Koala Beach Resort - Noosa

Noosa Heads

2 of 7

Address	44 Noosa Drive, Noosa Heads Queensland, Australia Map
Price	$22 for Dorm Accommodation $55 Double/Twin Accommodation Check Current Prices by Date Here

Location/Contact

Details

This is a VIP hostel. Show your VIP Backpackers membership card for a discount at check-in.

Description

Features

Kitchen
Lockers
24 Hour Free Hot Showers
Pool Table
Washing Machine (laundry)
Lounge / Common space
Travel information provided
Bar
Food/Restaurant
Clothes Dryer
Phones (public or in room)
Air Conditioning
BBQ
Swimming Pool
Nightclub

Ratings & Comments

2.7 Average from 20 Ratings

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Comment by Lisa, English

July 2009

Terrible -- do not stay here
There is nothing nice to say about this place. I would rather have slept on the beach than stayed here -- we stayed for a night and then moved on, even though we'd paid for four. No refunds, and they dont like it when you tell them that you're not happy. Terrible security, dirty overcrowded rooms, disgusting bathrooms, and the kitchen should have been cordoned off for health and safety reasons! I just wanted to cry. Awful awful awful place. Do not stay here!

Comment by Nick, England

April 2009

Disgusting -- not even one star
Awful. I don't even know where to begin (but I'll find somewhere). The worst hostel we have ever had the misfortune of staying in. The rooms were filthy, the shared bathrooms had not been cleaned in years. Security is poor. Kitchens -- the shelves were full of bags of gone off food which stank and attracted flies. No equipment. When we complained the staff were not interested. We weren't the only ones complaining. The bar is used by locals and by the end of the night there were fights outside and the there was vomit everywhere. We left after a night. We'd booked for a week but fortunately had friends there we could go and stay with. They would not give us a refund. Avoid at all costs. By all accounts the other hostels in Noosa are nice. Use them.

Comment by **B**, British

January 2009

Doesnt even deserve one star -- disgusting dirty unsafe place to stay
this place is disgusting. I have been traveling for a year and it is the worst hostel I have ever stayed in. Dorms -- dirty, very very unsafe, they wont think twice of putting a single girl traveling alone in a room with a bunch of drunk lads! A lad tried to climb into bed with me, when i complained they said there was no room to move me! The shared bathroom never ever got cleaned! The doubles had access through the room and left the doors unlocked. We had people walking in at night, looking for spare beds to crash on. Kitchen -- no utensils, i had to eat out a pan! dirty filthy place! TV room -- dirty and disgusting I couldnt even go in there. Staff -- need to learn how to smile, very rude and unpleasant, if you dont work there they hate you and wont even bother to give you the time of day. Do not stay here! we also got told of peoples stuff going missing and money being stolen out the room by the cleaners when the room was locked!

Comment by Joanne , Ireland

January 2009

One of our favourite hostels in OZ
I loved it. Was traveling with three other girls and we all agreed it was a favorite from Oz. Main rooms are a good size but having small rooms with the only access through the main room is a bit odd. Food in bar is lovely and really cheap, you are really central and there was never too much noise from the bar if you decided to have a quite night. The pool is fabulous and the shuttle bus driver, Fergal I think it was, was such a cool guy! Stayed in Nov. '08 so I'm guessing things have vastly improved in the last year.

Comment by Sinead, Ireland

July 2008

Awful
Rooms are filthy, floor had not been hoovered, sick stains on the carpet, dirty sheets, no space at all for backpacks. We had to walk through a lad's dorm to get to our room, bit of a strange set up!

Comment by Vicky Miller, UK

July 2008

Party here but stay elsewhere!
As others have said, the bar is quite good but the rooms are so skanky. There's plenty of space but the lonely planet that recommends it is clearly out of date. Our room was so damp that loads of us felt ill by the time we left. The bathroom was the worst though, it was so mouldy and there was always water on the floor. I ended up avoiding showering as i couldn't face using it. Definitely avoid this hostel!

