YHA Borrowdale

Our recent stay at YHA Borrowdale was a bit of a mixed bag, with some real highlights and a few disappointing elements but overall, it made for a memorable and adventurous experience.|The atmosphere is definitely one of the hostel's strong points. There's a genuine sense of adventure about the place, helped by its beautiful location and quirky touches like backpacks on the wall and walking boots turned into plant pots, little things that add loads of character. The surrounding scenery is absolutely stunning, and the outdoor space is perfect for soaking it all in with a drink or a meal.|We found several members of the staff to be lovely, particularly Will, Sam, Rosie, and Theo. A special mention goes to Theo, who was especially kind and attentive with my children, really appreciated.|The food was another strong point. Although the menu was a bit limited (likely due to how busy the hostel was), everything we did order, both at breakfast and in the evening, was well-cooked and genuinely tasty. The addition of extra items to the menu was a nice touch, and the pricing overall was very reasonable.|We stayed in one of the landpods, which was clean and comfortable, and the outdoor toilets and showers were surprisingly good, clean and with reliably hot water, which isn’t always guaranteed in places like this.|That said, there were a few things that really let the experience down. Most notably, the self-catering kitchen was absolutely vile, by far the worst I’ve ever seen in a YHA. The fridges, in particular, were in a shocking state. It’s an area that clearly needs immediate attention.|Another real disappointment was the games room, which looked more like a forgotten storage space than somewhere children might enjoy. Dirty, messy and uninviting, a real shame given how family-friendly the rest of the site tries to be.|The food service system could also do with a rethink. Using numbered spoons rather than table numbers makes things chaotic and inefficient for the staff, who end up walking all over trying to locate the right person’s food, not ideal, especially when seating stretches indoors and out.|There was also no sponsored beer available during our stay, not a huge issue, but worth noting if that’s something you’d normally look forward to.|Finally, while the manager came across as friendly and pleasant to chat to, the overall management of the site felt a bit lacking. Either they're fairly new and still finding their feet, or they've been there too long and become complacent. Either way, a bit more attention to cleanliness and organisation would make a big difference.||Final thoughts- YHA Borrowdale has heaps of potential and, in many ways, delivers a great outdoorsy, family-friendly experience with good food, great scenery and some brilliant staff. But it’s let down by poor cleanliness in key areas and a few organisational niggles that really shouldn’t be overlooked. With a bit more care and attention, this could easily be one of the best hostels of the business.

Lovely service, lovely food, lovely location. My only issue is the beds. The mattresses are firm but comfy, but the suspension underneath is pretty much nonexistent (they cover the metal mesh suspension with a large wooden board). Plus they're quite short, if you're taller than 5'10 you won't fit comfortably.

Great stay at Borrowdale YHA. |Staff friendly and welcoming, on check in the staff member was so helpful in sorting an out our room. ||Our room was clean and comfortable. Showers and toilets were clean. Unlimited breakfast was hot and no issue getting more. Plenty of seating. ||Nice atmosphere in the evening while having a cheeky beer or too. Staff seemed to genuinely enjoy working there.

A great hostel to explore the surroundings. It's clean and the beds are comfortable. Service is good although they were struggling with the large amount of guests. They have a full bar and serve decent hot food too.

People arriving by car should know that the access lane to the hostel has many deep potholes. The single track means these can't easily be avoided, especially without scratching the car alongside the hawthorn/bramble/holly hedges growing along the side of the track.

Fabulous location, main building well equipped with a nice chalet style bar area. Road in is diabolically narrow with deep potholes, water pressure in the showers is poor. We stayed in a landpod which is one up from a camping experience. The night we stayed there was a big school group in, who were quite boisterous, and we were advised to get our food orders in early which didn't work for us so we ate elsewhere.

Thank you to the Borrowdale staff for the great friendly service. We camped and explored the beautiful area for over a week and watched 2 different school parties take over the place having a great time. YHA serving young people who may never have been in the countryside before having a ball...|Meanwhile the staff here (apparently!) cheerfully got on with each person wearing many different hats - reception, bar work, waitering, cooking, endless cleaning, unblocking toilets etc... bravo!||The site itself is in an absolutely exquisite position, loved hearing the river and birds while falling asleep and waking up. There are really amazing walks and climbs you can do from the site without getting in the car and also regular buses at end of lane. We were blessed that the weather was much better than forecasts were saying. ||The bar and dining area were great, we were very grateful we had the option to eat inside with our dogs, either our own cooked food or YHA meals. This is amazing when weather is bad. Lovely to chat with people from all over the place. Personally, I loved the great occasional background music and the chance to recharge phones etc.||Facilities for outdoor people need some attention - there is only 1 toilet on the camping side and 1 working shower but you can use the inside facilites. Could I suggest a mop/cloths and a small bin get left in outdoor showers? They get horribly dirty underfoot very quickly and some of us would be happy to clean up after ourselves. Found out later in stay that there are other outdoor loos and showers on other side of building but showers are more open to elements so probably for warmest months. ||Self catering kitchen needs some TLC, especially leaking fridges, one of which was much too warm. The cookers and kettles are very slow and old but once you get used to that and avoid peak times, all good. Given how much use and turnover it gets though, the system works remarkably well.|I see in comments below that the hostel is working on improvements and we know YHA is struggling financially - it must be hard for the staff in a creaking system that needs updating. As the manager's reply says in the review below, they have been pushing Highways to get their horribly pot-holed lane fixed - fingers crossed it's soon.||Overall, what a joy to have this wonderful facility with friendly capable people to interact with in the midst of such beauty. Add mountains to take your breath away and you have a great holiday. ||PS. Cannot recommend pub Yew Tree in nearby Seatoller more highly. Or cafe with incredible view in Rothswaite. Food and service in both outstanding.

Really nice place. Nice staff. Loads to do. Hikes. Plunde pools. Waterfalls. Great location with river running along side it. . Open top bus to keswick was awesome amazing views.kids loved it. which you can get from the end of the road. Lake windermere is only 20 minutes away loved the boat rides there and shops.