With love for her community and a passion for hospitality, Elin Aaron FBII has been running her homely hostel, Gallt Y Glyn, known to locals as ‘pizza & pints’, for over eight years. Welcoming regulars, solo travelers and large families, Gally Y Glyn is at the heart of its community in rural Wales, offering breathtaking views at the foot of Snowden. Gabriel Bantleman MBII reports.
Elin’s journey into hospitality started at the early age of 14, working summers and weekends in a café down the road from where she is now. “I loved working there — and did so for over seven years.”
Fast-forward into her 20s, and Elin had developed a hunger for travel and backpacked around South America before eventually landing in Australia, where she worked in pubs, restaurants and hostels to fund further adventures before returning to Wales.
Yet it wasn’t until some time later that she settled in Wales, having gone off again, to New Zealand, to do a marketing role (as well as part-time pub work). Home once again, Elin realised she wanted a career that could foster her love of travelling (meeting people) without the cons (missing home). “I was trying to think what skills do I have where I can combine the two?” — and it led her to Gallt Y Glyn.
The original plan was to just run the hostel, providing accommodation. But the local community and her family were concerned about losing the bar and restaurant… so Elin took it on. “Life would’ve been much easier if I was just running accommodation. However, I love being involved in the chats and banter with the locals and I wouldn’t have been as connected to the community, had I stuck with my original plan. There are pluses and minuses, and it’s important to remind myself of those pluses in tough times.”
Another plus for Elin lies within the beauty of her business. “It’s a very old building with lots of character”. Combine this with the stunning views of the surrounding mountains, and it’s clear Gallt y Glyn offers much more than just a pint, meal and bed. Due to the restaurant having lots of nooks and crannies, the upkeep can be tiring, however Elin’s motto is: “If it doesn’t give the building character, it’s character building for me”.
For hikers needing a hearty meal to fuel their travels, Elin’s menu doesn’t disappoint. Gallt Y Glyn serves burgers with ingredients from a local award-winning butcher and a range of pasta dishes, as people like to “carb-load” before taking on mount Snowdon. A variety of kid meals are also available, which Elin specifies is “super important” to ensure a family feel. The main attraction and best GP for Elin is the Pizza & Pint’ deal, where customers get a pint of draught lager included in the price of a pizza.
Currently, Elin is transforming an empty back room into a small and cozy cinema, with sofas to seat around 15-20 people. “The idea is that the locals can start calling us Pizza, Pints and Popcorn, while getting local ale and a nice meal while watching a film.” Elin explains: “The idea came from New Zealand. I would visit a little cinema that had intervals to order food, drinks, etc.” The plan is to make her cinema available for kids’ birthday parties, with the option to rent it out and choose what you stream. Hosting events comes naturally to Elin. Every Christmas, Gallt Y Glyn transforms into a Santa’s Grotto, starring Elin’s dad as the hostel’s very own Santa.
“It started in the 2020 lockdown when my brother had nowhere to take his kids. At the same time, my dad, who was the usual local market Santa was saying it didn’t feel like Christmas without dressing up!” Taking matters into her own hands, Elin looked at Covid rules, mask and social distance regulations, before unveiling her own grotto — with her dad happily reprising his former role. Since then, the love for the grotto has grown every year. “Last year we had over 120 local kids
come to visit,” says Elin.
Elin loves the family dynamic that Gallt Y Glyn radiates. “It’s awesome! I get to see the kids of my
customers grow up, there’s lots of families like that here. The only problem is they grow up and want to work here — and I have to say ‘I’d love to have you but I can’t take you all on’!”
The staff at Gallt Y Glyn are a small team, all local. And when it comes to Elin’s work-life balance, she shares: “I’m fully on board with it, especially with the young people, and tell them that you work to live, not the other way round.”
She adds: “We’re making it fun and they are happy to volunteer and come in if it is needed.” To Elin, worklife balance is “critical” and something that she’s actively trying to improve on. When discussing sustainability, Elin approached the subject with a unique perspective. “Sustainability to me is the relationship between the locals and tourists. I don’t like the ‘it’s us against them attitude’. I want businesses like mine to serve as a bridge between the two, sustaining a future of healthy tourism and hospitality.
“A year or two ago, I would’ve heard sustainability and thought about green stuff, but nowadays
all of that is just the norm to me. We recycle, have EV charging points outside, and with our cinema, we are looking at second-hand sofas.” Elin explains that when getting rid of the tables and chairs occupying the soon-to-be cinema, she gave them away free to locals, and anything left behind was stripped down and used as firewood.
Encouraging sustainability within her community is something Elin takes pride in. “We work with a local business that repairs clothing wear and tears, and we have a Pizza, Pints and Patching night, where customers will get a pizza, pint, and get to fix-up old clothes. We see it as a way to encourage
environmental friendliness and also get locals to think twice before throwing something away.”
Despite a degree in marketing, Elin’s found the most success in word of-mouth as her main method of promoting events. “We even get people calling up and asking about dates for events that we haven’t even organised yet!”
Her biggest challenge however, has been battling the rising costs. “I keep an eye on the heating and
gas and make cuts where I can.” And she encourages struggling operators to “find a balance”, explaining: “I keep loyal to my local suppliers, as I know I can count on them. However some things, like our Pizza and Pint deal, I have to keep as it’s what we are known for.”
With her BII Membership, Elin explains that she joined at the perfect time, just before the pandemic and lockdown. “I thought, why am I doing all this by myself? It’s nice to have the support — my favourite benefit is the INNfocus newsletter, as I can make sure I know all the important updates.”
Looking forward, Elin is excited to see Pizza, Pints and Popcorn come to fruition, and will continue embracing Gallt Y Glyn as a bridge between her loyal regulars and beloved tourists.
