In April 1937, “The face of Ireland”, by Michael Floyd, was published. We don’t know anything about the author but, on page 75, he states: “If I were asked to pick out one spot in Ireland that seemed to me more glorious than the rest, I believe that Rosguill would be my choice”. Exactly one…
We’re delighted to kick off our guest post series with Nic Hardy‘s interview with James Forrest on his mission to climb Ireland’s 273 highest mountains – the ups, the downs, sheltering from the storms in youth hostels and the magical moments that will stay with him forever. So James, tell us a bit about…
Hostelling in Ireland is still a popular alternative for a lot of travelers looking to book a stay in Ireland. With hotel prices skyrocketing, affordable fixed-price accommodation has seen a surge in both bookings and popularity. With hostels now more popular than ever, many have gone down the road of piggybacking off their success and…
Since our inception in 1931, An Óige has added many hostels to our network, many of which have been franchise hostels. These franchise hostels make up a large part of our association with 11 of our 19 youth hostels around Ireland now being franchises. While all play an important part and excel in guest relations…
What a year it has been so far for us here at An Óige – Irish Youth Hostel Association. Already this year we have held two very success campaigns in our 2nd annual An Óige Environmental Week and our #SchoolsOut youth travel competition. We also saw our Killarney International Hostel win a Best of Killarney…
Foroige Leaders recently underwent Advanced Restorative Practices training at Knockree Youth Hostel in County Wicklow. One of those leaders was Gaisce Gold awardee Matthew McNulty, a close friend of An Óige. Matthew was kind enough to tell us about the training and his experience in our hostel. “Last November, myself and a number of the Foroige…
Knockree Hostel in the Wicklow Mountains was the first place that made me fall in love with Ireland. It was also the first hostel I stayed it. Not only that, but it was also the first hostel ever that I worked in. Throwback to March 2015, where it all begun at Knockree Hostel. I could…
St. Patrick’s Day is upon us once more! At this stage we all know the routine. Wake up, get dressed in whatever green clothing you can find, go to the local parade to complain about it being the same every year, before finally going to the jam packed pub where you spend the rest of…
Killarney International Hostel were big winners at the recent 2019 Experts’ Choice Awards after walking away with the Best of Killarney award. Fewer than 2% of hotels and hostels worldwide receive an Experts Choice award. “Its always great to get nominated for an award but to win one is even that bit more special,” said…
Youth Work Ireland, Ireland’s largest youth organisation, today announced that is has officially partnered with An Óige – Irish Youth Hostel Association, the largest association of youth hostels in Ireland. The partnership will see Youth Work Ireland and An Óige working together to promote independence in young people through travel as well as promoting the…
The An Óige Environmental Conservation Group had a very busy and successful 2018. An Óige Environmental Week 2019 is the perfect occasion to look back at the year just gone and take stock of what has been achieved. The main focus of the conservation group has been on carrying out the conservation management plan drawn…
There are two vacancies on the Board of An Óige for Elected Directors who will be appointed by the membership of the Association at our AGM in late April/early May 2019. Only members are eligible to nominate candidates, to vote at the election or to be elected to the Board. The nomination process is as…
Are you interested in a Beginners’ Photography Course? Our Photography Club have designed a course for the beginner who wants to know more about digital photography using either a camera or smartphone. The course will be given by Peter Gallagher (L.I.P.P.A) Topics covered include; The camera and how it works Menu Settings Composition Downloading images…
Hostelling International Northern Ireland (HINI) and An Óige – The Irish Youth Hostel Association were delighted to deliver an innovative Good Neighbour cross border partnership project based at the Bushmills Youth Hostel, Co Antrim last week. Young people from North Coast Integrated College in Coleraine and Gairmscoil Chú Uladh in Donegal came together for an…
“Travel has become one of the great forces for peace and understanding in our time. As people move through the world and learn to know each other, to understand each other’s customs and to appreciate the qualities of the individuals of each nation, we are building a level of international understanding which can sharply improve…
