The Hostelz.com Review
Priced at about average for the island, Backpackers International Hostel is out of town but is serviced by the local bus and with a very short walk to the beach and a convenience/liquor store.
It's a friendly and informative hostel that caters very well to backpacker needs. There are plenty of activities organised both at the hostel and outside. They have a shuttle bus to take you around, but the only free ride is from the airport to the hostel when you first arrive. Linen is provided but no towels or additional pillows.
The rooms are comfortable but can be a little on the dirty side. There are only four showers per floor, which could get a little crowded in peak season. They are cleaned regularly but hot water is only provided if one to two hours' advanced notice is given.
The kitchen is large and well equipped. Each guest has an allocated set of crockery and an allocated shelf in the fridge for their food. The TV room is used primarily for watching DVDs (they offer a limited selection for hire at the hostel). There are no coin-operated laundry facilities -- you can pay to have them do a load of washing for you but then you'll need to find a place to hang your clothes up to dry. Two internet stations are available.
It's a friendly and informative hostel that caters very well to backpacker needs. There are plenty of activities organised both at the hostel and outside. They have a shuttle bus to take you around, but the only free ride is from the airport to the hostel when you first arrive. Linen is provided but no towels or additional pillows.
The rooms are comfortable but can be a little on the dirty side. There are only four showers per floor, which could get a little crowded in peak season. They are cleaned regularly but hot water is only provided if one to two hours' advanced notice is given.
The kitchen is large and well equipped. Each guest has an allocated set of crockery and an allocated shelf in the fridge for their food. The TV room is used primarily for watching DVDs (they offer a limited selection for hire at the hostel). There are no coin-operated laundry facilities -- you can pay to have them do a load of washing for you but then you'll need to find a place to hang your clothes up to dry. Two internet stations are available.
— Exclusive Hostelz.com Review
January 2007
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Backpackers International Hostel Reviews on Other WebsitesHostelz.com Guest Reviews
Clean, fun, and friendly The entire hostel was cleaned daily. Really easy to socialise with everyone and the staff are great. They had loads of fun things to do, so your never got bored. Ali's optional meals were delicious, inexpensive, and a godsend if you just couldn't be bothered to do it yourself. I'm definitely coming back and recommend this to any traveler that likes a fun, laid back atmosphere. — Dani , Australia (2007-11-29) Ewww, dirty dirty dirty very unclean, toilets and showers were not cleaned all week, they charge for everything, and treat the backpackers book swap like they own them. — sarah n paul , uk (2007-06-21) Social and relaxed Don't listen to those saying this place is rubbish. It's brilliant. It's so, so relaxed and it is very easy to socialise with everyone, including the owners, who are really friendly. It's also really easy to sign up for the plentiful activities they offer. The bathrooms are good, the kitchen is good, and general cleanliness is good too. The only reason I didn't give it five out of five is that in places it seems a little shabby and the cockerels make a massive noise in the morning. But definitely stay here. — goldie , United Kingdom (2007-05-25) I only stayed at this hostel for a night but I was amazed by how friendly and relaxed it was. As soon as I exited the airport I was greeted with a smiley face. Our host kept us entertained throughout the transfer to our accommodation. The hostel is not five-star, but the rooms are comfy and the kitchen is big. I made so many friends in such a short time. Thumbs up for the free shuttle bus into town and back -- Banana Court rocks! It is also right on the beach where you see loads of fish, the beach is deserted so you could be sunbathing alone on a tropical island. What more could you ask for? — Lucy (2007-01-14) Had the time of my life. The place was spotless and there was always something to do. They drop you off and pick you up on nights out in town for a small fee, cheaper than a taxi like the rest of the hostels. There's a cafe only two minutes on the scooter, that make a really scrumptious breakfast, excellent for hangovers. Tesa's a laugh and entertaining. She's always there to help. Best of all was the friends I made while I was there and Ana's curry night. I'd recommend this hostel to everyone, it was the best week of my eleven-month holidays. I only left three days ago and I'm already missing it. — Kelly (2006-10-14) this is the best place to stay in raro, i stayed there for eight days and it was the best eight days ever. they helped me save so much money by asking around for the best dive course. and as for people saying it was dirty, they are chatting marbles. tesa was funny, helpful, and always joked about everything. whenever we wanted to go on a night out they had a bus for us and they picked us