t moan about an organisation that’s built on voluntary donations, help, assistance, ploughing the income received from renting accommodation back into the services they provide to the general public.
The middle classes, as has been put forward, during thier youth or tweens would have used the facilities and are merely returning to enjoy those olden days, and show thier offspring what a fabulous organisation the YHA are.
Open to all, pay a fair price to a place to sleep, help out if you like, enjoy the locations and most of all donate back into a system that caters for you.
Frankly pack in whining, your daughter ought to know the price of things let her decide what to do/where to go and see if she’ll pay for it herself.
Honeslty, you come across like life owes you and your offspring a living.
😤🤡
i used a YHA a couple of years ago in december, it was booked solid at weekends for at least a month
My guess is some firm has block booked everything for every weekend and sells it off at inflated prices somewhere
My guess is some firm has block booked everything for every weekend and sells it off at inflated prices somewhere
In true STW fashion, any evidence to back this up? If not you might as well be writing an article for the daily mail.
any evidence to back this up?
Yeah it was in a fancyha bears Facebook post with a lot of likes.
My guess is some firm has block booked everything for every weekend and sells it off at inflated prices somewhere
I got some date if your interested good price, PP Gift
Ha, I remember aged 16 being asked to sweep the members kitchen in Carlisle YHA. I looked indigantly at the brush he gave me, agreed, put the brush just inside the door and scarpered.
I can understand a increase say £15 on top of the £35
they probably need to charge at least 50 for that room to keep the hostel running and break even. But for most of the year they won't get anyone in and the hostel closes. When you stayed they made a loss but not as much a loss as having the room empty, but they need to charge more at peak times to offset that loss.
Those hostel using middle classes subsidise your holiday, next time you meet them you should buy them a pint.
We had an inset day on Monday and stayed in Losehill Hall, Castleton on Sunday, £35 for five-person room. Same room on a Saturday is £170. I consider the Sunday to be a bargain rather than the Saturday night price a rip-off. It's a fantastic place a great location, first time I've stayed in a Youth Hostel for about 20 years and we loved it. We'll do it again even at full price.
Coincidentally my eldest is away for her first big school trip to London and they stay in the YHA at Lee Valley which looks great.
Did I mention they pay the workers the minimum wage to 🙂 not enough outrage from fellow careful with the money brigade thats the problem these days apathy grin and bear the inflated prices for tickets to gigs yhas etc
My guess is some firm has block booked everything for every weekend and sells it off at inflated prices somewhere
In true STW fashion, any evidence to back this up? If not you might as well be writing an article for the daily mail.
No. all my own guesswork. Might be easier for all you guys in the know to prove otherwise
The Pemier Inns on the outskirts of the Lakes are far cheaper than that, and a hell of a lot nicer then a YHA. Albeit you aren't in such a 'lovely' location, but if you have transport that's no big deal.
Seems to me YHA are taking the p*ss with some of their pricing, but if people are still paying then they are going to get away with it. Like everything vote with your feet and stay elsewhere.
I'm pretty sure the YHA ethos was lost decades ago when Black Sail got electricity.
As someone else said though the YHA has a problem in connecting with it's principal aims/demographic.. that is helping youths get to see places. Private Dorms ?? etc. etc. All this is fine and dandy but the problem is only a few old wrinkles like me remember the "good ole day's" and the Millenial Snowflakes just want to have a room where you don't need to do chores.
I don't think that is the YHA's fault... any more than people think it's OK to own a bike and not be able to fix a puncture or do a lowers service. The millennial attitude seems to be you can pay someone less fortunate than yourself to do that.
No. all my own guesswork. Might be easier for all you guys in the know to prove otherwise
Ah, touché. I'll remember that one next time I make a completely baseless statement I can't back up :-).
Me: I just saw lord Lucan riding Shergar, racing the loch ness monster
Sceptical mate: Really? Any evidence?
Me: No, but if you are so clever, prove that I didn't.
🙂
and a hell of a lot nicer then a YHA.
Er, naw. There is no premier inn in the country that is nicer than Borrowdale YH at dusk, dawn or any bloody time.
I assume you no longer need your sheet sleeping bag then?
Do they still have the ink stamps you put in the back of your membership card?