Photography Workshop The An Óige Photographic Group are 80 years strong this year. That is a lot of special moments captured. To celebrate, they are running a series of seminars and workshops with guest lecturers sharing their expertise on specialist subjects such as: Sports Photography: Equipment, Camera settings, Shooting positions Portraiture: Use of Natural Light,…
The Fleadh Cheoil is one of our favourite festivals in the Irish calendar. It is mostly free (apart from the paid concerts), which we think is a great thing. Young people flock to it (although it is billed as a family event and you will see more grey hair (or even no hair) here than…
In designing a programme for promoting pollinators it seemed logical to call it the Bring Back Bees programme. For one thing such a name opens the door for our marketing department to use as many bee related puns as they can dredge up from their hive mind. More importantly, the Bring Back Bees programme is…
How better to enjoy the summer than spending a day outside, listening to great music with your friends. Festival season has started and therefore there are plenty to choose from. Our intern Laura has selected the festivals around the country that she feels shouldn’t be missed. Life Festival 25 – 27 May Life Festival has…
Almost a dozen volunteers from the An Óige Conservation Group braved the wet and windy conditions to help with the planting of 10,000 new trees at Knockree this past weekend. The 10,000 trees were planted over a 4.6 hectare (11 acres) area on the land attached to An Óige’s Knockree Youth Hostel in County Wicklow,…
Coming up in Killarney at the end of the winter does feel like coming back home and it makes you feel relaxed instantly. The mysterious atmosphere of the clouds hanging around the mountains and the silence that can be experienced going up there is incredible. Since the tourism season hadn’t started yet, the area was…
Glenmalure Youth Hostel in Co. Wicklow was the site of an extraordinary adventure over St Patrick’s weekend as a snow-in caused one brave warden to hike over six kilometres in a blizzard to make a food pick-up for his hungry guests. Glenmalure warden, Mick Morgan, decided to work St Patrick’s Day in order to avoid the…
Glenmalure Youth Hostel in Co. Wicklow recently had cause for celebration when it saw the engagement of a young Polish couple take place within its walls. Ania travelled all the way to Ireland from Gdańsk in Poland to meet her partner of 3-years, Adam, to spend some quality time together when the couple decided to go…
It’s been 2 weeks since Storm Emma hit Ireland and we felt the full force of the Beast from the East. While the majority of the country was hit by several feet of snow, power outages, and water restrictions, it did make for some absolutely stunning images. We searched hard and long and have found…
Earlier in the year, on International Women’s Day, our Chairperson, Maria Shanahan, was kind enough to sit down and discuss her role with An Óige, her history with our organisation, and how she became our chairperson. I was 15 when I first stayed in a hostel. In transition year, my class went to Glendalough with…
An Óige – Irish Youth Hostel Association recently held our very first An Óige Environmental Week as a way to promote the importance of conservation and environmental awareness to the public, as well as promoting the role that An Óige plays in the conservation of nature in Ireland. Over the course of the week we…
Christmas is one of the most beautiful times of the year for both the young and those who are young at heart. The streets are decorated with Christmas lights, music is all around and there is magic in the air… the perfect time to get together with a group of friends or relatives. With one-foot-deep…
Saturday was very cultural for me. Why you ask? Because I have spent my Saturday night at the theatre. And yes, it is a very hip and cool thing to do. The Abbey Theatre was performing Let the Right One In, which is based on a movie based on a novel by John Ajvide Lindqvist.…
The Cork Jazz Festival was celebrating its 50th anniversary on the 27th October. It is an annual music festival held in Cork City, always held in late October. The first festival began on Friday, 27 October 1978, and has taken place every year since. Impressive, right? It is Ireland’s biggest jazz event and attracts hundreds…
Halloween 2017 is a little under a week away. The fright fest will, as always, take place on 31st October, which this year falls on a Tuesday. One of the biggest and busiest nights of the year, this year is sure to be no different with a large number of events taking place all across…
