Information / Terms & Conditions
WHEN ARE WE OPEN?
The hostel is open all year.
Reception is open 8am-10am and 5pm-10pm 7 days a week (give or take, subject to school drop off, and usually less in winter when it's quiet!)
HOSTEL CHECK-IN/CHECK OUT
Check in on day of arrival
– anytime between 5pm-10pm on day of arrival. If you think you may arrive after 10pm just give us a bell as we can sort something out.
Check out on day of departure
– strictly by 10am.
COMMUNAL AREAS & BEDROOMS
The communal areas
(kitchen / dining / lounge area and downstairs communal toilet) are closed 11am-3pm
every day for cleaning (unless you have hired the whole hostel for 2+ days, then it is all yours).
If you are staying 2+ nights you will have 24 hour access to your bedroom. No need to be out during the day. Just be aware if you are in a dorm room we clean from 10am!
DEPOSIT & BALANCE
Deposit - for both individuals and whole hostel bookings
A
10% non-refundable deposit
is required to secure the booking . If you book direct (via this website or on the phone) this will be taken automatically when you book. If you book indirectly (via B.com - wouldn't recommend as more expensive!) we will manually take the 10% upon receiving your booking. Until this has been paid the booking is not secure.
Balance - for individuals (not booking whole hostel)
Remaining balance due no later than one week prior to arrival . A reminder regarding the balance due will be sent out via email (with easy payment link) 3 weeks prior to arrival (to give you plenty of time to pay). Should the balance not have been paid by one week prior to arrival we will attempt to take the remaining balance using the card you booked with. Should the card not work (or there is no card on file), your booking may be cancelled.
Balance - for groups booking whole hostel
Remaining 90% balance due no later than 9 weeks prior to arrival. At the time of paying balance we will also require:
* £250 security deposit – this will be refunded in full via bank transfer after your departure post cleaning and checks
* if not already provided for deposit, details of a card (credit/debit) that we will keep on file as security. This will only be used as security/deposit for any loss, damages, vomit, smoking, unusual cleaning (beyond standard cleaning) etc. beyond £250.
If at the 9-week mark either of the former two have not been met the booking may be cancelled.
We accept cash, card, bank transfer and cheque (bank transfers and cheques must be paid in advance). If paying by cash, bank transfer or cheque, we still require card details to be kept on file in case of damages.
INDIVIDUAL CANCELLATIONS
For individual bookings (i.e. not Whole Hostel bookings)...
- If the booking is cancelled less than 7 days before arrival, then a charge equal to the full booking amount will be made.
- If the booking is cancelled 7 or more days before arrival, you will just lose your 10% deposit.
- In the event of a no show or booking reduction (after arrival date) the full cost of the booking is charged.
BOOK EVERY BED / WHOLE HOSTEL CANCELLATIONS
For Whole Hostel bookings, our cancellation charges depend on the notice period given...
No. of days before arrival:
63 or more days
49-62 days
35-48 days
21-34 days
21 days or less
Cancellation Charge Payable:
10% of total cost
30% of total cost
50% of total cost
70% of total cost
100% of total cost
GROUPS OF 9+
Please note that groups of more than 8 (who are not booking the whole hostel) MUST
contact us directly so we can confirm whether the reservation is possible.
Reservations of 9+ (who aren't booking the whole hostel) who do not contact us are NOT CONFIRMED
CHILDREN (under 18's)
Infants under 3
are welcome and can either share existing bedding, utilise our travel cot (free of charge) or have their own bed – please note if this latter option is chosen full adult rate will be charged.
Children aged 3 to 15 are subject to the full adult rate. Anyone age 15 and under is welcome to stay at Ballater Hostel as long as they are accompanied by an adult (18+) in the same room. They are welcome to stay in any room (including shared mixed dorms). The adult staying will be held accountable for the child.
