The Jolly Swagman Backpackers Hostel Sydney
Hostelz.com Overall Score
7.5
9 = Extraordinary
7 = Good
3 = Not so good
1 = Run away
Based on 795 guest ratings.
Features & Details
Recommended For
Families
Free Amenities
Airport Pickup
Bedsheets
Breakfast
Wi-Fi in Lobby/Commons
Fee Services
City Tours
Lockers in Lobby
Luggage Storage
Parking
Safe Deposit Box
Towels
Other Features
24 Hour Security
Air Conditioning
BBQ Grill
Cable TV
Clothes Dryer
Concierge / Info Desk
Credit Card Payments
Currency Exchange
Entirely Smoke-free
Food/Restaurant
Gameroom
Hair Dryers
Hot Showers
Kitchen
Laundry
Lounge Area
Movie Library/Rental
Swimming Pool
TV
Videogames
Ages / Restrictions
Max. Age:
All Ages
Min. Age Without Parent:
17
Details
Checkout:
09:00 (9 AM)
Curfew:
No Curfew
Lockout:
No
Maximum Stay:
Unlimited
Minimum Stay:
1 night
Open Dates:
All Year
Reception Hours:
24 Hours
Size:
Very Large (100+ beds)
Booking
Photos
+12
Description
Map
(Location is approximate. You may need to pan/move to find "The Jolly Swagman Backpackers Hostel Sydney" at 27 Orwell Street.)
Location/Contact
- Address
- 27 Orwell Street, Kings Cross, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- Coordinates
- -33.872176, 151.224213 (accuracy not guaranteed)
- Location
-
- Website
- www.jollyswagman.com.au
- Telephone
- +61 (2) 9358-6400, 1-800-805-870
- Fax
- +61 (2) 9331-0125
To add or correct information for this listing, please use the Listing Correction Form.
How is The Jolly Swagman Backpackers Hostel Sydney rated on other websites?
| Cleanliness | Staff | Location | Atmosphere | Security | Overall | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hostelworld |
79%
|
84%
|
77%
|
81%
|
||
| HostelBookers |
79%
|
83%
|
85%
|
80%
|
||
| HostelsClub |
30%
|
50%
|
35%
|
42%
|
||
| Hostels.com |
46%
|
86%
|
80%
|
62%
|
||
| Priceline |
n/a
|
n/a
|
n/a
|
63%
|
||
| Average |
59%
|
76%
|
69%
|
66%
|
Hostelz.com Guest Reviews
Fantastic and nice.
amal
Age 32, Sri Lanka
2015-10-05
This hostel is a safe, friendly place where you are likely to meet other travellers usually working or looking for work in Sydney. It is quiet at night around the rooms so no problem sleeping. Many are pretty much living there so it is a bit clicky with groups that seem to all know each other well and drink or take over the TV room most nights. But still lots of chances to socialise in a good environment if you have the time/patience. Free Wi-Fi advertised is actually only 1 hour free card when you get there which we found a bit false advertising. You had to pay $8 for 5 hours after that which wasn't too bad but some days the wi-fi randomly stopped working and you lost mins if you hadn't logged out.
Location:
Handy location very close to town, we were a bit worried being in Kings Cross and hearing rumours but we had no problems. It is out the way of the main strip and security is always on hand at night with locked front door, inner door and room locks - you feel safe. Easy to find if you get the train like we did it only took us a few mins to get there.
Rooms and Bathrooms:
Dorm-rooms are clean, although we we're in a 3 bed dorm. The room contained a chair, desk, fridge, space for items, sink and fan. No in-room lockers but other rooms with more people (6/8 dorms) did contain them. Only one female shower on our floor which wasn't great as the lock kept falling off but the shower itself was always hot, had hooks and space for toiletries/clothes. One toilet didn't flush throughout the two weeks we stayed there. Washing machines and tumblr dryers on every floor which is great, right by the rooms so you can keep an eye on your clothes. The view from our room was actually into the building next doors bathroom so we kept our curtain closed a lot...
Common Spaces:
Cool brightly painted TV room, usually with a few people sleeping in for some reason. Lots of chances to socialise but quite hard with the groups who already seem to own the place. Still welcome meetings help and there is a night out planned most days as well as food deals with a nice eating area where you could meet others - although we never tried any of the food deals we preferred to find our own. Free breakfast was in fact just tea, coffee, toast and cereal that you have to wake up before 9am to get. Enjoy a long queue for a toaster and a struggle to find a cup. Kitchen was small but always kept clean - closing at 10pm and in the morning after breakfast for cleaning, so you have to plan when you want to eat incase it's shut.
