Forget draughty bunk rooms and awkward social encounters, hostels now provide home comforts and a sense of community private rentals will never match
‘P
enguins? In Snowdonia?” I asked incredulously. “That’s right!” came the enthusiastic reply from our newest hostel companion. We were standing in the large kitchen of The Rocks hostel in Capel Curig, a village in the north-east of Eryri national park (Snowdonia), chatting amiably while waiting for our teas to brew.
“Head up Moel Siabod to the lake, and that’s where the penguins are. You’ll see a sign warning about feeding them,” he said. “But even if they’re hiding and you don’t see one, it’s one of the best walks in the area.”
Spotting a penguin in the Welsh mountains seemed unlikely, but that hardly mattered, least of all to my 11-year-old son, who was thrilled by the idea of a day spent hunting for penguins. And with that, our daily adventure plans were settled, inspired not by an internet search or guidebook, but by the easy exchange of recommendations that happen so often in the communal spaces of hostels.
