The Hostelz.com Review
The Jasper International Hostel isn't very big but it has all the amenities that make a hostel great. The staff are very friendly and helpful. They get to know the guests by first name and they will lend a towel if you forgot yours, let you use the phone if you forgot your camera at the restaurant in town, etc.
This quaint hostel located 7 KM south of the town of Jasper has a female dorm, co-ed dorm and four private rooms that have a double bed and bunk beds in each. Each private room can accommodate up to four people. The dorms have bunk beds, there are huge, locking drawers under the bottom bunk. These drawers are large enough to hold a backpack and some other gear. They have a hasp on them so that you can lock them. There are also lockers in the front entrance of the hostel as well. So security at this hostel isn't a problem.
For those that are coming to Jasper on the train or bus, you can reach the hostel by taking a taxi. This will cost about $13. Once you are there, getting back to town shouldn't be a problem. You can catch a ride with other hostellers. Most are more than happy to have you join them. You could also ask at the front desk if any of the staff are going into town that day as well. So you really should only have to pay for a taxi to the hostel once when you are first coming from the train or bus station.
The hostel has a nice common room with a fire place and big picture windows that over look the beautiful Rocky Mountains that make Jasper what it is. While we were there, the common room was busy with guests. The hostel wasn't totally booked, the guests just liked hanging out around the fireplace. You can enjoy a game of cards, a game of chess, reading a book from the small library that the hostel has or one of your own books or magazines. There is ample room to sit and relax in the common room.
The hostel also offers a phone card machine, conveniently located next to the payphone. They have an internet kiosk that costs $1 for 10 minutes or $2 for 20 minutes
One could very easily get by for a weekend at the hostel without buying any groceries. There is a free food shelf in the fridge at the hostel and there was a lot of food on the shelf. Most people that come to the hostel will leave food that has to be refrigerated on the free food shelf, rather than taking it home with them. The kitchen is very well stocked. There are two counter top stoves, plenty of dishes of all sorts, a wide variety of spices, lots of pots, pans and other things needed to cook a gourmet meal! Just remember to clean up after yourself. There is a coffee pot that always has coffee made.
Many of the companies that offer tours in Jasper will come to the hostel to pick you up for no extra cost. If you are a single traveler or in a small group of two or three together, ask around the hostel to see if there are others that are interested in the same tour as you are. Some of the tours require a minimum number. Sometimes if you call with your two people you will be told that they are booked for the day but if you called to join in with the other group they can fit you in. There is no shortage of tours and things to do in Jasper. If you are stuck for what to do just ask the hostel staff. They will even give you directions to the restaurants that they like, places to rent sporting equipment to enjoy the outdoors to the fullest or any other place you want to go!
Jasper is known for its world famous skiing in the Rocky Mountains. A trip to Jasper in the winter months can we a wonderful experience. The hostel has a shuttle to Marmot Basin, the nearby ski hill. They also offer great deals on skiing at Marmot as well that include accommodations.
For the budget traveler, HI-jasper is the place to go while in Jasper National Park. The hotels in Jasper are very highly priced. The hostel offers a quaint mountain retreat to relax and enjoy Jasper to the fullest. We highly recommend HI-Jasper to anyone wanting to see the Rockies on a budget. This hostel is well suited to families with children of all ages, as well as single travelers.
This quaint hostel located 7 KM south of the town of Jasper has a female dorm, co-ed dorm and four private rooms that have a double bed and bunk beds in each. Each private room can accommodate up to four people. The dorms have bunk beds, there are huge, locking drawers under the bottom bunk. These drawers are large enough to hold a backpack and some other gear. They have a hasp on them so that you can lock them. There are also lockers in the front entrance of the hostel as well. So security at this hostel isn't a problem.
For those that are coming to Jasper on the train or bus, you can reach the hostel by taking a taxi. This will cost about $13. Once you are there, getting back to town shouldn't be a problem. You can catch a ride with other hostellers. Most are more than happy to have you join them. You could also ask at the front desk if any of the staff are going into town that day as well. So you really should only have to pay for a taxi to the hostel once when you are first coming from the train or bus station.
The hostel has a nice common room with a fire place and big picture windows that over look the beautiful Rocky Mountains that make Jasper what it is. While we were there, the common room was busy with guests. The hostel wasn't totally booked, the guests just liked hanging out around the fireplace. You can enjoy a game of cards, a game of chess, reading a book from the small library that the hostel has or one of your own books or magazines. There is ample room to sit and relax in the common room.
The hostel also offers a phone card machine, conveniently located next to the payphone. They have an internet kiosk that costs $1 for 10 minutes or $2 for 20 minutes
One could very easily get by for a weekend at the hostel without buying any groceries. There is a free food shelf in the fridge at the hostel and there was a lot of food on the shelf. Most people that come to the hostel will leave food that has to be refrigerated on the free food shelf, rather than taking it home with them. The kitchen is very well stocked. There are two counter top stoves, plenty of dishes of all sorts, a wide variety of spices, lots of pots, pans and other things needed to cook a gourmet meal! Just remember to clean up after yourself. There is a coffee pot that always has coffee made.
