[Jes]

Hi everyone,

I've booked a trip to Australia this summer and and doing the East coast over three months. I'm not leaving until June, but I'm trying to do as much research and forward planning as I can to help it go smoothly, and so I can spend my time seeing the place rather than worrying about places to stay or ending up in a really awful hostel if I can avoid it!

I'm starting in Melbourne and finishing in Cairns, and stopping off on the way at all the main places (Canberra, Sydney, Brisbane, Fraser Island Gold Coast/Whitsundays etc). So we're basically working our way up stopping off at all the main places.

If any one has ANY advice on hostels to stay in and ones to avoid, places to see or avoid and any general advice or experiences they could share I'd be really grateful!

Many thanks, Jessica.

[Tim Uden]

Jes,

The hostel reviews on this site and the BUG Australia guidebook are the best place to look, but I can help you with some places if you give me an idea of what sort of place you like to stay at.

Do you prefer a big party hostel with lots of facilities or a small place with more character?

Some good places include:

CANBERRA:
Canberra City Accommodation (clean, lots of facilities but not much atmosphere - just like Canberra)

SYDNEY:
Wood Duck Inn (small hostel with a good party atmosphere and a brilliant roof top deck)

BYRON BAY:
All the hostels here are pretty good but Backpackers Inn on the Beach has a good beachside location and J's Bay YHA has the best mix of facilities and cleanliness.

GOLD COAST:
Trekkers (small hostel in Southport - five minute drive from Surfers Paradise - that has a great atmosphere.
Backpackers in Paradise (good party-oriented hostel in the heart of Surfers Paradise)

BRISBANE:
City Backpackers (big hostel with good facilities and atmosphere)
Palace Embassy (brilliant location, great facilities and spotlessly clean but not so much atmosphere)

NOOSA:
Halse Lodge YHA (the best location in Noosa, plus a brilliant atmosphere in an old heritage wooden building)

AIRLIE BEACH:
Backpackers by the Bay (great facilities, a good atmosphere and brilliant sea views)
Magnums (the best of the hostels in the centre of town)

Some backpackers' magazines in Australia have ads for accommodation packages that seem like a good deal with cheap pre-paid accommodation vouchers. Avoid these as they are usually always in the worst hostels.

[iwasveryverydrunk]

i noticed you missed out coffs harbour, was it a mistake or have you not heard about it, it rocks cheap diving great pubs, the best beaches and a place where you can have a great time and not blow all your money
ian

[Donny]

I have to say I think it is unfair that Ian writes about Coffs Harbour, because he is a manager of a hostel there!!!
But I have to say the owners of the hostel is great, not so sure about the staff!

[laurarwells]

Busted!

[dannnnn]

Jes,

I havn't been everywhere on the east coast but I'll give you some suggestions on where I've been and what I've done!

In melbourne I'd recomend base in st kilda.. very modern place, a bit lacking on the character department, but a lot of fun as there are lots of young people there!

I'd recomend making a stop-off at newcastle on your way north.. newcastle is about 2hrs north of sydney. the newcastle yha is very cool and they round everyone up for a free meal in a local pub most nights which is a great ice breaker!

apparently there is a new yha opening on the coffs esplanade.. that might be worth checking out if you stay in coffs harbour.

in brisbane i'd recomend staying at either 'the palace' or at 'bunk'. the palace is an old-style backpackers in a rambling old building full of character.. it's also in the city which is going a little out of fashion. bunk is kind of like base, in that it's a modern backpackers lacking character but full of lots of young people having an awesome time. the bar attached to bunk, birdee num num's, is an awesome night out. bunk is in fortitude valley (about 10mins walk from the palace), but the pubs/bars/clubs in the valley are generally more trendy than those in the city.

i'd recomend making a trip over to fraser island if you can.. it's an awesome spot! i'm not sure about hostels there but apparently there is a yha?

i'd definitely stay halse lodge in noosa too!! noosa is great - you *have* to walk through the national park.. but be warned that alexandria bay is a nude beach and it's often full of oldies, so don't plan on spending too long there!

finally, in cairns i'd recomend gilligans. again, it's in the base/bunk style of modern-lacking-character-but-lots-of-fun. i figure on a trip up the coast you'll stay at lots of 'character' places so don't let the moderness of the new places put you off.. that said, if you spend a night out on the town you'll probably end up at the bars attached to the modern backpackers.. so you'll see a bit of the place anyway.

enjoy your trip, it's great!! if you want more advice/whatever drop me an email - danboman@gmail.com

[iwasveryverydrunk]

Originally Posted by Donny

I have to say I think it is unfair that Ian writes about Coffs Harbour, because he is a manager of a hostel there!!!
But I have to say the owners of the hostel is great, not so sure about the staff!

how can it be unfair i write about coffs? i work there because i love the place with a passion and i see a lot of people come here with no expectations of the place and have the best time and often come back on there way home.

best way is to take a look yourself and it might be just what you were looking for

Ian

[Megs]

Hey,

im from canada and im in australia right now. i've been here with my boyfriend for a month and im staying until august which is 3 months aswell. I am also starting my journey up the east coast next week from melbourne to Airlie Beach which is close to Cairns.

We have looked at such hostels along the way like:

1.Surf n' Sun in Surfer's Paradise, Gold Coast, QLD.
2. Backpackers By the Bay in Airlie Beach, QLD
3. Cloud 9 Backpackers in Brisbane
4. Fraser Roving in Hervey Bay (Gateway to Fraser Island)
5. Harbour City "Hotel" which is really a hostel, in Sydney

Thats about all for now. Those seem to have the best reviews i can find on most websites. I base the star rating by how many posts there are on a particular hostel. Such as 5 stars, posted by 30 people. Rather than 5 stars, posted by 3 people. Get it? That's how i did it. Hope i was of some help. I found most of our places with help from www.bugaustralia.com under Hostel Reviews. GOOD LUCK!
TRUST ME!.. I'm just as cautious and worried as you sound about staying only in the best places you can find. My boyfriend and I definitly also do not want a dirty, old place to rest our heads at night either. I hope i did my homework right. Only time will tell. Take Care

Meghan

[Tim Uden]

That's a pretty good selection of hostels:

Surf n' Sun has a great atmosphere and a good location close to the beach, although Trekkers in Southport is by far the best hostel on the Gold Coast although not as easy to get to as Surf n' Sun or the other hostels in Surfers.

Backpackers by the Bay is definetely the best hostel in Airlie. However I have to say that Magnum's isn't as bad as a lot of reviews make it out to be. It is just that people on cheap package deals get put in the oldest part of Magnums, which isn't very nice but the regular part of the hostel is actually very nice.

I've heard that Cloud Nine is very good but haven't seen it yet. It is brand new and wasn't open when I was last in Brisbane to update hostel reviews for the BUG Australia guidebook.

Fraser Roving is a good choice, but I would chose Rainbow Beach over Hervey Bay as a base for visiting Fraser Island. A better range of Fraser Island trips run from Hervey Bay, though; although I wouldn't stay in Hervey Bay any longer than necessary.

Harbour City Hotel is fine. Nothing special, but nothing wrong with it either.

The BUG Australia guidebook is a good resource for your trip. The third edition should be in the shops now and the hostel reviews in the book are more up-to-date than the ones on the website.

[Thomas Steve]

Youth Hostels:
If you are travelling with a group of friends on a gap year or similar, chances are you will want somewhere with good facilities, understanding and a low cost! Thankfully there are lots of youth hostels that offer very good rates on group bookings over four people. If you all put in for a dormitory you will have a good home base without the expense of a hotel, and also lots of space and storage.