Cairns City Backpackers Hostel

We couldn’t leave after the first night for personal reasons, but this was honestly the worst hostel we’ve ever stayed in. The lady at reception was lovely, and the place could be cute with proper cleaning and maintenance. That doesn’t excuse how unhygienic it was, even at this price. I’d also take the reviews with a grain of salt: guests are offered a free drink for leaving a positive one, which makes the ratings feel misleading and unreliable. The room was damp the whole time during our five-night stay. The sheets and our clothes felt wet, and there was mold all over the ceiling with a strong mildew smell. The air barely moved because the window only opened about a third of the way, blocked by the air conditioning unit, and the mosquito screen couldn’t be opened either. Forget drying a swimsuit or clothes in there, they’d just end up smelling awful. There were just two power outlets, one taken by the air conditioning, and the other was absurdly high up near the ceiling and not practical to use. The pillows were the worst part. We only noticed when taking them off the bed at checkout, but they were moldy, as shown in the photos. Under the mattress was a thick layer of black dust, the floor was dirty, and we found a used men’s razor in the bathroom. Shared areas were tiny and dirty too, especially the kitchen and bathroom, where there was feces on the toilet. The kitchen was short on basic things like cups, glasses, and spoons. Ants were everywhere, especially in the kitchen. Even packaged muffins in a closed bag got infested. When we showed reception, they said that was normal there and everything had to go in the fridge. The shower in our room was miserable, with hardly any pressure and the temperature swinging between burning hot and freezing cold. The area was cramped, dirty, and uncomfortable. We stayed for five nights. This was genuinely a horrible experience.