The Hostelz.com Review
Canadiana Backpacker is an excellent place to stay, whether for a couple of nights or for long term. It's a great place to meet people, as it's quite huge (six houses -- sleeps about two hundred people), but it does still have a friendly atmosphere. When you first arrive in Toronto and you have a lot of questions the staff will always help you out. But since the hostel is so huge they have quite a lot of staff and so it can be that you will not see the person that checked you in.
The Location
The hostel is located in a good area, only about five minutes from the streetcar (King Street) or a fifteen-minute walk from St. Andrews metro station. It's very easy to find and the metro as the streetcar is very efficient and easy to use. It's set on a quiet street next to the "party-area" in Toronto. There are restaurants, the IMAX, shops, bars, and clubs in the neighborhood.
Rooms and Bathrooms
The dorms are ok -- clean and tidy, but with not so much storage space but you get linen and towels for free during your stay. Security seems fine as well, with locking doors. About four rooms do share a bathroom and a toilet so to get a shower in the morning can take a while. The showers are good and everything is clean but the showers as well as the toilets are a bit rundown and would need an investment.
Common Spaces
The common area is next to the office, which is open at all times. It's got chairs as well as couches so you can meet other guests and can read a book as well as can chat with others. They do have a bookshelf and there are as well games which you can use. As well there is a huge outside area in the back where you can use the BBQ or have a game of table tennis. The kitchen is in the basement and is big and clean, with everything you need (there are three big fridges and coolers and as well as foot lockers). They provide free tea the whole day and there is free coffee and pancakes in the morning. There is also a big room downstairs where you can watch TV and movies. There is free wireless internet (which can be very slow if many people do use it) but you have to pay if you want the internet on a computer from the hostel.
Summary
Overall, the hostel is quite ok for a big city and for this size. You can have fun in the hostel and the staff will also organize events outside the hostel every day. It is clean, tidy, secure, and in a great location -- everything you need in a hostel really. But since it has been rated the best hostel in North America quite a while ago you have to call them and book in advance since they are mostly booked out -- even early in the season.
The Location
The hostel is located in a good area, only about five minutes from the streetcar (King Street) or a fifteen-minute walk from St. Andrews metro station. It's very easy to find and the metro as the streetcar is very efficient and easy to use. It's set on a quiet street next to the "party-area" in Toronto. There are restaurants, the IMAX, shops, bars, and clubs in the neighborhood.
Rooms and Bathrooms
The dorms are ok -- clean and tidy, but with not so much storage space but you get linen and towels for free during your stay. Security seems fine as well, with locking doors. About four rooms do share a bathroom and a toilet so to get a shower in the morning can take a while. The showers are good and everything is clean but the showers as well as the toilets are a bit rundown and would need an investment.
Common Spaces
The common area is next to the office, which is open at all times. It's got chairs as well as couches so you can meet other guests and can read a book as well as can chat with others. They do have a bookshelf and there are as well games which you can use. As well there is a huge outside area in the back where you can use the BBQ or have a game of table tennis. The kitchen is in the basement and is big and clean, with everything you need (there are three big fridges and coolers and as well as foot lockers). They provide free tea the whole day and there is free coffee and pancakes in the morning. There is also a big room downstairs where you can watch TV and movies. There is free wireless internet (which can be very slow if many people do use it) but you have to pay if you want the internet on a computer from the hostel.
Summary
Overall, the hostel is quite ok for a big city and for this size. You can have fun in the hostel and the staff will also organize events outside the hostel every day. It is clean, tidy, secure, and in a great location -- everything you need in a hostel really. But since it has been rated the best hostel in North America quite a while ago you have to call them and book in advance since they are mostly booked out -- even early in the season.
