HI-Marin Headlands welcomes Molly Salyer as new General Manager

Posted by Molly on Jan 31, 2010

HI-USA Golden Gate Council is pleased to welcome Molly Salyer as the new General Manager of the Marin Headlands Hostel.

Molly’s hostelling history goes back as far as she can remember. In the Council’s 2009 annual report, she wrote:

I don’t remember when I first learned about hostels, because there was always a time when I was staying in them. When I was young it was not at all unusual to come into the kitchen on a Saturday morning and find my mother packing up our little ice chest and a reclaimed wine box with enough food for three meals, and then bundling us into the car for a night away, an excursion, a mini-adventure within the hour. Growing up in San Francisco mostly meant leaving it every few weekends for Montara, Pigeon Point, Hidden Villa, Marin Headlands, and Point Reyes.

Molly’s childhood was also marked by international travel. She spent every other summer in England and Scotland, visiting family. She earned a liberal arts B.A. at Humboldt State University, and then embarked on a year of independent travel to 15 countries.

Her hostelling experiences during this trip planted an idea in her head, "that working somewhere that supports all kinds of people to meet each other and save money — all so they can more deeply enjoy and understand the places they are visiting — might be something I could be great at."

Returning from her travels in 2004, Molly began working at the for-profit USA Hostel in San Francisco, first at the front desk and then as Assistant General Manager of the hostel’s dorm for culinary students. In 2005, she applied for the position of General Manager at the Marin Headlands Hostel. She was selected for an interview with the Golden Gate Council’s executive director, Barbara Wein, an interview that she considers one of the best she’s ever had.

Molly didn’t get the job that day, but Barbara told her that she would be kept in mind for future openings. Two months later, the manager of the San Francisco Downtown Hostel called her about an opening. Molly was hired; within a year she was promoted to Front Desk Manager, and in 2008 she became Assistant General Manager.

Now, nearly five years after that first interview, she is finally taking the reins at the Marin Headlands Hostel as General Manager. Having visited the hostel since childhood, she says, "I think I always knew that I wanted to work here."

"I love the old military buildings — the antique tin ceilings are my favorite. And every window you look out, you see trees, and at night you hear the coyotes and the frogs. I love that it feels so remote, but it’s really not — just hop on the Golden Gate Bridge and you’re in San Francisco.

"I also love that it has that old ‘youth hostel’ vibe. It’s not one of those super snazzy new backpacker hostels. Those are cool too, but this hostel has history and a sense of tradition."

For her first year as manager, Molly plans to focus on making sure the hostel runs smoothly, increasing overnights, raising the hostel’s visibility in the local community, and educating people about its mission. In the long term, she hopes to build a solid base of regular customers who come every year.

"I want the hostel to be a destination unto itself, not just a facility for people who need somewhere to stay. I want it to feel like family — a place people really want to come to again and again."