Staying at the YHA Helvellyn was an absolute treat! The location couldn't have been more perfect — nestled right at the foot of the hiking trail, we literally stepped out of the hostel and onto the path, no car required. It made the whole experience feel seamless and adventurous from the very first step. Though dinner options were a bit limited, the meals were hearty, satisfying, and just what we needed after a day on the trails. A special shout-out to the incredible staff at YHA Helvellyn — warm, welcoming, and genuinely accommodating. Your hospitality made our stay even more memorable. Thank you!

Perfect place to get away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life. No phone reception, minimal WiFi. Plenty of books on a shelf. I didn't have a car so walked up from the bus stop which took me about 35 minutes. First section is very steep then it levels out a bit (I'm very unfit but found it doable and actually a pleasant walk). Friendly reception staff on arrival. Nice clean, modern cafe/sitting area. Great walks starting from the front door of the hostel. Looking forward to returning one day!

Can easily hear people through the walls in other rooms so bring earplugs if this bothers you.

Stunning location! Easy to find as well. The staff were very pleasant and helpful. The dorms are nice enough - they do the job! The kitchen and bathroom facilities were reasonably good. I also appreciated the reading corner away from the busier social area. It's a nice place to relax after a long day.

The driveway to the hostel is quite something! As long as you're confident, it shouldn't be a problem though. The kitchen is quite small, which can make it very challenging around dinner time when everyone wants to use it. The showers (I only used the showers on the first floor) are very small. There's just enough room to get changed when you get out of the shower. There was also only one sink on that floor but you can go to the ground floor to use more facilities there. It was also unfortunate that the WiFi was down due to a storm and there's very little signal in the area. That's not anyone's fault though - it happens!

The location is amazing and a great starting point for heading uptowards the main Hellvellyn ridge. Friendly helpful staff and an ample self catering kitchen.

What would have made this better for me would be individual lights beside dormitory beds as the large bright light was on until 11pm ish as people got ready for bed or lay in bed reading as others tried to sleep, also charging point and a little shelf by each bed as at some other YHA hostels have would be great. The showers and toilets are great but shower changing area is very small so requires some organisation and contortion of the body as I ended up havbing to get changed with the door open to the corridor... not major issues

What an absolute GEM of a place to stay! It's a gorgeous group of buildings set on the banks of a picturesque tumbling stream up a valley which carries some of the runoff from the higher tarns and streams. The valley sides are steep scree or loose slate, studded here and there with old pipes, dams, retaining walls, paths and other signs of a deep history of slate mining. The car park has ample space for the people staying in the hostel. From the car park, there's a little gate and some steps down to a rustic concreted area, that then leads down towards the main door. The bar area and restaurant are on the right. the bar area doubles as the common area. It's small, but it's set up nicely, with games and leaflets to read. We played some chess, some chequers, Boggle and attempted a game of Cluedo. The common area felt nice enough you could sit in it and relax, although it didn't have a view out. The staff were superb. They were so kind with the kids, and couldn't have been more welcoming from the moment we arrived until the moment we left. The manager walked us through everything about the hostel, was fun with the kids, and was always there to answer questions or help with directions. The breakfast was excellent. There was loads of choice, and the Veggie sausages were done to perfection. The chef on duty in the morning was so kind to the kids, and got out games for them while I was loading up the car, and made sure they had enough to eat. The room was small, as we expected, but extremely clean and modern. The beds were clean and well made, and the toilet facilities were some of the cleanest and nicest of any hotel with shared facilities I've stayed in. The self-catering kitchen is quite small, but there's enough space for 2 or 3 couples to work in at once. A big fridge makes for a welcome place to store dairy and other perishables too.

The road up to the hostel is a little bumpy, and my car (an Audi) beached with a horrific crunch a few times on the way up. In the dark, with the rain lashing down, it took a few run-ups to get the car over the concrete hump at the bottom of the carpark to direct runoff rainwater, and the car scraped its belly as it went over. In the light of day, there was another way to do it, so if you have a low-suspension (ish) car, get out and survey the road when you get to the hostel. Everything else was absolutely perfect.

Location, and a very helpful receptionist who kept smiling even when it was extremely busy with people all booking in at the same time and ordering meal. She was a credit to the team, I wish I made a note of her name!

WiFi went offline over the weekend, which made it harder to plan for the next day. That's the one thing I love doing while in a YHA is planning with a cuppa, listening to all the chatter around me!.. but on the other hand, it was great to catch up with my reading!

Really friendly staff, great location by a babbling stream, all the comforts we expect from YHA!

Nothing! We lucked out with a good weather window to get most of the way up Hellvelyn, the beds were comfy, all great. We're only sorry to hear one member of YHA staff getting grief from another customer about "the lack of WiFi" - that was part of the charm of the place Perhaps the rutted road up was a bit nerve racking but we had been warned!

Location is perfect for exploring Helvelyn. Beautifully located hostel - sound of gushing water nearby was really soothing. Really friendly and helpful staff. Updated toilets and showers nicely finished. Crisp clean bed linen and warm duvets for cold nights. Good to have a private, family room. Loved the board games! One lovely staff member brought his own game in for us to try. Top bloke! Have stayed before - this was our second visit - would come again.

The road leading to the hostel is treacherous for small, low cars. Parking was slightly problematic when the hostel was full. Food was quite expensive. No food available if you were a late arrival - had to go to local pub, which also closed early, but they were very kind and made us sandwiches to take away. Kitchen could do with an update.

Only issue is the track to get to the property. Perhaps some infill to even out some of the bumpiness. Staff were great, I was very impressed with the cleanliness of the facilities and very comfy bed.

Just the very bumpy track - I was worried about my tyres and suspension even though I was doing 5mph. Lots of other guests commented same to me. I recognise the hostel is extremely remote which is a big part of its charm but maybe a bit of infill would be possible?

Amazing place - cheap as chips, we stayed in a landed (advertised as a tent on booking.com) great amenities - friendly staff of volunteers and stayovers... food was good quality, the location of the place is absolutely insane - plenty of walks and activities closely and VERY photogenic scenery. Due to the white noise from the river (had rained a lot) we slept for ten hours straight it was so comfortable - and bear in mind we stayed in April outside.

small checking in time window (due to staffing on this day only) - when the closest place to 'kill time' other than hiking is like 2 miles away.