Hooked on hostels!

"EXPERIENCE hostelling, experience Scotland."

I don't envy the team forced to try and sum up the allure of either Scotland or hostelling in just 30 seconds — but that's just what the Scottish Youth Hostelling Association (SYHA) attempts with its first foray into TV advertising.

I count 65 hostels featured on the charity's excellent website — trying to highlight the merits of each one was obviously going to be a non-starter. With budget hotels offering some incredible off-peak deals (Travelodges £9 a night rooms for this coming winter prompted a stampede of bookings last week), might the SYHA have its work cut out to compete?

And could I persuade my wife and two young children this was the way to experience (some of) Scotland? With two of my chosen three destinations featuring in the advert (you can find it on YouTube), hopes were high.

The scenic splendour of the road cutting through a vast, empty swathe of Sutherland towards Carbisdale Castle soon worked its magic on my wife, prompting more "oohs!" and "ahs!" than a centre court final. Incredibly, given the twisty road, it even overcame her notorious propensity to car sickness, an affliction which has prompted many an unscheduled stop down the years.

What's not to like about staying in a castle? From £12 a night for a child, certainly not the price. Built for the Dowager Duchess of Sutherland in 1906, the remarkable building has housed many wealthy and influential people and even served as a royal refuge. As a stopover, it's surely a complete no-brainer for anyone with a sense of adventure and a longing to see how the other half live.

Carbisdale Castle near Culrain is a jewel in the glittering crown of breathtakingly diverse hostels the SYHA has managed to bring under its wing since inception in 1931. Once you've feasted on the imposing exterior and convinced wide-eyed children that, yes, they really are going to sleep here tonight, it's time to get to grips with the ghost...

What castle isn't haunted, right? The SYHA blurb does nothing to discourage the legend — and nor does the collection of ghostly Italian marble statues lining the main gallery as you enter. There's a spooky, otherworldly feel about the sprawling castle whose chequered history only adds to the experience.

Portraits of past inhabitants eye you from the walls as your footsteps echo on grand, sweeping staircases or down long, narrow halls. If hostels conjure memories of reheating cans of beans over a flickering gas hob, treat yourself to a three-course evening meal here. At £9.50 for a veritable feast, it'll leave you ready for a good night's sleep — ghost permitting.

For the record, my five-year-old daughter thoughtfully left a chocolate egg behind one of the marble statues down the corridor from our room. Next day... it was gone. She remains convinced "the white lady" snacked on it during a restless night. I suspect the chubby kid down the hall.

There was little need to leave the confines of the castle (which offers 150 beds) for entertainment. Children rattled around the place at top speed with fellow guests they'd met, I had fun with my camera and I spotted my wife musing wistfully over the portraits and pondering over their back stories.

Logic would dictate the delights of Tongue some 50 miles up the road would come next on our three-hostel "experience Scotland, experience hostelling" experiment. Instead we chose to head 200 miles south to the capital city. Edinburgh's five-star Central hostel could scarcely contrast more with what we'd left. What it lacks in character it makes up for in comfort and proximity to attractions like the zoo, the castle, the Scottish Parliament, more museums and galleries than you can shake a paintbrush at, and (whisper it!), shopping.

Open all year (and around the clock), the ultra-modern 298-bed facility would make a fantastic bolthole for the culture vulture festival-goer or budget-conscious (from £16 a night for an adult) family (that's us!) looking to take in some capital attractions. (Tip: Edinburgh Zoo is a guaranteed, day-long child-pleaser, even if it doesn't have elephants of giraffes).

We'd put in the miles, seen the sights and everyone was happy. And the best was still to come...

I'll tell anyone who cares to listen about the delights of the West Coast till the cows come home. But have you checked out the North Coast of Scotland lately? Tongue Youth Hostel is as good as anywhere to start. The revamped stone lodge overlooking the Kyle of Tongue is a humble abode compared to the other two — but in my opinion the best of the bunch.

I'd heard advance word about warden Hanne's home baking and can confirm it's out of this world. So impressed was my wife she commissioned a chocolate cake there and then - which was ready (and consumed) the very next morning.

The real estate owned by the SYHA never ceases to amaze and is surely part of its success story. The view from our hostel room was the sort you'd expect to fork megabucks for. Here, an adult travelling solo could experience it for £15 — now that's a bargain in any language.

If there's a more mouth-watering journey than that between Tongue and Durness along the top of Scotland, I'm not sure what it is. True, the weather makes all the difference. The sunshine and blue skies that blessed our trip made it the most enjoyable hour I think I've ever spent in a car. I say in the car but truth be told there were more stops than a toddlers' bus trip. Beautiful, deserted beaches that put the soulless, sardine-packed stretches many pay a small fortune to jet to overseas are right there on our doorstep. Keep your eyes peeled and you'll see huge herds of deer roaming free on the hills. (Tip: develop a keen awareness of weather forecasts and be prepared to hit the road at a moment's notice).

Durness has sought in recent years to capitalise on its link with John Lennon, who used to holiday there as a child. He later returned with Yoko and the kids in tow. The memorial to the assassinated Beatle is charmingly understated and includes a poignant couplet from the song In My Life, said to have been inspired by the place. After the delights of the hippyish craft village, Smoo Cave and beach at Balnakeil Bay, we continued our overdose of Scotland's most awesome scenery by heading back down into Ross-shire to Ullapool via the majestic A838.

The oohs! and ahs! now gave way to "wow!" and fantasies of finding a North/West Coast bolthole. In truth, we'd already found it. And hopefully it will always be there waiting for us.

* An A to Z of destinations across Scotland and on the islands is featured on the SYHA web site which can be found at www.syha.org.uk