Comment by Soph, Canadian

May 2008

Terrible
Though the people we met here were amazing -- the hostel is terrible. Security is horrible (Poor locks on doors, no lockers in rooms, long dark path to rooms, lax security guard, no cameras). Two (large) backpacks (mine included) were stolen right out of the locked room -- and police said it happens about once a month at Koala. We heard many stories of poor Koala facilities in other towns but most theft horror stories were about this particular hostel (including rooms getting robbed while people are sleeping in them, which is more than creepy). Although theft can happen anywhere it's probably best to avoid a hostel where it is this prevalent.

Comment by Lorks, UK

January 2008

Dirty, overcrowded
I second pretty much what everyone else says about this place. The location is great, the bar is cool (although its is blighted by rural Aussies -- them with the mullets), internet is cheap ($3 an hour), the free shuttle bus to the Transit Centre (where the Oz Ex bus goes from) is useful, but everything else is woeful. There are rules on pretty much everything you can do. Worst are the dorms, with up to ten beds crammed into what should be a normal motel room -- with just one bathroom. If someone is taking a long shower, you can't even have a pee! You even have to rent a bedsheet -- they aren't provided (use them to lie on -- the undersheet of the bed is never changed). Staff seem overworked and uncaring, and this comes through in the cleaning of the rooms -- which just doesn't seem to be done. They stink, and have rubbish everywhere. The kitchen is terrible. Security is pretty lax -- rooms 28 and 29 are used as a corridor by everyone to walk through to the town, so the doors are never locked, and hence a lot of stuff goes missing. Avoid.

Comment by Inga, germany

December 2007

I do not really know
i loved the people there, the barbecue is great, the location not too bad, and the driving service is great, but the rooms? sorry, especially the bathroom should be updated. The kitchen is very small and not very well equipped. i would not recommend it, but everybody must make their own experiences.

Comment by louise, UK

April 2007

Stayed here Dec '06 for five nights, room was dark and stank -- really dirty. Kitchen filthy and swarms of flies everywhere. Only good thing was the bar at night -- even then your feet stuck to the floor.

Comment by Howlin' Mad

March 2007

Koala's Beach Resort is a pretty good place to stay. We were here for two nights in December 2004 and booked up a twin-room just past the outdoor pool at the rear of the complex. Somehow, we found that we had been given a double but managed to swap for another without much fuss. The staff were friendly and helpful, if disorganised, but this worked in our favour as they didn't charge us for the second night of the stay as they thought we had already paid in full. Our room was private but tiny, with barely any room to move. We also had to walk through a six-bed dorm to get to our accommodation (a strange feature), as did the occupants of the other private room opposite us. This didn't prove to be a problem but it is fair to say that the carpet in the dorm was disgusting and we didn't dare to walk across it on bare feet! Ten people sharing one en-suite bathroom sounded like a nightmare but it was surprisingly always available whenever we needed it. The complex is surrounded by tropical trees and the courtyard is a great place to sit and relax if needs be after a hard night. The Koala Bar is a fun and cheap place for a night out and serves surprisingly good food. The hostel is also situated less than a kilometer from the beach so make sure you book a surfing lesson or hire a boogie board from reception to make the most of the famous waves.

Comment by Martin

December 2006

Stayed there for two nights. Dirty pool, kitchen, rooms, and general the service is very poor. There is one guy there, the shuttlebus driver, best service from him, great guy. He and the nice bar pools the rating up to three starts.

Comment by Andy and Nikki

August 2004

It's like a prison camp, this place has so many rules: no food in your rooms, etc., etc. It wouldn't be so bad if the rooms were of a decent standard, but our double was tiny, with only just enough room for a double bed and 2 backpacks, and only enough hot water for one person to have a shower (not great when you have to share the bathroom with up to 10 others!). The only reason this place gets 2 stars is because the staff are fantastic, and very helpful!

Comment by Josie

August 2004

I really like the Koala bar as it's laid-back and cozy. It's very close to Hastings st. and the National Park. Many people from all over the world make it a fun place to spend the night. It's a great place, I would definitely recommend it to all.

Comment by Dan

July 2004

I stayed here in 2003, and found the facilities to be good. There's a decent-sized bar, a really good pool area, and the dorm rooms are really big in size. It's only about a five-minute walk down the hill to get to Hastings Street, where the beach is and all the nice cafes. I would recommend it.

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