Youth Hostels were once about sharing - work and dorms - and were accordingly cheap. If we (and i'm a regular customer) want private rooms, proper drying rooms, day long access, comfy lounges and draft ale, they will be more expensive, particularly if four bedded rooms get sold short with twos and threes (you quite often don't get charged the full four bed price). Yes it looks like blatent profiteering, but all profits are ploughed back in, and i'll take a higher price one day to benefit from a lower price on others. Most hostels are great places, lively, full of cranky bores the same as me; I can usually get to have a nice moan about something, like all the audis in the car park, and shout at some noisy middle class kids thundering around the dining room - probably mine. I'd far rather that than premier inn / Travelodge.
I've never been in a YHA at dusk or dawn, always been outside at those times. And I'd rather have some decent sleep in a Premier Inn or similar than try and sleep in what passes as a bed in a YHA. Sure it was fine back in theday when it was £20-30 a night, but when you are pricing in hotel price ranges, then I'll go to a hotel thanks, If you want cheap now, then it seems camping is the better option.
they are going to get away with it.
A not for profit organisation with no shareholders 'getting away with it'. Does not compute. I don't object to a honeypot location having prices higher than others to help subsidise other locations so the broad network of locations can be maintained.
Sadly I think the millennial generation gets the YHA they deserve. As previously said YHA was all about basic large dorms not private rooms and costs kept to a minimum by limiting opening times during the day and guests doing their chores. Millennials could not stomach this level of 'suffering' and needed home comforts and entertaining so they lost their cheap accommodation and the unique comradery the old model provided. Glad I was a youthful user of the YHA in the 80's though curiously the new variant is pretty good for a middle aged softy with more cash in his pocket and an old man's body.
It was fine until they allowed people to roll up in cars. Then I bought a bivvy bag.
Also for curiosity sakes I checked out the cost of premier inns in the general area of the lakes in August. Still way cheaper to be in a YHA. And let's face it the other is a premier inn. Souless places I'd avoid if I could, especially on holiday. Especially when it's not where I want to actually be.
Sure it was fine back in theday when it was £20-30 a night
Barrowdale was £13 pppn for a bed in a shared room on good Friday when i checked a few minutes ago.
Just saying mind.
The downside to it in the end comes down to 3 other youth people 11yrs old have not experienced a fairly remote YHA like Borrowdale away from the constraints of family and having a bit of freedom. YOUTH hosteling association needs to change its title.
PS the could always charge for parking 🙂
Where does STW stand on working class folks who enjoyed visiting YHA, got educated and took good jobs, became middle class, and returned to using them as adults, with their Audi in the car park?
Sure it was fine back in theday when it was £20-30
Which it still is.
stop capitalizing youth as if to make a point.
YOUTH being between ages of 15 and 24 - the numbers that are placed by definition upon that area between childhood and adulthood
its those pesky people that keep bringing their kids to the YHA that do my head in *
*absolutely tongue in cheek joking i really don't mind kids at hostels and love hosteling- great place to meet like minded folk when out and about world wide - but nigh on always hit the dorms because I'm a penny pincher unless traveling in a group that can fully utilize a private room.
Sure it was fine back in theday when it was £20-30 a night
£20-£30? I remember when it was £3-£5
Where does STW stand on working class folks who enjoyed visiting YHA, got educated and took good jobs, became middle class, and returned to using them as adults, with their Audi in the car park?
Well, that's a good question and perhaps WE are partly to blame?
I think this also depends what you call middle class... that for me is about when you pay someone to do something you could do yourself because your time is "valuable". (As opposed to Upper Class where your time isn't but you pay someone to do that thing.. like having a dedicated gardner or driver though I think then they are called chauffers etc.) - It's a long list but for me it means that on a regular basis you pay someone to make your coffee/sandwich etc.
This seems (from my perspective) to be the default for everyone now... though many might want to be labelled differently.
Back when I used the YHA the difference between £2 and £3 was huge to me. The difference between hitching /walking/cycling vs a bus or train was huge.
Perhaps the thing is it's only those of us for whom the YHA provided that way to get away to places that appreciate what it was?
I didn't stop in one in years but I'd like to think the experience was available to my son.
I think this also depends what you call middle class…
Yeah, for what it's worth, it certainly wasn't a serious question. Working class, middle class are generally nonsense terms in modern society imo.
