Sydney Hotel Tips by dracko

Wonderers on Kent: Wonderers on Kent

Wonderers on Kent is a largish, very centrally located hostel in downtown Sydney. Tucked in right behind Town Hall on Kent St., it's close to just about anything else in the city. You can walk to most places in the city in half an hour or so. And location isn't the only nice thing about the hostel. It's very clean, extremely secure - card access for everything, including elevators and bathrooms, has internet access, laundry & kitchen facilities, the omni-present tour desk, 2 tv/common rooms, and even its own bar!! Transit bar (and cafe during the day) is located in the basement of the building, and may be the only place in the building that's open to outsiders. All in all - it's a pretty nice hostel to stay at, probably one of the better places in the city. Rooms are co-ed, and the cost is about appropriate for downtown Sydney. I paid $27.50 a night in an 8-bed room. They do have some good weekly deals as well, if you're staying for a while. My only complaint about this hostel is its squeaky beds. They respond with a squeak to just about any movement you make in them.

Unique Qualities: Hostel has its own bar on the premises. Very centrally located, very clean.

Address: 477 Kent St.

Comparison: less expensive than average

Directions: Just behind Town Hall

Price: US$20-40

Theme: Hostel

The Blue Parrot: Too quiet, too small, too far Blue Parrot Backpackers Review

Prior to heading to Sydney I was looking around the net for a decent hostel, and Blue Parrot in King's Cross (or rather on its border with Potts Point) seemed to stand out. It seemed to get excellent reviews, and I was looking forward to having a great time there. So much for reviews. Of all the hostels I stayed at while in Australia, the Blue Parrot gets the least amount of praise from me. It's a nice enough place, but in my opinion all the praise is not justified. There just wasn't anything special about it to warrant the reviews that it's gotten. It's a small hostel, with only about 7-8 rooms that typically house 4-8 people. The 8-bed rooms have ensuite bathrooms, and there're only 3 other bathrooms for everyone else to share. There's the kitchen and the laundry room that you'd expect, and a nice little courtyard with a couple of benches and a barbeque. The common room has a TV and a couple of ratty couches. There's a payphone. That's about it. The place tends to be very quiet, and in spite of the hostel being supposedly fairly full, just about the only people I saw about the hostel were the few backpackers that were working at the hostel as well as live there. That's about it. There just wasn't much going on there, much to my disappointment.

There are a few redeeming points, however. There's the resident dog, Lily, a very friendly and well fed pup that absolutely loves to play catch with her ball. Also, the lady that owns & runs the place is very friendly and also tends to keep it fairly clean; there're also always fresh lilies in vases all around every morning. I paid A$25/night for a bed in a 6-bed room.

Unique Qualities: Friendly dog & friendly owner. A courtyard with tables & BBQ.

Address: 87 MacLeay St., Kings Cross/Potts Point

Comparison: less expensive than average

Price: less than US$20

Theme: Hostel