Summary:
Overall had a good 2 weeks in this hostel but wouldn't recommend staying longer and if looking for work and thinking this hostel would help as they make out do not expect much, their job board had only old jobs and there wasn't any help in finding work you have to find it yourselves. Printing CV's is the only help given which cost 20c a page. Value for money I think it's quite expensive for what you actually get but it is central Sydney so you can expect that. It is clean and organised and I would probably go back if I was in Sydney and had the money.
Swami
2013-06-26
Amazing people and great atmosphere
This hostel is a great place to stay while your in Sydney. It has the friendliest staff you will ever meet, who will go out of their way to help you. It's clean and safe and it has everything you would need. The people you meet there are friendly and outgoing, your never alone or bored. Highly recommend this hostel.
Leah
(Canada)
2012-11-16
Awesome!
Awesome hostel! the nightlife is very great. YOu also get a lot of vouches from the hostel for free drinks and free entry in some clubs. the staff is very friendly and help you in every way they can. If you need an advise, just ask them. Also the other guests in the hostel were awesome, it is really easy to meet new friends there! just go there and enjoy!
Stefan
(Germany)
2012-09-18
Shabby, no aircon, so hellishly hot and stuffy.
I ruined my reputation booking this accommodation for my family, as we almost went into culture shock over the lack of everything here. I normally research very carefully with a list of requirements -- close to sights, public transport. from the minute we arrived internationally into the arrivals hall, all we had was stress and horror. first we rang the hostel and asked if they could pick us up they said nah, you're five minutes too late, find your own way, so we got stiffed A$70 for that and our $NZ has tanked a lot against the ozzie so was about $NZ100. When we got there the bus driver said this is a seedy place dont go out at night and just to make his point there was a big brawl as we got out of the bus. The same twat who denied us transfers charged my card in NZD -- didnt even ask and I'm not sure yet if that's a good thing or not, but it ended up being hideously expensive for four nights for five of us. $NZ240 per night. didnt tell us anything about the hostel, didnt tell me he'd charged me extra for key deposits, we had to haul all our bags up stairs to some hot, stuffy stinky rooms. Us and the kids weren't even on the same floor. They really didnt give a toss. I would think they would put families off staying in a place like this, but the e-mail I received from them said "we'll do everything possible to make your stay a happy pleasant experience." We left Sydney vowing never to go back and to put everyone else off from going there, as we had many unpleasant memories of this place and it was particularly about the backpackers, not necessarily about the whole Kings Cross Location.
teelee
(New Zealand)
2009-03-17
Excellent and Fantastic
Very friendly staff. Nice and clean. Common area is very clean. I would recommend his place. We love this hostel so far. very welcome.
Ezikill
(Indian)
2009-03-09
Nice, clean, and fun
I've been in Sydney for a while and I must say that Jolly Swagman is one of the better hostels. It's big but friendly at the same time. The rooms and bathrooms are clean, the staff is awesome and you just feel at home. The only problem would be that the kitchen is a bit small for the number of people staying at the hostel. They have organized outings to bars for those who want to party -- or you can just stay in and watch some movies on the bean bags. Loved my stay here and I would recommend it to others. There were no english hooligans here in 2009.
Michelle
(Canada)
2009-03-03
Well, from the Jolly Swagman website, this hostel looks like its the cats ass. However, in the picture, they failed to show the 3 homeless people who live in front of the hostels, the cockroaches that reside in your bedroom. They also have signs in your dorm that they clean every Mon, Wed, and Friday and to put your things on the bed or it will be thrown out. Well, I think this sign should be thrown out, since i have NEVER seen them clean the room, and there is sh*t under the beds that have been there for years probably, and the fridges in your room have probably never been cleaned (hence the cockroaches that live under your carpet). But if you like to party, rent some hookers, check out some druggies, this is TOTALLY the place for you. Smack dab in the middle of redlight district. But it's fairly safe (ill give them that) and 100% guaranteed free entertainment from all the people that wander around the hostel. It's also quite noisy at night time, 'cause there are public paths around the hostel, so you usually get drunks yelling to each other random times at night.
Stinky Syndey
2007-02-22
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