To help the OP, a quick search got Ennerdale YHA for £79-94/ night depending on whether you want en-suite or not checking in on 30th March for two nights. You will also get the member discount which with save up to a further £7.50 a night
https://www.yha.org.uk/hostel/ennerdale
The rest of the pricing looks premium so keep checking and I would expect the usual 25% off email in a couple of weeks
I love the YHA and we as a family have stayed in them many times. You can still achieve that old fashioned experience that people love(d) where you strike up a conversation with the randoms who populate the place. If you have klids they are great, they meet other kids and go off to play and you settle down for a chat with the parents over a pint. Travelling solo they are also excellent and you can meet some right characters. The food is priced well and usually satisfying and the locations are usually fantastic. The Ambleside one for eg, where else could you get accomodation at the lake edge for £15pppn? Another of my favourites is the Buttermere one, lovely little hostel without any mobile signal.
angeldustWhere does STW stand on working class folks who enjoyed visiting YHA, got educated and took good jobs, became middle class, and returned to using them as adults, with their Audi in the car park?
Let's be quite clear, you can't change class, if you were born working class you will die working class. Your achievements and associations in life may mean your grandchildren might be born middle class but your own station in life will never change. You can be rich beyond even the dreams of a saudi princling but, if your granddad worked down a mine and your parents went to a state school with Dave you're working class. Equally you can be stone cold broke but entirely upper class because your granddad was named Tarquin-Farquah without the slightest hint of irony and played cricket with George back when he was called Albert.
they stay in the YHA at Lee Valley which looks great.
Well yes, as long as they only leave the YHA to get on the train (next door) or take a nice walk around the LV Park.
However under no circumstances should they walk up the road to Cheshunt.
Are you setting the rules then Dangeourbrain? I'm afraid your point of view is out of date.
In the traditional sense (Karl Marx) if you do not own 'the means of production' then you are working class. That means you and me and prety much everyone is working class, we sell our labour for less than it is worth in return for some coins. = Capitalism. A more contemporary approach (I forget who proposed it, have a look at wikipedia) split the working class into middle and working class with the defining difference being if you used your hands (physical labour) or your brain (mental labour) for labour. Therefore an IT middle manager is middle class and a bus driver or garage mechanic is working class. Therefore it is entirely possible through education to transcend your birth class and climb the ladder. 🙂
I find the talk of the class of the YHA strange. Maybe it's because I've only been using the YHA for 30 odd years; maybe it's because I only tended to use YHAs in traditionally 'outwardbound' areas or maybe it's because I'm relatively class blind but I've never really considered the class of fellow guests. I've always just considered them as 'enlightened' - folk that prioritise natural places and spending time with people of similar persuasion over the pull of the Spanish Costas etc.
.
Incorrect.
Millennials are older that you assume. By most definitions millennials are those born early 80's to late 90's. So by 2005 the first millenials were in their early 20s. So prime YHA candidates.
You are thinking of Gen Z.
edit - you have deleted your post so I assume you realised your error.
When I first used Youth Hostels (1966, I think) you had to arrive under your own steam, bike or on foot. No cars allowed. And you were given chores, plus when you made your meals you had to do all the washing up and putting away (except your own plate & cutlery) before you ate.
A bit different from last time in Coniston where you chose your dinner off a menu, there was a licensed bar and a disco (complete with light show) on Friday nights.
On balance I think I prefer the one without the ex-squaddie running the disco. But in the 1960s I seem to remember some of the wardens being a little over-attentive to me and my friend (both 13).
Let’s be quite clear, you can’t change class
It really depends what you define as "Class"
Are you setting the rules then Dangeourbrain? I’m afraid your point of view is out of date.
In the traditional sense (Karl Marx) if you do not own ‘the means of production’ then you are working class. That means you and me and prety much everyone is working class, we sell our labour for less than it is worth in return for some coins. = Capitalism. A more contemporary approach (I forget who proposed it, have a look at wikipedia) split the working class into middle and working class with the defining difference being if you used your hands (physical labour) or your brain (mental labour) for labour. Therefore an IT middle manager is middle class and a bus driver or garage mechanic is working class. Therefore it is entirely possible through education to transcend your birth class and climb the ladder.
I think "using your hands" is a bit blunt ... in terms of someone who owns/owned a string of Jewellery shops etc. but say only trusted themselves cutting the most expensive diamond etc.
At the time I think this was more about physical labour vs mercantile class (who would fit that upper working class) .. vs people who's titles and estates let them live a life of leisure.
The person owning the Jewelery shop/chain might employ a doorman, other Jewelers etc. (or someone might own a company letting out security/doormen)
This all harks back to at least Roman times... where there was Equestrian and Senatorial class but the entry to the Equestrain Class at least at some times had a fixed value.
Ultimately I think what splits this until most recently is if you can afford to pay people to do everyday stuff you could do yourself... be that bleeding your brakes or changing a chain or making your cup of coffee.