To unicycle around Ireland has always been a dream of mine. My name is Anais Charbin. I was brought up in a family of adventurous travellers in France. I started to travel alone at an early age, from humanitarian missions to road trips, from Africa to Asia, and through Europe and Canada. As a fervent…
Mags Collins was our previous chairperson. She took time out from her hectic travel itinerary to talk to us about all things youth hostelling. 1. What makes our mission meaningful to you? I would love to see all young people doing what I did when I was young, being outside, doing sports and interacting with other…
Culture Night 2017 is on Friday September 22nd this year. This is the 13th year of free activities and events around Ireland during September and it is growing bigger and better. As usual we asked our staff what they recommend near our hostels in Ireland and below is the list of their suggestions for Culture…
Our Sleep For Peace workshop facilitator, Deirdre Quinlan will be visiting hostels in Killarney and Errigal and working with young people this September. We asked her to tell us how the Sleep For Peace workshops will help young people explore the issues raised by intercultural encounters. Diversity The concept of diversity is at the core…
Young People on the Move On the 21st day of September An Óige, the United Nations (UN) and Hosteling International (HI) will join forces again to celebrate Sleep For Peace 2017. ‘What’s that?’, you may wonder. Well, Sleep for Peace is a global initiative set up by HI back in 2013 – which reinforces a…
Sleep for Peace is back! What the hell is that I hear you cry?! Look no further for all the answers! In 1981 the United Nations unanimously established September 21st as the International Day of Peace. “Peace Day” gives everyone a specific time to commit to global peace and a chance to contribute to a…
Crash course: Hosteling – How to make the most out of it? ”Hosteling is an experience everyone should try at least once in their life.” – Yours truly It all started nine months ago with me trying to find an internship. With a little luck I stumbled across a great spot – the An Óige marketing team……
We have the chats with Kristina Ferry who is one of the staff in Errigal Youth Hostel in Dunlewey Co. Donegal 1.What three traits define you? Patient, funny and outspoken. 2. What is your personal philosophy? “You don’t kick me off” was an advice I got once a long time ago from a coach when…
We are looking for Bracken Trampling Volunteers. With the success of our ongoing conservation work in Wicklow we are holding another bracken trampling event at Knockree Youth Hostel at 11am on Saturday the 29th of July. We are looking for volunteers to do some bracken trampling for a few hours (or whatever time you…
A few weeks ago, members of the An Óige team conducted a Webinar regarding the Conservation Plan for our site at Knockree Hostel in Enniskerry, County Wicklow. The Five-Year Conservation Plan was officially launched by the Minister of State for Food, Forestry and Horticulture, Andrew Doyle TD, in March earlier this year. The primary focus…
Everyone needs a hostel companion for an adventure. Someone who has got your back and who can remember the way home if you suddenly lose the run of yourself (which can happen to the best of us) and you forget where you are. Most of us just find these special people by chance. To speed…
This month we catch up with the new President of An Óige, Dave Fadden who has taken over from George King. 1.What makes our mission meaningful to you? An Óige challenges young people to embrace travel in an adventurous way particularly by foot or by bike. This is something that can alter a person’s whole approach…
Sarah Johnston, one of our board members, is a hosteller who is not afraid to think outside of the box and speak her mind. In this interview you can read about her experiences, opinions on environmental issues and the problems facing our youth today and the things she considers the small pleasures in life. 1.…
The Hell Fire Club situated on the top of Montpelier Hill in the Dublin mountains has been a popular destination for family outings for generations of Dubliners. It’s a challenging climb to get to the top but once you do get there, you are richly rewarded by spectacular panoramic views over Dublin city and its…
Earlier this year An Óige teamed up with Gaisce – The President’s Award to become official Challenge Partners. Doing the Gaisce gives you the potential to learn a huge amount skills you might never have thought would be useful. An Óige volunteers have been ensuring young people and teachers make it back from their Bronze…
