Bath has two well-established hostels worth knowing about: YHA Bath, a grand Italianate mansion about a 10-minute walk from the centre, and St Christopher's Inn Bath, a backpacker hostel right in the city centre near the Roman Baths and Abbey. Both are significantly cheaper than Bath's hotels, and neither requires you to give up much in the way of location.
Why budget accommodation is worth knowing about in Bath
Bath has a reputation as an expensive place to stay, largely because its hotel stock leans towards boutique and heritage properties in Georgian buildings. Hostels and simple budget hotels don't get much attention in most guides to the city, but they exist, and they put you in walking distance of everything that matters just as well as a pricier hotel would. See our guide to Bath on a budget for how to keep the rest of your trip affordable too.
YHA Bath
YHA Bath occupies an Italianate-style mansion with a mix of original period features and modern hostel facilities, set in its own grounds about 10 minutes' walk from the city centre. It has dorm rooms for the classic hostel budget, plus private rooms if you want the same building and price bracket with more privacy. Facilities include a garden, a licensed bar, laundry facilities and a restaurant, so you're not relying entirely on the city centre for food and downtime.
St Christopher's Inn Bath
St Christopher's Inn is part of a well-known UK and European hostel chain, and its Bath branch sits right in the city centre, within easy walking distance of the Roman Baths and Bath Abbey. It's built around a bar and cafe with a full food menu, happy hour specials and a sociable, backpacker-friendly atmosphere, which makes it a good fit if meeting other travellers is part of what you want from the stay, rather than just a cheap bed.
Comparing the two
| YHA Bath | St Christopher's Inn Bath | |
|---|---|---|
| Location | ~10 min walk from centre | City centre, near the Roman Baths |
| Atmosphere | Quieter, grand mansion setting | Sociable, backpacker bar scene |
| Rooms | Dorms and private rooms | Dorms, some private options |
| On-site facilities | Garden, bar, restaurant, laundry | Bar, cafe, happy hour |
| Best for | Wanting some quiet alongside the budget price | Meeting other travellers, nightlife on-site |
Budget hotel chains as an alternative
If a hostel dorm isn't for you but you still want to keep costs down, Bath also has branches of the UK's standard budget hotel chains (Premier Inn and Travelodge among them) on the edge of the centre, trading a slightly longer walk in for a private en-suite room at a lower price than the city's boutique hotels. They won't have the character of a central Georgian townhouse, but they're a reliable fallback if hostel dorms and heritage hotels are both off the table.
What you give up at this price point
The trade-off with any hostel is less privacy and, in YHA Bath's case, a short walk into the centre rather than a doorstep location. Neither hostel is going to match a boutique hotel's finish or a spa-hotel's amenities - but for a short stay built around the Roman Baths, the Georgian streets and Bath's walkable centre, neither of those extras is essential.
FAQs
Are there hostels in Bath? Yes, two well-established ones: YHA Bath, in an Italianate mansion about 10 minutes from the centre, and St Christopher's Inn Bath, a backpacker hostel in the city centre near the Roman Baths.
Which hostel in Bath is more central? St Christopher's Inn Bath is in the city centre, within walking distance of the Roman Baths and Bath Abbey. YHA Bath is set slightly further out, about a 10-minute walk from the centre.
Do Bath's hostels have private rooms, or only dorms? YHA Bath offers both dorm rooms and private rooms. St Christopher's Inn also has some private room options alongside its dorms.
Are there budget hotel chains in Bath as an alternative to hostels? Yes - Premier Inn and Travelodge both have branches on the edge of Bath's centre, offering private en-suite rooms at a lower price than the city's boutique hotels.
Is Bath expensive for accommodation generally? It has a reputation for it, largely because much of its hotel stock is boutique and heritage-focused, but hostels and budget chain hotels bring the floor price down considerably if you're not set on a Georgian townhouse stay.
Is St Christopher's Inn Bath good for solo travellers? Yes - its bar-and-cafe setup and backpacker atmosphere are built around meeting other guests, which makes it a natural fit for solo travellers as well as groups.