I guess that's not cast in stone which is what makes it a bit vague... I can afford to pay someone to bleed my brakes... I just find it inconvenient to have to take a bid to a shop for 5-10 mins of work.. and I also object to not doing it myself. On the other side I know many people who can't really afford to pay £3-£4 for several coffee's a day, or to pay the same for someone to make their lunch but they do it anyway.
I find the talk of the class of the YHA strange. Maybe it’s because I’ve only been using the YHA for 30 odd years; maybe it’s because I only tended to use YHAs in traditionally ‘outwardbound’ areas or maybe it’s because I’m relatively class blind but I’ve never really considered the class of fellow guests. I’ve always just considered them as ‘enlightened’ – folk that prioritise natural places and spending time with people of similar persuasion over the pull of the Spanish Costas etc.
Well, perhaps class is one aspect or not.
The point is people who needed cheaper accommodation to see these natural places but equally were willing to trade some of their labour for this.
Back in the day I used to have a few hostels where I got given chores I enjoyed (like cutting firewood)
[i]postierich wrote:[/i]
The downside to it in the end comes down to 3 other youth people 11yrs old have not experienced a fairly remote YHA like Borrowdale away from the constraints of family and having a bit of freedom. YOUTH hosteling association needs to change its title.
I is confused. So were these 11yos all going on their own without any responsible parents?
Anyway, as has been pointed out, "youth" doesn't refer to children, and there are plenty of times other than one of the busiest weekends of the year when they could go - if they're 11, then they could presumably go Monday to Thursday the week before or after when it's a lot cheaper. It's not the pricing at a time when the YHA could probably sell the room 10 times over which is preventing them going. Just to expand on the first point, the "youth" in the title don't need a private room which is always a lot more expensive per bed than a dorm bed, so the pricing of private rooms is utterly irrelevant to the core ethos of the YHA.
Let’s be quite clear, you can’t change class, if you were born working class you will die working class.
The terms seem to be subjective and ill-defined enough to be practically meaningless, so imo I don't think you can make any sort of definitive judgement on that. Not beyond your personal opinion anyway. It's also pointless, but that's largely beside the point.
I left YHA when it became almost impossible to stay at any hostels because they were never bloody open. Even major routes like the Pennine Way it became almost impossible to put together a mid week trip
They then seemingly decided to push all the resources into flagship urban hostels like Oxford, and let the rest wither on the vine, using low booking rates (see above) as justification to close them and sell them off.
Aracer no I would have been going with my wife but the youngsters would be free to do as they wish up to a point Myself in the van and Wifey in the room!!
The point of the post was to find out why Centre Parcs gets so much grief but The YHA seems to do no wrong.
Some mentioned the Ambleside YHA thats where they are going wrong IMHO soulless place full of Stags Lads and Lassies weekends and their only intention is to do a pub crawl around Ambleside and maybe give the ducks some bread
The Pemier Inns on the outskirts of the Lakes are far cheaper than that, and a hell of a lot nicer then a YHA. Albeit you aren’t in such a ‘lovely’ location, but if you have transport that’s no big deal.
Seems to me YHA are taking the p*ss with some of their pricing, but if people are still paying then they are going to get away with it. Like everything vote with your feet and stay elsewhere.
Yeah. I can't believe a property elsewhere with different facilities charges a different amount. Or do premier inns have cooking facilities, drying rooms etc. nowadays?
It's clear I've hit a bit of a nerve so should apologise, largely as a yha thread is the wrong place for a discussion about class. I'm happy to come out and play on a new thread mind...
Sorry, i should have learnt by now sarcasm often doesn't work in writing. Mea culpa. Be it representative of my views or otherwise it certainly wasn't meant to be interpreted as such.
I’ll give this a go but it might be long!
The flexible pricing YHA been doing in various forms for about the last 8 years, it started off as seasonal and has now evolved to the what has been commented on above. This means that people who can afford the peak times are charged something that still represents value for money but during the lower demand times it can be cheaper so that anyone can come away and have a holiday. Winter is full of people having their first stay in YHA.
