Hostel Castles and Other Friendly Places to Stay

Carbisdale Castle, which looks down on the waters of the Kyle of Sutherland, is considered the grandest of all Scottish youth hostels. Look up to its clock tower, though, and you’ll see evidence of a bitter battle.

The castle’s clock tower only has dials on three sides--there’s nothing facing the Sutherland lands. The owner, the Duchess of Sutherland, was sending a message across to her husband’s family that “she simply didn’t have time for them.”

The Dowager Duchess of Sutherland hadn’t been popular with the Duke of Sutherland’s family, and when he died in 1892 there was quite a battle over his estate. Eventually a settlement was reached that included the duke’s family agreeing to build her her own residence--outside the Sutherland lands. Carbisdale Castle, minus one clock dial, was completed by 1917.

In 1945, the castle and its contents was given to the Scottish Youth Hostel Assn. (SYHA). It now provides dormitory accommodations for up to 225 travelers for about $12 per bed, per night. Enough of the building has been maintained that guests can still wander through galleries and see its large art collection.

It’s located less than a mile from Culrain rail station in northern Scotland. SYHA will offer two types of do-it-yourself packages for budget travelers in 1995.

The Explore Scotland packages offer travelers seven days of unlimited coach travel on Scottish Citylink Coaches plus vouchers valid for six nights of youth hostel accommodations, a SYHA handbook and map and an Explorer Ticket valid for free entry to many historic monuments and castles. The transportation pass will allow you to travel all of the Scottish mainland plus the Island of Skye. You can use the package anytime between April 1 and Oct. 31. The price is $193.

The Scottish Wayfarer packages are valid for hostels and unlimited travel by rail (second class) throughout Scotland, plus sailings on most of Caledonian Mac-Brayne’s West Coast ferries. Travelers also get a SYHA handbook, map and a one-third reduction on Orkney sailings and participating bus services. The eight-day version (with seven accommodations vouchers) is $265, the 15-day version is $426.

To pre-purchase these packages, contact SYHA, Breakaway Holidays, 7 Gleve Crescent, Stirling, Scotland FK8 2JA; tel. 011-44-786-451181.

If you are a member of Hostelling International you will be able to stay in dormitory accommodations at any of the SYHA facilities in 1995 for $6-$16 per night. There are also more than 50 independent hostels catering to international travelers that don’t require membership. Rates are $5-$19.

For further information on them, contact: Independent Backpacker Hostels-Scotland, 13 Lower Breakish, Isle of Skye IV42 8QA. For a response, include a self-addressed envelope and an international postal reply coupon.