Gilfach Wen Barn is a bunkhouse,   a classification of tourist accommodation which has its own separate grading system in Wales.

Initially rural hostels main customers were walkers and climbers visiting the mountains and hills of Wales.    However,   there started to be a demand from extended families and groups of friends who were hiring the property for exclusive use by their group.

Gradually the properties commonly hired by groups evolved to be more comfortably furnished and have rooms large enough for groups to socialise while still retaining the use of bunkbeds to maximise the size of group which could be accommodated.   These properties have their own grading system with Welsh Tourism.  The classification of bunkhouse.

Gilfach Wen Barn was designed to meet the five star standard for a bunkhouse.      However during the building work the company making the roof trusses suggested that with a small modification there would be the option of adding additional private bedrooms.   This meant that the ratio of bed spaces to showers at maximum occupancy levels was slightly too high to qualify for the 5 star standard.   So when I was a member of the Welsh Grading System the property was consistently graded as a 4 star bunkhouse.    I still follow the standards for a graded accommodation,  but no longer pay Welsh Government to be graded,  instead the reviews by previous guests showcase the quality of the accommodation

When I first opened I marketed the property as Brechfa Bunkhouse and used that as the name of my website.   However,   subsequently I have moved to using the farm name to make it easier for visitors to find the property and to honour the history of the farm and building.