The money YHA make goes into the charitable object and the buildings as tiger1971 says above. The charitable bit is where the youth part of YHA comes in by helping, mainly organised groups, to be able to take kids on trips. This comes in the form of providing the hostels for them to do that and also part funding those who would struggle to afford their visit through the YHA breaks scheme. The idea of young people (and that means under 26 for YHA) travelling independently is no longer as widespread as it once was outside of the city locations.
alric in winter most of those hostels that are not open operate on an exclusive hire basis so you can rent the entire building for a set price (this varies as well new year being the most expensive time to do this) so no conspiracy theories needed. http://exclusive-hire.yha.org.uk/search/all-properties
Times change and move on. When I were a lad on school trips and trips with the cub scouts we'd stay at YHA's or camp, and did simpler activities like walking, making den's and generally messing about. As much about play as education, but my kids and the youth of today stay at much nicer places these days with more facilities and do activities that are teaching them life skills such as communication, teamwork, how to solve challenges. Simple fun and play doesn't really come into it. Things cost more, but parents are prepared to pay more than back in the day and most can afford to pay more. That's progress I guess. The simpler life us oldies remember is from a bygone era.
The YHA has to move with the times or it becomes irrelevant and unsustainable. It can't exist for the small percentage of people who want it to remain as it always was.
Actually my memories of YHA were they were pretty crappy places. Cheap yes and located within stunning locations, which was the main reason for using them, but they were pretty dreadful from what I can remember.
Times change and move on. When I were a lad on school trips and trips with the cub scouts we’d stay at YHA’s or camp, and did simpler activities like walking, making den’s and generally messing about. As much about play as education, but my kids and the youth of today stay at much nicer places these days with more facilities and do activities that are teaching them life skills such as communication, teamwork, how to solve challenges. Simple fun and play doesn’t really come into it. Things cost more, but parents are prepared to pay more than back in the day and most can afford to pay more. That’s progress I guess. The simpler life us oldies remember is from a bygone era.
The YHA has to move with the times or it becomes irrelevant and unsustainable. It can’t exist for the small percentage of people who want it to remain as it always was.
I don't think that's exactly the case ... I guess we are prepared to pay more but for me that's simply because of what is available and possible today.
I would much prefer my son had the basic fun and play. At his age (8) I walked to school and took my younger brother along... in evenings and holidays we hung about or went out in the countryside, rode our bikes etc.
(Not that really that far off Enid Blyton without the mysteries, chocolate eclairs and lashings of ginger beer)
Basically we enjoyed freedoms just not available or acceptable today.
Actually my memories of YHA were they were pretty crappy places. Cheap yes and located within stunning locations, which was the main reason for using them, but they were pretty dreadful from what I can remember.
i have very fond memories of the freedoms this gave me when a bit older than my son is now. I could set out with very little money having booked some hostels by that antiquated postal system... keeping a 10p and 2p coin for emergencies and check-in with parents...
Same goes for camping ... I'd much rather just a field than all this modern stuff with showers and all sorts...
The peak supply and demand argument is bullshit though surely?
In quiet times, you don't get proportionately fewer staff per customer and vice versa when it's busy.
More customers = more staff. It's a 1:1 ratio surely. At busy times on holiday, do you - the individual - get more care from a holiday company? No. It's the same . I daresay less.
Profiteering pure and simple.
I am a huge YHA fan and member.
I think they are stuck in middle ground (like many outdoor centres).
Too many folk want en-suite, want a canteen, want everything cleaned and provided. Yet at a budget cost.
The budget hotels and B&B's can often supply that at lower cost (see comments over travel lodge for example), and folk often eat out rather than expect the kitchen to cook your own.
As soon as you price B&B + evening meal out + lunch from cafe you get to Hotel prices.
YHA are trying to provide more, yet hitting the B&B and hotel prices, without as much plushness.
Those of us who want basic are unimpressed by the costs on weekends and holidays now.
I find a few private hostels offer better value, and many offer a more basic, traditional YHA experience.
"The peak supply and demand argument is bullshit though surely?
In quiet times, you don’t get proportionately fewer staff per customer and vice versa when it’s busy.
More customers = more staff. It’s a 1:1 ratio surely. At busy times on holiday, do you – the individual – get more care from a holiday company? No. It’s the same . I daresay less.
Profiteering pure and simple."
not sure which part of charging more at peak demand (when someone will pay it) to cover lean times (when people come because its cheap but are many other options) deem to be profiteering.
last time i checked YHA experiance was not driven by staff attention. it was driven by there being a bed in the area i want to be in at that particular time.
"Profiteering pure and simple."
What the economically illiterate often fail to grasp is that the breakeven cost at holiday centres/hotels/YHAs etc is not the low season price. Invariably establishments are operating at a loss at these times of the year; are charging as much as the market will bear in order to be in operation for the high season. Sure they will be making a profit in high season but it is not as excessive as you might think if you just compare to the low season price.
It is not pure and it certainly is not simple. If anyone thinks so I would invite them to consider running a tourist/activity centre and come back when suitably humbled.