up. not many hostels on the island do that. there is a brilliant mix of people staying there -- mind you if you are snobby and can't leave your little circle of friend to integrate with fellow travellers then this place aint for you. i had a brilliant time, and i would recommend it to anyone. it's like a home away from home in the sense you know they will help you if all goes pear shaped. and it is cheap as chips, so dont listen to all the negative crap. — omar (2006-08-21) Stayed for 3 nights, found it to be friendly, well located and clean in the most part. Rooms could be bigger and mossie nets are somethimes not as good as they could be. Kitchen and bathroom are clean though. — Ciara (2006-03-27) OK for self-contained accomodation (i.e., you've been to Rorotonga before and require inexpensive accomodation.) Note: transport from airport (free) does NOT mean return trip. Owners are generally quite friendly, but live on-site and can be extremely rude if they don't want to deal with guests at the moment. I've been to the Cooks a number of times and had OK accomodation here twice. But wouldn't stay there again now that I've been elsewhere on Rorotonga. Overall-an OK place that could be significantly better if they got their act together a bit more. PS-savings versis other hostels/backpackers will easily be eaten up here by extra fees for everything. — James (2005-12-26) I stayed in Backpackers International already a few times within the last years and enjoyed it very much. It's a very nice hostel with private rooms and dormitories at very reasonable rates. The staff are very friendly and they inform you daily about nightlife or activities on the island of Rarotonga on their blackboard. On party weekends they take you to town by bus and pick you up again at night for a small fee. A nice and lonely beach is about 100m/300 ft from hostel, but the water is not very deep, depending on tides. It's 100m to the ring road where a public bus circles the island every hour per direction. There's a small supermarket, fast food and video store 100m away. It has lots of young people as guests. It's easy to get in contact if you like. Public areas are cleaned daily. Nice veranda to watch videos. I can't wait to visit Backpackers again. It's an affordable place while staying in paradise. — Joerg Lehmann (2005-10-17) I had the time of my life here. There were so many things to do and it was so easy to get to know everyone. A lot of the people I met here I ended up seeing during the rest of my travels. The location is great, the staff were really helpful, always advising me on the best way to do things without hurting the pocketbook too much. Everything was so organized, like the kitchen, I was just so impressed. I've recommended it to everyone that loves to have fun. I'm already planning my return trip. — Reggie (2005-10-03) Maybe this hostel is not the best. But the owners are so friendly and made our stay so funny and we did enjoy the girls who are working there. The girls are so nice that it made us decide to go back there again. I do really miss the hostel personnel and Rarotonga. Keep going like that.
PS: I was there last New Year's eve and there was hot water the whole time. The toilets were very clean, and the kitchen also. — Monzer (2005-05-28) Do not stay here! The woman who owns it enforces a curfew, and closes the kitchen at 11 p.m. It's very unclean, and there are bars on the windows. The staff was overwhelming — constantly watching over you like stepparents. You're not even allowed to move the chairs. It's not accredited. — Nate (2005-03-09) It's dirty but you could do a lot worse on the island!! It's in as good location as any and the owners help you as much they can with whatever you fancy doing! They charge you for EVERYTHING!! Even "book swap" is more like "book BUY!" Just ask all the time if there is a charge for things. Also, DON'T use the Internet. The shop at the end of the lane has Internet that is much more reliable and CHEAPER!!! — Anonymous (2005-01-06) I stayed here for over a week and had the time of my life!! Okay, it isn't exactly the cleanest of places but forget all that. Try and remember where you are — on a fabulous island in the middle of nowhere. The owners were fabulous and friendly. They were always on hand to help out, and they were willing to pick us up from the clubs at all hours. Everyone else staying there was really cool. All this added to one of my best week's stay out of a 13 month travelling break!!! If you are bothered about cleanliness and comfort then forget this place, but if you like a friendly and welcoming atmosphere in a great location then this is the place for you!! — Tom (2004-11-18) The staff at this hostel were very warm and friendly from the start. The atmosphere is very inviting. We were updated about our flight arrangements and daily activities. The beach is just down the road and the balcony is always nice to lay out on. You can tell that the place is cleaned and kept in order every day. The hostel is a great place to stay, and the guests' attitude is proof of this since everyone is just as warm. I felt safe and comfortable throughout my stay and I highly recommend it. This is definitely one of the better hostels I have stayed at while traveling the South Pacific. — Kat and Elena (2004-11-18)