Cool Place of the Day: Cohort Hostel, Cornwall

Every day, a new place to discover or explore, from coolplaces.co.uk

Cohort Hostel, Cornwall

Looking for somewhere to stay in St Ives. Want to learn to surf? Well, it’s worth knowing about Cohort Hostel, a rather tired old building this time last year that has been transformed into something much more in tune with the cool St Ives vibe: a clean and contemporary hostel, right in the centre of town, which has a mixture of dormitory beds and private rooms catering to all kinds of folk on a budget.

The rooms have been completely refurbished to make the most of what was already a pretty impressive location – a 19th-century Wesleyan chapel and school. There are four mixed dorms and two female-only dorms and all are furnished either with traditional bunks or so-called "pod beds" which give additional privacy and extra facilities. The hostel also has four private rooms, furnished with either bunks or double beds.

It’s a very sociable place, with a comfy lounge and bar (plus a courtyard in summer), a TV and movie room and a fully-equipped kitchen for self-caterers – plus superfast wi-fi throughout. They also have plenty of storage space for bikes and surfboards and suchlike – and have recently have teamed up with the St Ives Surf School to offer great-value Surf ‘n’ Stay packages, with two nights’ accommodation plus two surf lessons available throughout June for as little as £80 a head.

Cool Places is a new website from the creators of Rough Guides and Cool Camping, suggesting the best places to stay, eat, drink and shop in Britain (coolplaces.co.uk)