YHA Chester Trafford Hall

We had a private ensuite room which was located in a wooden chalet near the main building. The chalet was lovely and warm during our stay which was appreciated after being out in the cold during the day. The shower was very good with plenty of hot water. There was no mirror in the room if you wanted to dry and style your hair. Only mirror is in the bathroom where of course you can’t dry your hair. We had evening meals in the hostel on 2 of the days. The food was very good but wish there was a bit more choice on the menu. The self catering kitchen is ok but quite a small room with just 2 microwaves and no ovens should you want to do your own meals. There is a comfortable dining area to sit and eat your own meals plus a lounge/dining area where you can relax or eat the hostel evening meals that you have ordered at the bar area. There is also a games room with a pool table and football table. There is a small charge for using these. There is also a small shop area where you can buy usb leads, ear plugs, pens etc. Finally you will find all the staff at the hostel very friendly and approachable and happy to help with anything.

My company organised a team building event for 150 people here. All our meals were excellent, the bar was well-stocked and service was brilliant. We had an afternoon of fun - buggy-building, archery, fire lighting which was great. Nothing was too much trouble. The venue is surrounded by fields and is so relaxing. Thoroughly recommend!

Pros and cons - you get what you pay for. Hostel itself has a lovely family vibe, main areas are clean. The bedroom (private bunk room with private shower room/toilet) was unclean. I can live with the dirty walls, unhoovered carpet and mouldy shower, but the leaking toilet that has the floor soaked and the smell of it was awful. Really disappointed. You get what you pay for but that bathroom was a health hazard.

Wonderful stay at YHA Trafford Hall, great staff, good food wonderful facilities. Would recommend for family suites, fantastic value and very welcoming.

Excellent location for exploring local area, Chester Zoo, Cheshire Oaks, Chester and Liverpool. Amazing looking place and ample facilities and parking. Breakfast was amazing …. full cooked veggie breakfast, with a selection of pastries, yoghurt and fruit, cereals etc…

The quality of YHA hostels is inevitably variable. Having rejoined YHA after a break of a few years because I felt that it was all going downhill, I was pleased to stay at this hostel. It's an easy 12-minute walk to/from the hostel to the local bus stop and a fast journey into Chester itself, whether jumping off slightly early to get to the rail station or staying on until the bus station itself. I believe that the buses from the local bus stop also go north into Wirral and the rest of Merseyside, including Liverpool. The main building was lovely, historic and well preserved, and the ensuite room that I had was part of a converted stable block and was quiet enough and warm enough with good shower pressure. The grounds were nice for a morning or evening stroll. Having had plenty of poor experiences with YHA's food, the catering staff here were excellent, always happy to go the extra yard to make the food enjoyable although the quality of the breakfast, as usual at YHA, was somewhat indifferent and the dining areas were noisy due to an influx of schoolchildren. It's a conference centre as well, so I am assuming that they know that they have to deliver the goods to a higher standard than most YHAs but they did so with a friendly, humourous and professional attitude. I'd say that this is the best managed YHA hostel in which I've stayed in a long time.