Airlie Waterfront Backpackers

Although this hostel is clean & the ensuite rooms were reasonably nice, the service is AWFUL!!! Staff are extremely unfriendly & unwilling to help! We stayed here for 2 nights & after checking out, asked to store our bags for a few hours before having to catch the airport shuttle (a free service supposedly provided for guests). We were very rudely told there was no room for our luggage in the baggage storage area because 'a big tour group would be checking in later'. Unlike most hostels I've stayed at, all the staff we dealt with were a lot older & seemed totally out of touch with / uninterested in the needs of the young backpackers & travellers that make up the majority of their guests. Other poor points are: the hostel is in the middle of a food court so it is noisy at times; the mattresses are those really cheap, thin, uncomfortable foam ones; there are no dishes, cups or cutlery in the kitchen so you have to rent a set for a $20 deposit; they also make every person in the room get a separate key w/$20 deposit for each which was annoying because we were a group of 4 who only needed 2 keys amongst us. (Date of experience: Mar, 2010 )