Newly refurbished Hatters Hostel on Hilton Street was publically reopened last week – and it’s expelling the hostel stigma for good.
After months of building-wide redevelopment work, Visit Manchester’s director of tourism, Nick Brooks-Sykes, cut the ribbon to begin an evening of guided tours and cocktails.
Guests were shown around the newly furnished rooms and communal areas that resemble a hotel more than the stereotypical hostel.
From £12 a night for a six bed en-suite room, it provides a great option for travellers who need a touch of luxury to their affordable lodgings.
Also available are private rooms priced from £45 a night, including a double bed, en-suite bathroom and free Netflix.
Director of Hatters Hostels, Karl Kinsella, told MM how the refurbished hostel bridges the gap between hotel comfort and a hostel’s social values.
“Previously hostels are all family owned, maybe not very good quality, now there’s a new generation,” he explained.
“We’re just trying to create somewhere that feels like it’s a luxury, like a hotel feel to it, but it’s still important to keep the social aspect of a hostel because that’s what people come here for.
“We do free pub crawls, city tours, free movie nights, stuff that engages people in the city, so that they can get a feel for what Manchester is. You can’t get that from a hotel.”
‘REALLY IMPORTANT’: Tourism employs nearly 100,000 in Manchester and is worth £8BILLION to the British economy
During the Director of Tourism’s speech, he praised the work of Hatters Hostels in bringing foreign visitors to Manchester.
“Tourism in Manchester is really important,” the travel chief declared.
“It supports 94,000 jobs in the city and is worth £7.9 billion to the British economy.
“Young people are looking for more experiential travel. They want to look for authentic experiences during their stay in the UK, so I think what [Hatters Hostels] is doing is great for the city.”
The hostel is next door to the West Corner restaurant and classy basement bar The Corner Cocktail Club, opened in March, where residents can get a 15% discount.
Food and beverage operations manager at The Cocktail Club, Adam Mclean, explained what the two Hatter Hostel owned sites had to offer.
He said: “We’re trying to interact with the international youth market that is coming in and be like ‘this is the Northern Quarter, go to these places, but make sure you start with ours first’.
“Eventually we’ll have the connection between the hostel, and we’ll have the guys coming down in the lift to have a cooked breakfast.”
