What is youth hostelling and why does it have such a strong appeal to young people? The conversion of a canal barge into a youth hostel by voluntary working parties has created Britain's first 'hostel on water'. This film which gets out and about with two Yorkshire boys - Brian and Ken - who have no doubts about what hostelling does for them, give personal comments and observations on hostelling... how the hostels are run... the facilities offered... what hostelling means to them and how their lives are involved by it.

16mm & 35mm

BBC4's 'Nation on Film' also showed another hour long documentary called 'Youth Hostelling: The First 100 Years' telling the story of youth hostelling, which was founded in 1909 in Germany and was established in Britain in 1930, through fascinating archive films discovered in a storeroom at the Youth Hostel Association's headquarters in Derbyshire. The BTF production of 1965 - Hostellers - is featured and shows Ken Moody - the original 'star' of the film re-uniting with former BTF assistant editor and director of the film - Gloria Sachs - at the site on the canal at Selby in Yorkshire where the Sabrina was moored - the first floating Youth Hostel Hostel in Britain.