YHA Ilam Hall

This amazing old historic building is an incredible place to stay - especially at the great value of the YHA. We stayed in a private ensuite room with a double bed - extremely luxurious for a hostel! But it lost none of the quirky character and outdoor ethos we love so much. Great facilities, friendly staff and excellent food. Perfect location just a short walk from stunning Dovedale and other beautiful places to walk and explore.

We stayed here as a group of women looking for somewhere to rest our head after a walk. We stayed in a 6-bed private en-suite room. We paid about £30 each including our breakfast. When we first walked up to the hall I got “Traitors Castle” vibes. I could not believe that this place was a youth hostel! The hostel is situated in Ilam Park, which is a National Trust park. There is a car park charge but this is at a reduced rate for staying guests. We paid £2 at the youth hostel when we checked in. This gave us until 1pm the following day. The hostel was very clean. We had en-suite but there were 6 of us so we did used the communal facilities too, which were also very clean. There were no noise issues at night. There’s 1 pillow per bed so, if you like a fluffy pillow, take one from home if possible. The breakfast was surprisingly very good. The cooked breakfast was of a good quality for the price and was unlimited. The small pastries were warm. There was a good choice of food and drink for breakfast. There isn’t a local pub or shop in the village and the YHA didn’t have a huge choice of drinks (no plastic bottled drinks) or snacks if you are going out the next day but there is a catering kitchen so you can make food to take with you and there is a water filling station. The Manifold Tea Room (National Trust in the grounds) has a better choice of takeaway drinks in plastic bottles or cans but can be quite pricey. There is a small evening menu, however if you are looking to eat out then I highly recommend the Okeover Arms about 2 or 3 miles drive away. If you are going walking then there are lots of routes that start at ilam hall, including to the dovedale stepping stones and a circular through Wetton Village. Overall, i can’t fault this place. This was my first time at a youth hostel since I was at school and I was so impressed that I’m planning to visit more on a regular basis.

We are regular visitors to the YHA establishments. However our recent experience of Ilam was pretty terrible. We are very laid back, but even we got fed up with this place. Rooms were taken over or hired out privately leaving us with a few wooden stools to sit on in the games room, listening to 4 hours of ping pong. Kids running everywhere. The rooms and toilets were shabby. Showers cool. Breakfast just warm on first day better on the second. Bar rubbish. Games locked away in a private room no access as it was hired out for a group. We went to bed at 9.30 to overcome the boredom. Book Hartington YHA its fantastic.