BCIT Lodge (Art's Hostel)

Couldn't stay there
We called this lodge when our booking at the youth hostel fell through and it was on a list next to the public phone. We had no phone and no car so called a taxi to go there. The room had mattresses that did not fit the beds, no mattress covers and was generally pretty awful and no lock. The kitchen did not even have a kettle, had to use a fry pan on the stove to boil water.No hot water either. Used the boiled water to sterilise the cutlery and crockery -- it was that bad. Lots of young men who do not know how to wash dishes or clean up after themselves staying there. The sweet end was when we went to the bathroom to check out the showers, there was a really damp smell and there is no way I would even think of showering there, especially as there was no guarantee of hot water. We walked for three-mile that evening to find a hotel and spent another $20 on a taxi to go back and get our luggage. Usually I check stuff on the internet before I go and I book, thank goodness I had not paid any money.You would have to be pretty desperate and broke to stay here!

Guranteed place to stay in whistler
Okay so Arts lodge is clearly a hole. But if you're an easygoing person who isn't worried about luxuries of any kind then you could have a great time here. Basically the place is a three-story house, everything is rundown, no locks on any doors including showers (being the only girl with a house of twenty guys i had to pull a stool up against the door) and not heating or TV. The beauty of it though is how relaxed Art is. it is very hard to find accommodation in whistler in winter and all hostels have a one-week stay maximum, but art allows you to stay as long as you want once you have moved in and just pay as you go. it was great -- it meant i didn't have to worry about ending up sleeping in the snow or something. All in all it was great as an emergency place, or if you want to live somewhere with no stress and no luxuries, on the cheap. Art even provides you with some religious books as extra reading material as you sit by the fire. Art himself admitted to me that he is just waiting for the place to be declared unfit to live in so he can knock it down and build his dream home, he isn't allowed because of the accommodation crisis. Just remember to keep an open mind and have fun.

Very Bad
A group of us made the unfortunate mistake of booking this hostel online and paying a large deposit to secure our booking as we were all coming from different parts of the world. We arrived and a walked straight out. For the amount of money our group paid for this place it was not worth our time. We could have hotel accommodation for this price! Art was very unreasonable and rude and refused to refund us our very large deposit (or even part of it) as we were unsatisfied with the conditions the place was in. Most people walked straight out after they had seen the place or left the next day. Art is literally running this place into the ground. It never gets cleaned and the basics are not even provided for. Art said he wants to pull the place down but is not allowed so he keeps taking peoples money but doesnt return it to the property. This place is cheap and is a roof over your head if you are really desperate but is is a last resort. Its a good place to get rowdy and drink all night and thats what most people do here -- all night so don't expect to get to sleep especially if you have a problem with breathing weed smoke all night as it lingers in the upstairs rooms! We stayed here because we had no choice and it was too much money to walk away but given the choice we wouldn't have stayed here. I don't recommend booking this place until you have had a chance to see it for yourselves.

I stayed in this hostel for a month or so back in december '05. I would agree that it has obvious downsides, such as being a bit cold, has a lack of general privacy, and is overall a bit of a hole. However for the price you pay I would say piss off to those who talk smack about it. Plus i met some sweet people at this place. Though calling it basic would be an understatement, it's livable and I had some awesome times there. The fact that Art was never around was no problem, man, as we could do whatever we liked (and we did). Overall, I'd give Art's Lodge five out of thirteen.

It was just my luck that I moved to Whistler on the year they break records with the amount of snow they get. The only place to stay is Art's Hostel, or as those of us stuck there call it, "Art's Hole." Art's Hostel has its obvious downsides which I choose not to reiterate but has big upsides. People hear about the reputation as the place being a slum, so I get pretty serious street cred as a hard ass mofo. Art condones marijuana use indoors. We pimped it out, stereo, ping pong, fooseball. Money otherwise spent on rent can be saved for more useful things. If you can afford a better place or have standards, perhaps you should look elsewhere, but if you get here and there's some sweet dudes living there, the place is pretty solid.

Not only is this place a complete dump and freezing cold, the service is rubbish too! I called ahead and left my name and our e.t.a. and Art said he would be waiting for us. He wasn't, so we were left stranded in the middle of the night. I wouldn't recommend this hostel to anyone. Whistler has other hostels so go somewhere else. Anywhere else.

I stayed at Art's Lodge back in Dec. 2000. It's not the cleanest. I have stayed in some dirty places and it ranks up there with them but the place is pretty much left to whoever is staying there and i guess you are expected to keep the place tidy, wash up, and chop your own wood. It does get cold as your only heat comes from the single fire in the main room. and the hot water situation could be better but you get what you pay for and in a world class resort like Whistler you are lucky to find a place to stay that's so cheap. If you want some creature comforts pay the extra and get yourself a hotel, but if you just want to stay in Whistler for as little as possible while you ski all day and party all night and all you need is a bed, you won't find a cheaper place to stay.

Our group rented this place for 4 days in February of 2006...I am staying here now, borrowing somebody's Wi-Fi from across the road. Man this place is disgusting. The floors are filty, the beds are filty, the sheets are filthy...There is no heat...The fireplace makes it barely hospitable. The hostel manager recommends turning on the stove and leaving it open in order to help heat the place. The windows fit so poorly that wind blows through them... The hot water situation is prettly lame...(they have 2 water heaters, but only had one on when we got there, I asked about having the second turned on, and the manager said he would do it that day.. Came back later and they were both turned off!) One last thing... You will not be staying here alone... there is a family of mice living in the hostel. They live behind the baseboard of the kitchen counters... (Hey Art, check the corner where the cabinets meet for hte hole) They also live in the room that contains the water heater... I won't be coming back here...

I have been travelling the world and have stayed at my fair share of hostels. Yeah, this place might be the cheapest in town but it is also the grossest! The place is pretty dirty, I don't think Its been cleaned in the last 6 years. Don't expect clean sheets either....SHARE AND SHARE ALIKE! The beds are just a slab of foam too, not very comfortable....VISIT AT UR OWN RISK!

I stayed there two weeks in December 2004. The place is nice because it is cheap, people are friendly and it is near the village. The only thing is that you will find it a little cold during the night, and the beds aren't the most comfortable in Whistler. :P

I stayed here for a bit in Jan 2001. Chop that wood and bring it in! Warm bag much appreciated. Expect ice inside. If the dorms were full then the hostel's skinny lounge seating is used to make do for a few folks. It's a nice walk to Creekside or Whistler village from there, or take the regular buses. It's about cheapest you'll find for Whistler unless you've a friend living there!

Also known as Art's lodge, this place is the cheapest in Whistler. There's no heating, so you have to chop your own wood to burn. Make sure you take a warm sleeping bag.