Many of the companies that offer tours in Jasper will come to the hostel to pick you up for no extra cost. If you are a single traveler or in a small group of two or three together, ask around the hostel to see if there are others that are interested in the same tour as you are. Some of the tours require a minimum number. Sometimes if you call with your two people you will be told that they are booked for the day but if you called to join in with the other group they can fit you in. There is no shortage of tours and things to do in Jasper. If you are stuck for what to do just ask the hostel staff. They will even give you directions to the restaurants that they like, places to rent sporting equipment to enjoy the outdoors to the fullest or any other place you want to go!
Jasper is known for its world famous skiing in the Rocky Mountains. A trip to Jasper in the winter months can we a wonderful experience. The hostel has a shuttle to Marmot Basin, the nearby ski hill. They also offer great deals on skiing at Marmot as well that include accommodations.
For the budget traveler, HI-jasper is the place to go while in Jasper National Park. The hotels in Jasper are very highly priced. The hostel offers a quaint mountain retreat to relax and enjoy Jasper to the fullest. We highly recommend HI-Jasper to anyone wanting to see the Rockies on a budget. This hostel is well suited to families with children of all ages, as well as single travelers.
— Exclusive Hostelz.com Review
May 2004
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HI - Jasper - International Hostel Details
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HI - Jasper - International Hostel Reviews from the WebHostelz.com Guest Reviews
In need of major renovations! I stayed at this hostel three years ago and the place was quite rundown, and I'm sorry to say I didn't notice any improvements during my recent stay. The female dorm room has thirty beds and is crowded. I guess not a lot can be done about that. However, many improvements could be made in the common areas. The kitchen is old and not too clean. The furniture in the lounge is well worn. The smell of mould from the bathrooms is over bearing. It is unfortunate that Jasper doesn't offer a hostel on par with the quality of those offered at Banff and Lake Louise. — Shelley , Canada (2009-08-28) nice hostel and a good walk into town, but noisy as hell when twenty school kids arrive at 1 a.m. and this happened quite often. but i'd stay here again. — mil , welsh (2008-05-08) Remote but/and nice i stayed in september there. perfect for hiking, biking (you can rent a bike from the hostel), young and very friendly staff. it can be a bit noisy in the morning but that helps you to get up and explore the beautiful nature around it. some people claim it's primitive -- what do you expect from a remote place in a national park? i thing it offers a lot for the good price ($21 to 23)! make a reservation as it will be fully booked during summer! — Timon (21, Switzerland) , Switzerland (2007-12-17) Not the best hostel I've ever stayed at (and I've stayed at hundreds). I definitely recommend not staying here when there is a heat wave! It was so hot in the dorm that many of us did not sleep, you could just hear people tossing and turning and sighing all night long. It was absolutely stifling. There was noise outside the dorm room. But it wasn't the lights in the morning that woke me up, but rather the fact that they didn't turn the lights off until after eleven p.m., which is apparently a license to hang out and chat (ten-thirty, I think, would be more reasonable, and lights on at seven-thirty). That being said, the picnic tables outside were a wonderful place to have breakfast, and the common room was cozy. But don't expect a great night's sleep in the summer, even if you've driven twelve hours to get there and think you're exhausted. — Robbin (2006-08-03) This hostel has excellent common areas and kitchen and has a really good atmosophere. There is a huge bookshelf of ancient books to curl up and read -- it just has a really good vibe! Saying that, the mixed dorm is absolutely huge and lights are controlled centrally. The plastic-coated beds are not the best. But somehow you don't quite care how rubbish your bed is because the rest of it is so great! — Dobie (2006-04-14) Bring earplugs and an eye pillow if you are staying in the female dorm. It is NOISY — the female dorm and the private rooms are right off the main area where people are talking, checking their e-mail, checking in and coming up from the showers. Worse yet, they run this place Army barracks style, meaning they blast the lights on at 7 a.m. in the dorm room, which is hell if you're sleeping in the top bunk. Also, they don't dim the lights in the main area at night, so each time someone enters or leaves the female dorm, the door squeaks and the light floods in.
Those points aside, this is a lovely place to stay. The hostel itself is beautiful and you couldn't ask for a more scenic setting. Hiking trails up the mountain leave right from the hostel door. There's plenty of parking, a friendly atmosphere and it's clean.
I stayed here for a week in the summer. After I bought earplugs (they sell them at the front desk) and the eye pillow it was fine. The male dorm area is downstairs by the laundry facilities and I imagine it is quieter there. — Alpine Flowers (2005-06-01) This was not a bad place to stay. Primitive, but clean. There was a poster on the wall advertising a flower show from 1979! The beds were okay - but cold because they were plastic-coated. But the staff did offer extra blankets. It's a long way to walk from here to town, especially in winter. The bathrooms were clean, but only two showers worked in the female dorm. Luckily the water was hot! The staff were very friendly. The female dorm is huge and the common room is right next door, so it can get noisy. — Anonymous (2004-10-25) I stayed at this wonderful little hostel for a weekend of skiing. The common room was the most used place--the fireplace was great! The dorms were clean and the bunks had huge lockable drawers under them to put your bags into. The staff were very helpful. We took advantage of the ski packages and the shuttle that the hostel offers for Marmot Basin. The hostel has an Internet kiosk, a long distance phone card dispenser, and a GREAT kitchen. It also has showers and great views! I will definitely be coming back to this hostel. There are also four private rooms that will sleep up to four people. There were kids at the hostel when we were there, and the staff were very welcoming to them. So this is a very family-friendly hostel. — Anonymous (2004-03-09)