— Exclusive Hostelz.com Review
May 2009
Their Description
Canadiana Backpackers Inn Details
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Canadiana Backpackers Inn Reviews on Other WebsitesHostelz.com Guest Reviews
I cannot believe it! Looks can be deceiving! They have bedbugs in the hostel! Bedsheets, washrooms, and rooms in general looked and smelled very clean when we first arrived. I spent first night at the hostel and had very good sleep on what seemed extremely comfortable bed. Before I went to bed the second night I noticed millions of blood drops of different sizes on my sheets. It was too late at night to look for the hostel staff so I found myself new clean sheets to sleep on. In the morning I stormed to the frond desk yelling and screaming that I was given filthy sheets. The girl at the front desk informed me that it was my blood and found my panic unreasonable. I complained about having itching and burning skin and asked for direction to the pharmacy, where I spent about $60 for pills and a lotion to just keep me functioning and not going crazy from pain. (later I found out that the blood drops were really mine, caused by deep bedbugs bites.) Freaking out and not knowing what is wrong with me I moved out the same day. My bed was replaced but six of my roommates still stayed in the room. I could not settle trying to find out what's wrong with me -- I was guessing that it was bedbugs. I went back to the hostel to return my key and to leave my phone number in case they find out what it was to let me know immediately. I talked to one of the employees at the hostel concerned about the bugs, and how surprised I was when I was informed that they have had big trouble with those bugs before, but they just can't fully get rid of them because they live in drywall. The rest of my field trip to Toronto was ruined. I looked very ugly, and was not able to do what I was supposed to do. Straight from the airport I headed to see my family doctor -- she took me ahead of nine people in line and made an emergency appointment for me to see the specialist tomorrow. So I'm about to find out what I got myself into after staying in that hostel. My doctor did not even let me place my belongings on a chair in the office, she said the bugs might be too small to see, and they jump. If you are staying in the hostel and are not getting any irritations or mosquito-like bites it does not mean that you were not affected or your clothing and bags are not full of the bugs. If you think you may be at risk, talk to the hostel workers or owners -- they know what to do. — Tania , Canadian (2008-09-30) Good hostel -- would stay at again if in Toronto canadiana is a good, clean hostel. bathrooms are all very nice and clean. beds not the comfiest but they're clean. if you are traveling alone like i was you can meet people if you are outgoing enough but you aren't likely to be approached and befriended unless you are single girl who rates at least an eight out of ten on an attractiveness scale. the staff are friendly enough -- remember, this is a hostel, not four star hotel, so if the staff isn't always the most courteous (one time i was at the desk to ask a simple question and the attendant's greeting to me was "ok, what's your problem?") -- i think we need to accept this is just part of the hostel culture and not necessarily a black mark against canadiana. perhaps the best reason to stay at canadiana is its prime location in the entertainment district. especially if you are in the eighteen to twenty-two, club-going age group you will love canadiana's proximity to toronto's hottest clubs. lots of girls in crazy short skirts -- big star! — Christopher H , USA (2008-09-29) Good The hostel is very good. Clean, safe and comfortable, good bathroom facilities. People at front desk are very nice and helpful. The lounge near the front desk is a good place to hang out and meet people. Never had problems with the Internet connection. The only thing that we didn't like -- the beds, we kept hitting the upper level bars with our heads. But it's bearable. If you leave your luggage in the storage room for several days, be aware of mice, they nibbled my bag through. Overall, a very nice place, would stay there again. — * (2008-06-08) Awesome So much fun, fantastic staff, clean, centrally located, and a great vibe. Staff were helpful, fun (without being overbearing), and the set up is great for meeting friends. It's more international than most in Canada/U.S., which is so much fun. The best hostel I've stayed in so far! I can't recommend it any more than that. — Traveller , Australia (2008-03-31) Quite nice Attended in February 2007. The hostel is well located, the staff is nice, the hostel is clean and quiet. We tried the private rooms and there's nothing awful to say.
