I stayed in a youth hostel with my kids and disturbed the backpackers

There’s someone running naked through the youth hostel. He just careened clothes-free past a group of Dutch backpackers staring at their phones and is now making his way towards the shared kitchen, not a care in the world.

It’s my son, Elliot, who’s three years old. His nude run has caused not the slightest bit of kerfuffle at the hostel. A few girls are giving “Aw, isn’t he cute” smiles but, other than that, barely anyone seems to have even noticed.

The pool at the Byron Bay YHA.

We’ve just finished a swim at the hostel pool, which is why there is a lack of clothes. You’re about to get your kid changed, you get distracted for a second or two, and he’s off.

We were definitely noticed at the pool, though. There were all these young people lazing around its edges, catching some sun, enjoying the backpacking good life, when my partner and I arrived with a five-year-old and a three-year-old, and the peace was disturbed.

This is the thing about staying with your family at a youth hostel in one of Australia’s foremost backpacker destinations: what’s supposed to happen is that all the partying holidaymakers will annoy us with their noise. What actually happens is that my crazy kids disturb the nice backpackers who are sitting around reading books and trying to catch a tan.

They’re all very nice about it, though. No one really cares.

We end up spending most of our free time in the shared areas, soaking up the atmosphere.

This hostel is the YHA Byron Bay, and it’s a case of “back to the future” for me. I used to stay in this very hostel back in my early 20s, when I would travel down from Brisbane for weekends with friends. As someone who began their travel-writing career known as “The Backpacker”, I have stayed in a lot of similar accommodation around the world.

But I’ve never been to one with my kids. So this weekend, I’m here to see if it’s a good idea.

At first glance, it certainly seems to be. Young families need plenty of space when they travel – you’re usually talking about booking two hotel rooms, or staying in an apartment or holiday home rental (given the affordable-housing shortage in the Byron Shire right now, it makes sense to avoid that).

The apartment at YHA Byron Bay offers plenty of room for a family stay.

Hostels offer a relaxed, no-frills alternative, the sort of place where you could book a four-bunk dorm for your family if you wanted to go really low budget, or you could do what we’ve done and stay in the Byron YHA’s new “apartment”, a two-bedroom abode with private bathroom, kitchen, lounge area and balcony.

The apartment is stacked with everything a young family could need, from a large fridge and all the standard kitchen utensils to a washing machine and piles of spare linen (if you know, you know).

Then there’s the social aspect of hostel life. The shared spaces here – the multiple open-air decks filled with tables and chairs, the big kitchen, the pool, the indoor lounge and TV room – are always packed with people from all over the world, from all walks of life.

I love this. I’ve missed this. Just thinking about all the goings-on of hostel life, the intense relationships forming and breaking, the reunions, the goodbyes, the deep conversations about fixing the world – how could you not get a bit misty-eyed?

And now my kids get a taste of that experience, too. We might have plenty of private space in our apartment, but we spend most of our spare time in the shared areas, swimming in the pool, eating snacks at the outdoor tables, and soaking up the atmosphere.

Around us, backpacking life goes on mostly undisturbed. One evening, I have to creep past the lounge area clutching a soiled nappy on my way out to find a bin on the street and no one even looks up.

Outside the hostel, meanwhile, we find ourselves drawn to Byron’s more backpacker-friendly haunts, too, all of which work well for kids: the beach, where Latino tourists kick footballs and hippies practise twirling fire sticks; the markets, with all their crystals and tie-dye; and the Beach Hotel, for a counter meal with a view.

This is the travelling life I want for my kids – so why not start them now? I just need to encourage them to keep their clothes on.

DETAILS

The apartment at YHA Byron Bay is a fully self-contained, two-bedroom abode, with access to all the property’s shared facilities. It starts from $350 a night. See yha.com.au

The writer travelled as a guest of YHA Australia