Cairns Central YHA

This is THE hostel to stay at in Cairns. The facilities are clean, central location close to all services, and they provide blankets (not just a sheet). I stayed here for multiple months and was so happy with my entire stay. The staff were incredible and made the whole experience. Big shout out to Alice, Brooke, Rick, Sam, Lars, Angela and José!! Thank you for making YHA feel like my home away from home!

I was charged for a future reservation which clearly stated I can cancel up to 2pm the day of arrival and won't be charged for it until that time but was already charged more than a week earlier. The money was refunded immediately when the staff noticed their mistake but I didn't receive the full amount in my account, most likely because of fees. When I brought it up at the front desk, two of the staff members told me it was indeed their mistake and there will be most likely a solution as the guest should not have to pay $16 for the hostels mistake. The problem was that the manager tried to blame everything on my bank and was unfortunately not able to own up to the mistake his staff made and find a solution. CONCLUSION: be prepared to pay for the hostels mistake if they mess something up with the payment, the management doesn't care.

The suite was perfect for us and when we needed to solve an issue, we had the help of the personal immeditaly. The girls in the recepcion are very nice. The hostel is close to the Explanade (around 12 minutes walking).

Good for the price and great location - close to town and supermarkets across the road. Rooms were good enough and pretty big (stayed in a four-bedroom dorm and was one of the biggest on my trip). Aircon worked a treat (you definitely need it), and the beds were decent. Could've done with more power points, especially near the beds (as they were only over the other side of the room).

Facilities were kept clean but in need of a bit of an upgrade (a few taps and showers out of order).
Pool was a great addition; outdoor area was very nice and relaxing, they even had free pancakes for breakfast one morning. Late check-in was super easy.

Only major gripe was there a large number of groups (20+ people) staying when I was there (schools, volunteer groups, etc), which made many of the areas quite noisy and crowded. Was great and relaxing when these groups weren't here.

Would stay here again!

YHA is hands down the best hostel in Cairns. The staff are all amazing, Alice and Sam are so lovely and we’re so accommodating to us. The backpackers Lars and Angela who were working the front desk are amazing people with great personalities who always made us feel welcome. The hostel is so clean and sociable too, all the guests are very respectful and I’ve made friends for life here. Thanks endlessly to the YHA team hope to see you soon!!