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Please see Manjimup for other available Manjimup hostels and accommodations.
Please see Manjimup for other available Manjimup hostels and accommodations.
Normalee Backpackers (working hostel) Details
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Location/Contact| Address | Ralston Road, Manjimup, Western Australia, Australia |
| Location | |
| Website | None (if you know the URL of their website, tell us and we'll add it) |
| normaleehostels@bigpond.com | |
| Telephone | +61 (8) 9772-1200 |
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Hostelz.com Guest Reviews
Basic but friendly and honest -- lots of work available I stayed there for a few months in 2008/09 to get my second working visa. While it is very basic, a bit crowded and out in the middle of nowhere (ten kilometers from Manjumup) when you're on the backpacker harvest trail you have to take the rough with the smooth. As working hostels go Normalee is very well-run and many people choose to stay here for months on end. They did a great Christmas party for all the travelers last year. The owner Naomi works very hard to find everybody work and your transport is all taken care of. It is cheaper than Manjimup lodge and there are more jobs going. There's all kinds of farm work available plus vineyard and forestry jobs. The people staying at the hostel are friendly; mostly Irish and Taiwanese travelers when I was there. They do occasional trips out to Pemberton, Fonty's Pool, which breaks up the monotony. If you can knuckle down and avoid drinking too much goon you can easily save a couple of hundred dollars a week working here! — Cocoman , UK (2009-08-30) Used to be the best Stayed here in 1998 or was it '99? Used to be run by Fay and Gill. It was fantastic then. Spent six months in Oz and one month of it at tobacco park -- had the best time ever! Picking cauliflowers and packing apples at Appletech! Met some great people. — Steff , Welsh (2009-03-06) This hostel is no longer called Tobacco Park. Its called Normalee Backpackers. Before 2006 it was owned by different managers. I stayed there from Feb '06 to April '06 (yes thats almost three months) and had such a great time. It was my first experience of working in Oz, and Naomi and Leah (owners) took all the hassle out of it for me! I worked Monday to Friday in a tree planting factory and pretty much got pissed every night, played pool and table-tennis, or watched movies. Every wednesday they drove us and collected us from town, where we'd enter in a pool competition, and at the weekends we sometimes went on day trips. It's not the flashiest hostel in the world, but it was clean and safe and very homely. I think they've actually done it up since I left though, and possibly got a swimming pool (not sure). I made friends with people I'm still in touch with now, and thanks to the three months harvest work in a very laid back environment, I'm still here in oz a year later. Ok I'll stop waffling nostalgically now.
Melanie — Melanie Cleary (2007-01-29) I stayed for 1 month in this hostel in january and it was quite good. It's not called tobacco park anymore, that was the previous owners, it's now normalee backpackers or something like that. I heard the previous owners were pretty bad, as you can read in the other messages, but I think now it's allright. New matresses, clean dorms, kitchen etc. Free pool and table tennis and I had 3 times a free BBQ in the month I stayed there! Owners are very friendly and willing to help finding you a job.
But when you have a day off, there is absolutely nothing to do... The owners can take you to town if you ask it friendly ;) — Eva (2006-02-14) That's the worst Hostel I ever was in. By Far!
Beds feels like being used hundrets of thousands of times before and got bed bugs. I have been there for 5 Weeks and they had to close in this period 3 doorms because of bedbugs...
Took some wonderful pictures of creatures on the floor, they were everywhere =)
I had a really good group, some funny japanese girls, some pomms germans, dutch people, but everybody really funny. Played pool and drank liters of beer. That's the reason I couldn't save that much money.
I picked many different kind of fruits, I have to say I a hell of a good applepicker ! I did not know that before, but I think I am really talented... It's lot of work, nearly everybody gets work there. Bad thing when you don't get a job there is absolutly nothing to do!
Price is far too high for accomodation of lowest standard. 3 kitchens, no real pan, something like it, but all the kitchenequipment sucks.
In the backyard is a huge lake of wastewater, at hot days (i had only hot days) you smell the inside...
Best job I had was Potatoe Packing. Tough thing, but if you're willing to work hard and if you are male that's good money (I did not pay Tax at all while packing potatoes). And you get your cheque at a local pup/betting shop =)
If you are there combine it with the Diamond Tree!
See ya in Perth! — Mr.F (2005-12-22) Not so much an opinion but a quest. I stayed at this place in 1999 and for my sins wrote 'The Cauliflour Song' - it was written on the walls in the main longe area (if you can call it that) complete with guitar tabs but will no doubt have been removed/painted over shortly after. I have since forgotten a lot of the lyrics but am keen to remember them and set up a Cauliflour Song website yo reunite the fallen - I know this wont apply to 99% of people reading this but if you fall into that 1% then post a message on here and I'll get back to you - you know who you are.
Oh, and as for my opinion on the site - twas the best of times, twas the worst of times - great frienship and spirit - worst job and living conditions I endured on my travels.........you live and learn.
Cheers — Lowester (2005-12-08) Brutal but you will get work! Absolute group of numpties who run the place. Personality clashes created some amazing entertainment along with their regular attempts to confiscate our beer! After a hard day in the fields you need a beer and this did not go down well!
We nicknamed the place "Tobacco Prison" but having said that, if you get a good group of people then you can have a great laugh. Warning about Manjimup itself, drunk German girls, shopping trolleys and local drinking establishments do not combine in a way that will endear you to the local population.
And if anyone else can get themselves sacked for not being good enough at picking grapes, let me know. I am quite proud of that one. — Rick - Feb 2002 (2005-06-24) Really sort of brutal. The guys that run it are family and with some serious attitude clash. The place is not overly well run and is in generally poor condition, but if you stay there you will generally find some work. It may be broccoli picking, figs or apples but that is one thing that the place is good for. If you can avoid Manjimup in general, do so. — Canadian traveler (2005-04-12)