TRAVEL: Sydney's most glam backpacker hotel

Jessica Adams checks into one of the world’s most glamorous YWCA hotels for under $80 a night.

The Y on the Park is a YWCA but not as you know it. My two English great-aunts, Winnie and Nora, stayed here when they came to Australia in the 1980s. They were wonderful women who drove Minis, wore tweed suits and stuck to a budget. They knew a thing or two.

Thirty years later I am still staying at the YWCA. It’s cheap (often under $80 during off-peak times) and it’s clean . It also has a surprisingly chic and modern interior.

Upon arrival, you will be given a complimentary breakfast pass, which allows you to raid the tea, the toast and the cereal the following morning. You can upgrade to bacon and eggs for a few dollars.

En suite rooms have showers, hairdryers and a very good bathroom kit.

Rooms with shared bathrooms offer separate facilities for men and women. Unless you’re staying here at the height of the summer holidays, you’ll probably find the women’s bathroom empty.

All rooms have alarm clocks, fridges, kettles and television.  It’s the little things…

Many rooms have huge sliding French windows (fresh air!) so request one if you like to keep the air-conditioning off.

Free newspapers, internet pay stations downstairs and a luggage storage room add to its appeal. And if you’re a first-time visitor to Australia, the staff know everything.

Best of all, you can walk out of the front door and be at David Jones in five minutes. Or Oxford Street. Or at Museum Station, which connects you to Central Station – and thus, the rest of the country. You can also walk to the nearest pool for a leisurely swim.

The Y on the Park is a near-neighbour of the Sheraton, which says it all. It’s hard to think of another hotel in such a luxe location anywhere in the world which is so damn cheap.

This isn’t the Ritz and it’s not Claridges, but it’s the perfect place to stay if you want to spend more on your holiday and less on your bed. You can book direct from their website. To save more on your stay, join the YWCA and gain a discount. Or look for the Y on the Park at Wotif, where you can often book a last-minute stay with a price cut.