Travelling with friends? Turn the group chat into a trip

Getting everyone together on a group holiday can be half the battle. Where you stay should be the easy part.

If you've ever organised a group getaway, you know the drill. You're juggling annual leave requests, flights and competing food allergies, and there's always at least one mate who wants to do their own thing by day two. Just getting everyone in the same place at the same time is a win, as is finding affordable accommodation that works for the whole group. This is where YHA really steps up, understanding great value, with stays that are genuinely social, with some room for "me time", plus hosts who know what's worth doing nearby.

Whether you're planning long Byron Bay beach days, ski runs in Thredbo, diving into Hobart’s Taste of Summer food festival, or experiencing Melbourne’s world-class sporting events like the Australian Grand Prix, we've got the locations, the perfect spaces and the insider knowledge to make it worth the effort of getting everyone there in the first place.

The savings, of course

Group trips are not exactly cheap. But when you’re splitting accommodation costs across four, five or six mates, the money that you’re saving on where you sleep can go back straight towards experiences on the trip itself. In Melbourne, that might mean cheering on an AFL match from the stands of the MCG, instead of watching it from a pub. Or maybe you stay an extra night in Byron Bay and squeeze in a sunrise lighthouse walk (also free!). Book a four or six bed shared room (you can fight over who gets top bunk or bottom bunk) at a YHA. Many come with their own ensuite bathrooms, and you’re splitting one straightforward cost, with no extra cleaning fees, hidden charges, alongside the cost and hassle of coordinating multiple room bookings. It’s one small thing that can completely shape your trip for the better.

Tip: Plot your entire road trip with YHA's Explorer app and save up to 15% on your stay. With 18 locations right across Australia, you can book shared rooms at every stop along the way, whether you're driving Sydney to Melbourne, exploring the Great Ocean Road and the Grampians, or heading north through Queensland to Cairns and the Daintree.

Make it a supergroup

You check in as a crew of four, but don’t be surprised if somewhere between breakfast in the guest kitchen and sunset drinks on the YHA Sydney Harbour rooftop bar you’re now a group of eight. That’s the superpower of hostels! It’s not something you plan for, but this happens at YHA more often than not, where a conversation over a shared meal becomes drinks and card games well past midnight. Or you get talking with another group also heading to Thredbo and suddenly you’re comparing petrol prices through the Snowy Mountains using the FuelCheck app. 

There's no magic formula, but it helps that hostels are built for this kind of thing. Great community spaces that actually pull people out of their rooms, a big shared kitchen, and a social calendar of daily organised events and activities that people want to show up to. It's a different world from being spread across a floor of hotel rooms with a door between you and everyone else. This is how the super group forms, and how some of the best travel adventures begin.

Tip: Before you arrive, download YHA’s Explorer App to check the weekly schedule of social dining events and group activities. A group dinner or shared activity on your first night can set the tone for the whole trip. When it comes to meeting new people, skip the traditional "where are you from?" ice breakers. Instead, ask someone the most underrated place they've visited, or something they've loved experiencing on their trip so far. Or just pull out a deck of Uno and start shuffling the cards!

Discounts that actually deliver

Every YHA stay automatically comes with a two-year membership after your first stay, and the perks are worth knowing before you arrive. Download the YHA Explorer App and you'll have your digital membership card ready to go. Once you arrive, a QR code on the app unlocks 10% off food and drinks across YHA cafes, bars and kiosks, and there’s up to 15% off future stays when booking through the app, plus deals on local experiences and activities across the country. This could include wildlife encounters near Cairns, indigenous cultural experiences in the Grampians, or a surf lesson in Byron Bay, that could end up being the highlight of the whole trip. For all the latest partner discounts on everything from transport to major attractions, just log in to your MyYHA member portal or show your membership card and save.

Tip: Pre-booking experiences and activities as a group often unlocks better rates. Sort it before you leave and hit the ground running, rather than scrambling to organise everything once you arrive.

Sleep well, seriously

Anyone who's done shared accommodation has a horror story that puts you off the whole idea, like the 5am alarm from someone across the room who has an early flight, or the overhead lights that get turned on at midnight. Don't suffer in silence, book out a shared room with people you already know and none of that applies. You're going to be all on roughly the same schedule, you'll know each other's sleep habits well enough, and YHA rooms come with comfy bedding (including sheets with high thread count and quality pillows), privacy curtains, individual bed lights, wireless and USB-A and USB-C charging, and secure lockers. These small things lets everyone wind down at their own pace regardless of how the night ended. The only real negotiation left is who gets the top bunk. Sort that out before you arrive and you'll be able to focus more on exploring.

Tip: YHA has co-living rooms sleeping four, six or eight people across the network, plus large private rooms for those wanting the extra space to relax. For larger groups, also look out for interconnecting rooms when you book, and double the fun. Whatever your group size, you’ll be sure to have a great night’s sleep.

Your own local guide, on demand

There's a certain kind of travel tip you can't get from ChatGPT, like the reef operator out of Cairns who doesn't need to advertise because word of mouth does all the work, or the lookout at Apollo Bay that's worth the early start. It could be the bar in Fremantle the locals actually go to, or the Melbourne laneway you'd walk straight past without a nudge in the right direction. Your YHA hosts are either locals themselves or have spent enough time there to know the difference, and when your group is standing around trying to figure out what to do next, a two-minute conversation at the front desk will beat scrolling for a generic recommendation every time.

Tip: Before planning your next move, head to the front desk and ask your hosts about local deals and partnerships that aren't listed publicly. There are often discounts and exclusive offers available to YHA guests that never make it onto the website. Some of the best local travel secrets and tips just need a smile and a hello.

Spaces built for good times

The memories that tend to stick from a group trip are rarely the ones you planned down to the minute. They happen in the moments between and in the social spaces, which YHA is great at creating. There’s guest kitchens big enough to cook a proper feed, rooftop terraces that become the perfect end to a long day, and pool areas that turn into the best social hangouts of the trip. When hunger hits, Trails Cafe at locations like YHA Sydney Harbour, YHA Brisbane City and YHA Blue Mountains serve a continental breakfast from $14 (or $12 when you pre-book), which makes paying $7 for coffee and $27 for avo toast somewhere else far less appealing. And when nobody can agree on what to do, YHA's events calendar of trivia nights, group dinners and 5 Minute Friends sessions gives everyone something to rally around.

Tip: For a real feel of the vibe before you even get there, follow @yhaaustralia on Instagram and TikTok, or search for your specific property as each one runs their own account.

Update by: Troy Nankervis