Children aged 16 to 17
are subject to the full adult rate. Anyone aged 16 or 17 is welcome to stay at Ballater Hostel on their own. No adult is required to be with them. They are welcome to stay in any room (including shared mixed dorms). The cardholder on the booking will be held accountable for the young adult.
STAGS / HENS
Sorry, Ballater Hostel does not accept Hen or Stag parties. If you book and are found to be a stag/hen party your booking will be cancelled and refunds issued in accordance with the cancellation policy. If it is not known until you arrive that you are a stag/hen party (i.e. you keep it quiet) you will be asked to leave. No excuses / I've driven thus far / nowhere else to go / what do we do now / we didn't know / can't you make an exception as we're here now. Sorry.
WiFi
Free WiFi available throughout the hostel.
LINEN
As we are a hostel (and not a bunkhouse) all bedding is provided – duvet, pillow, mattress - and all linen that goes on these. No need to bring a sleeping bag. We also provide blankets and hot water bottles!
TOWELS
All private rooms include
towels - superior private, budget private and 4 bed private.
Beds in shared mixed dorms, as well as sole use of dorm rooms (the 6 and the 8 bed), do not include
towels.
Whole hostel bookings do not include
towels.
Towel hire is available @ £2 a towel (for duration of stay, not per day!)
LAUNDRY & DRYING ROOM
To ensure you at least start off dry at the beginning of the day we have a drying room with a dehumidifier and a fan heater, lots of hanging space (at least 4 clothes horses) and plenty of newspaper to stuff your boots with.
We also have a washing machine and tumble dryer available for guests to use (£4 charge per machine, washing powder included).
BICYCLES
We have secure bike storage at the front of the hostel for ample bikes (we've had 28 in the past). The bike storage has access to an outside tap & hose (to wash down your bike), electricity points (to charge your eBike battery - see below), bike tools and bike locks (returnable deposit required). The bike storage itself has CCTV, bike racks to lock your bike to, is locked itself with a padlock and is situated in Ballater (crime isn't exactly high here)! There is also a light (so in the winter months you can work on your bike in the evening).
Unfortunately we do not allow bikes to be taken into the hostel. A cleaning fee of £50 per bike will need to be paid if you do take bikes indoors.
eBike batteries can be charged in our bike storage area during reception hours. All batteries will be unplugged when we go home for the night. Absolutely no eBike batteries are allowed anywhere inside the hostel. If you are found to have taken an eBike battery into the hostel (to charge or not) there will be an instant £50 fine automatically charged to the card on the booking.
LOST PROPERTY
Left something behind? Just email us (info@ballater-hostel.com) or give us a ring (01339 753752) and we will do our best to assist. We are more than happy to send items home/another destination. Please be aware for any items requiring to be posted there is a standard £10 fee added to any postage cost to cover our time and effort.
PETS
Sorry, Ballater Hostel does not accept pets, except for registered assistance dogs. If you are found to have brought a pet into the hostel for the night (bar registered assistance dogs) without our prior consent, there will be an automatic £50 charge made (per pet) to the card on the booking. If damage greater than £50 is found, further charges are possible.
SMOKING
In accordance with the law there is no smoking permitted anywhere within the property.
Sorry, no smoking permitted anywhere inside the hostel. Smoking is only permitted at the table and chairs area outside, where an ashtray is also provided. Please do not smoke by the front door / in the porch – it puts people off entering the hostel and the smoke carries back inside. If you are found to have been smoking in your room or anywhere inside the hostel there will be an instant £50 fine automatically charged to the card on the booking, plus any extra charge required to re-locate future guests and additional cleaning charges.
PARKING
Unfortunately, we have no dedicated parking. By all means please pull up to unload but then please move any vehicles (including motorbikes) to either Albert Road, Monaltrie Road or there is a large free car park just off Church Square (behind the church – 3 min walk).
Please do not leave any vehicles (including motorbikes) outside the hostel for prolonged periods of time (especially not overnight) as our neighbours need constant access and have to turn around in the lane.