Breakfast -- pancakes for free. Have to be fast to get some but nice. — French guy , France (2007-10-07) Friendly, fun, and yet sane and safe! the Backpackers Inn is a great place to meet people in comfortable surroundings with lots of spacious public areas. When I was there for a day in June the staff went that extra mile phoning around the tour buses and getting me on an exceptional last minute tour to Niagara Falls. They also gave me a discount voucher to see the Coit Tower. Great, huh? Well, no, not really! The Coit, I felt, is a money pit with views not on par with, say, the Space Needle in Seattle; I don't appreciate being harassed -- twice -- by memento photographers. "It's a bit of fun!" -- not if I'm asked by two different photography teams, it isn't! On paper there is much to like at this hostel but I was keen to get out and about. Of those facilities that I took advantage of, only three minor things keep me from giving this hostel a shade more than four stars. I work shift patterns and so tend not to sleep regular hours. I need to feel I can creep into a dorm without waking anyone. The mattress seemed to have a plastic under-sheet! It was impossible to move around without it crackling. The bed itself was not uncomfortable, I felt. The restroom/shower room was in the corridor. The water pressure was good and the temperature easy to balance. The internet terminals were reasonably priced but, at the time that I was using them, not free. Also, though it will seem churlish, like most experienced travelers I have a padlock and don't like paying extra taxes in the form of metered lockers! — Andrew , Scotland. (2007-09-13) Good this place was really nice. the breakfast is great although you really need to be there right on time or they could run out. the atmosphere is great and the people all seemed really nice. the kitchen is open almost all the time and they have tons of bowls and cooking utensils that you can use. the internet is hard to find available but it's fast and free two hours a day as well. — sandy , USA (2007-08-24) The hostel on the whole is pretty good. Comfy beds and good kitchen/location. But my stay was tainted by a creepy little guy that works behind the desk and wears blue contacts! He was rude, unhelpful, and cheated me out of my deposit and my last nights stay! — Ryan , Australia (2007-03-27) Well, not so cheap, when I arrived they had lost my reservation. Bathrooms are a little bit dirty. The people who work there some are very nice people and others are very rude. I remember two girls that were very rude. It's open twenty-four/seven, that's very good though and it's really well situated (just beside all the nightclubs, so you don't need a taxi to come back). The rooms are very clean and it's got nice rooms. — Sandra (2007-01-04) I stayed here once before and had a bad experience, but decided to try again before I wrote the place off completely. Things were better this time. The room was a decent size and the beds were comfortable. The pancake breakfast was appreciated. I don't turn down free food, especially not when someone else is cooking it. Location was pretty good too, just a block off Queen Street and close to many things. The bathrooms were ok, but the cleaning lady was always in there in the morning when everyone was trying to use them. The hostel should have her wait until after checkout, so most people would be gone and she wouldn't be in the way. — Buff (2006-08-20) This hostel has bedbugs or something. In fact, three our of the 5 people in my room got bitten. The only two that didn't were sleeping on the two top bunks, so I am thinking that may have something to do with it. Overall though, the hostel itself is not bad. I think it relishes in it's #1 rating a bit too much. I found it average. The location is good though, right in the heart of downtown. However, my room faced the street and so at like 2 am I could hear drunk people screaming and fighting. The bathroom are ok, though. But they are single use bathrooms and there aren't enough. So a few times I had to wait in line. However, the staff was more than very helpful. — Me (2006-08-09) I loved this hostel! It was the first place I stayed on my trip, and I felt right at home. Sharing a room with the long-termers was a little overwhelming at first (they all knew each other), but they weren't at all cliquey and were very willing to make friends. In the end it felt like one big family -- they looked out for me and were great at recommending things I might not have discovered otherwise. The pancakes are great and the common rooms are a good space for hanging out and meeting people. I stayed here two weeks and actually cried when I left. Honestly, this place is lovely. — Imogen (2006-05-03) Cozy and friendly. Met some great people here. A good mix of travelers and people staying long term makes the hostel have a bit of a family feel. Huge kitchen to cook in, very clean, and the staff was ready to help. I wouldn't want to stay anywhere else. — Cristina (2006-04-06) My stay at the Canadiana was memorable. There was a tall blonde lady working in the office who seemed completely stressed and tried to give me sh*t but I wasn't ready for taking any. She had no idea how to deal with people. — luis (2006-02-24) Some friends and I stayed here one weekend in 2004. We loved it. Rooms were spacious and clean. Cozy atmosphere and good pancakes. We plan to stay there again next time we're in Toronto. — Whitney (2005-12-02)