World Environmental Day, in special honour of our life sponsor: Planet Earth. Let’s start with a brief overview of what this day is all about… World Environment Day (WED) – 5th of June every year, so for all of you nature lovers, put it in your calendar. This day is all about encouraging environmental…
In 1969, Elisabeth Beresford published the first iteration of The Wombles and went on to write a further five novels about Wimbledon’s noblest residents. How could she envision the importance of her creations? The burrow living, nature loving, rubbish collecting, pointy nosed fur balls soon became public favorites and eventually gained two stints on our…
On June 1st An Óige, the Irish Youth Hostel Association, and the Irish Second-Level Students Union, launched their new partnership to make summer getaways in Ireland more affordable and accessible for students. In recent years An Óige has been reaching out to even more young people, to encourage them to explore and travel around the…
Like many other nations in World War 2, Ireland organised itself to defend the country against foreign invasion (although they were not sure who was going to invade – Britain or Germany). As a relatively new organisation with an active membership, An Óige was keen to be of service. When a call was put out…
People come to Hostels in Ireland for a number of different reasons. One of the latest activities that attracts people is geocaching. This is a high tech global scavenger hunt which involves looking for hidden treasure while following directions from satellites in space. Our hostels are perfect bases for this new pursuit. Flip the Switch…
George King, former president of An Óige would like to share his final words of wisdom before stepping down. 1. What makes our mission meaningful to you? Seeing so many people young, and not so young, utilizing the facilities and the opportunities we present to explore and enjoy the countryside. 2. What was your highpoint…
Connemara in springtime is now sitting on our doorstep and it’s the time of year to plan the next adventure. You could do worse than head for Connemara where the water and the sky mix in the sunlight. Come with us to view this fairy tale landscape. 1. Firstly, we start off with a…
This month we catch up with Annemarie Lambe who until recently was one of the longest serving staff members in Head Office in the accounts department. What three traits define you? Loyalty, Kindness, Determination. What is your personal philosophy? I don’t like drama; I need calm in my life. What’s one thing you couldn’t live without? Breakfast;…
”Life is short, so we must make it count!” – Some inspirational words from Billy Duffin, a true Irishman whose soft spots include a pint of Guinness and a breathtaking view of the Glenmalure Valley. 1. What three traits define you? Stubborn, listener, joker. 2. What is your personal philosophy? We only get one life so…
Since 1970, April 22nd has been assigned as Earth Day, the day when everyone is urged to take action to solve the major environmental issues facing the world. For example, the landmark climate protection Paris Agreement was signed by some 175 countries, including Ireland, on Earth Day 2016. The theme for this year’s Earth Day was…
One of the questions we always get in An Óige High Command is what to expect in the hostels in Ireland in Spring. What will the weather be like, what is there to do, where are the best places to explore near the hostels? With 24 hostels in the network and a diverse bunch of…
Despite recent fake news, we are more dedicated than ever to providing opportunities for affordable youth travel in Ireland. Providing young people with the opportunity to explore Ireland is one of the main reasons why An Óige exists. We were set up in 1931 to help young people travel in Ireland and we still have…
After 86 years of providing safe accommodation for young people, The Irish Youth Hostel Association will rebrand this year as An Aosta, which translates to “The Older”. After several difficult years, through recessions and depressions, An Óige has made this decision in an effort to cater exclusively to the over 35s market. An Óige’s current…
Travel tips for young people in Ireland tend to concentrate on the over 25s with plenty of money. Younger people tend to be forgotten about when it comes to travel. No more. We think Ireland is one of the most amazing countries in the world to explore for under 25s. You can’t get closer.…
The Gaisce Adventure Journey is often the most intimidating and fondly remembered part of the entire Gaisce experience. An Óige has recently teamed up with Gaisce to help cater for those doing the Adventure Journey for the Bronze award. If you’re not used to being active outdoors you could be nervous about experiencing the wilds…