IRRESPONSIBLE BEHAVIOUR
Ballater Hostel does not tolerate irresponsible behaviour. Anyone found to have acted irresponsibly (extreme drunkenness, disturbing other guests, making undue mess and not cleaning it up, showing no remorse, putting other guests’ safety at risk) is at risk of being banned. We charge a £25 per hour cleaning fee, for any non-standard cleaning. We also charge for any breakages and ruined linen. For any guests disturbed by your irresponsible behaviour you will be liable to pay them compensation.
DATA PROTECTION NOTICE
What personal data is collected, why and for how long?
When you make a booking we will ask you for information that we need in order to process the booking. This will include your name, email address, contact number, home address and your payment details. You are not obliged to provide us with any of your personal data; however, if you want to make a booking you will need to provide us with this information. If you don't provide us with this information, we won't be able to process your booking.
The main reason we need your personal data is in order to process your bookings and to deal with any queries or issues that arise in relation to those bookings.
We keep personal data for no longer than is necessary for the purpose for which we collected it.
Who do we share your personal data with?
99% of the time - absolutely no-one – just ourselves to manage your booking. On very rare occasions our customers can get into difficulties whilst travelling. Where we think that there is a risk to your health or wellbeing, we may share your personal data with third parties in order to get you help (e.g. we might be asked to assist with locating a missing person). We may also receive requests from law enforcement agencies for personal data that we hold. In such circumstances we will only share your personal data with such law enforcement agencies in compliance with data protection law. Finally, if a guest acts irresponsibly at our hostel, we may share your details with other hostels within the UK network in order to help prevent other hostels being subjected to similar activities (assisting in detecting and preventing crime).
Your rights under data protection law
You have various rights under data protection law in connection with our processing of your personal data. For example, you have the right to request a copy of your personal data that we hold and to request that we correct any errors in the personal data that we hold.
You have the following rights under data protection law:
When you make a booking we will ask you for information that we need in order to process the booking. This will include your name, email address, contact number, home address and your payment details. You are not obliged to provide us with any of your personal data; however, if you want to make a booking you will need to provide us with this information. If you don't provide us with this information, we won't be able to process your booking.
The main reason we need your personal data is in order to process your bookings and to deal with any queries or issues that arise in relation to those bookings.
We keep personal data for no longer than is necessary for the purpose for which we collected it.
Who do we share your personal data with?
99% of the time - absolutely no-one – just ourselves to manage your booking. On very rare occasions our customers can get into difficulties whilst travelling. Where we think that there is a risk to your health or wellbeing, we may share your personal data with third parties in order to get you help (e.g. we might be asked to assist with locating a missing person). We may also receive requests from law enforcement agencies for personal data that we hold. In such circumstances we will only share your personal data with such law enforcement agencies in compliance with data protection law. Finally, if a guest acts irresponsibly at our hostel, we may share your details with other hostels within the UK network in order to help prevent other hostels being subjected to similar activities (assisting in detecting and preventing crime).
Your rights under data protection law
You have various rights under data protection law in connection with our processing of your personal data. For example, you have the right to request a copy of your personal data that we hold and to request that we correct any errors in the personal data that we hold.
You have the following rights under data protection law:
- Right to access your personal data - You have the right to request a copy of the personal data that we hold about you, together with other information about our processing of that personal data.
- Right to rectification – You have the right to request that any inaccurate data that is held about you is corrected, or if we have incomplete information you may request that we update the information so that it is complete.
- Right to erasure – You have the right to request us to delete personal data that we hold about you. This is sometimes referred to as the right to be forgotten.
- Right to restriction of processing or to object to processing – You have the right to request that we no longer process your personal data for particular purposes, or to object to our processing of your personal data for particular purposes.
- Right to data portability
– You have the right to request us to provide you, or a third party, with a copy of your personal data in a structured, commonly used machine readable format.
