Outdoor pool

Reviews of Summer House Backpackers Cairns

2 out of 5
Summer House Backpackers Cairns
341 Lake Street,, Cairns, QLD

Reviews

7.0

Good

Rating 10 - Excellent. 24 out of 154 reviews" "
Rating 8 - Good. 56 out of 154 reviews" "
Rating 6 - Okay. 46 out of 154 reviews" "
Rating 4 - Poor. 16 out of 154 reviews" "
Rating 2 - Terrible. 12 out of 154 reviews" "

6.6/10

Cleanliness

7.2/10

Staff & service

6.6/10

Property conditions & facilities

Reviews

2/10 Terrible

Tom, Christchurch

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Hostel was closed. Had been closed for 2 months. No contact from Nomads or Expedia to tell us this. This is the last time I book accommodation with Expedia.
Stayed 1 night in Dec 2018

2/10 Terrible

Verified traveller

Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Worst Hostel Yet
The worst hostel I've been to in my life. Between the dinginess, the springs in the mattresses, the cockroaches, the mold in the showers, the early closure of the kitchen and the fact that there werent bathrooms on each floor, I wouldn't recommend this hostel to my worst enemy. Never again.
Stayed 6 nights in Mar 2018

4/10 Poor

Sassy

Liked: Cleanliness
Disliked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
It’s a backpackers so it will always be fairly basic. Nomads is at the Northern end of Lake street, so nowhere near the lagoon or main CBD. We booked a private room with separate bathroom. The first room had a portable air conditioning unit that wasn’t properly vented. Basically the fumes stayed in the room instead of the exiting the window. The second room had no air conditioning which made it stifling hot. Given that weather for the day was 32.c, with a feels like temp of 41.c, the room maintained an unhealthy heat. Pros: Clean, and accessible check in till 8pm. Laundry services cheaper than external laundromat. Cons: Wotif advertised a room with breakfast. No breakfast was provided. Staff unclear on room payment so am currently following up with my bank to see if I have paid twice. The overall low rating is based on staff knowledge and climate control in the room.
Stayed 1 night in Mar 2018

10/10 Excellent

Thomas

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Amazing
Was amazing

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Disliked: Room comfort
The air conditioner cannot be controlled from the room. It can only be turned on or off from the office, making it too warm or too cold.
Stayed 1 night in Jan 2018

8/10 Good

Sinnappapillai

Liked: Staff & service
Stayed 1 night in Dec 2017

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
This was a pleasant stay, clean, cheap, good clocation, friendly staff.
Stayed 1 night in Dec 2017

6/10 Okay

Roisin, ireland

Liked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities
central and good vibe
staff very friendly and good facilities I would like if there was an option to buy a cooked breakfast however
Stayed 3 nights in Dec 2017

2/10 Terrible

GM, Melbourne

Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Disappointing
The air conditioning was broken so a portable unit was in the room instead. It had leaked on the floor in two large places and was still wet to touch. It smelled very mouldy and sour in the room even with the windows open. We asked the two staff members at the front desk how to set up the portable air con, but neither knew how or provided any further help. The portable air con had a broken tube and a clear pipe dripping water. It seemingly couldn't be moved close to the beds so the cool air just went out the window. It was advertised as an air conditioned room so we were a bit annoyed at the humidity and mosquitoes that we paid for instead with no accommodations made by staff to actively help. We were given two key cards to unlock the room, one didn't work at all and the other was temperamental. When we were checking in another hostel guest also had to swap his key card for a new one as his wasn't working, so this might be a common issue. One of the two beds in the room had dirty sheets with dust and hair on it. There were cobwebs in the room, and during the night when turning over in bed a slat on the bed fell off. There aren't signs to the shared bathrooms and on check-in no staff explained where they were. The bathrooms are dirty, and there are many torn, wet or fraying signs and posters throughout the hostel. On Expedia the hostel is advertised as "free wifi for every room", however staff said there is only free internet for a couple of hours in the lounge.
Stayed 1 night in Oct 2017

10/10 Excellent

Malik, Augustine Heights, QLD

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
This hostel has literally everything.
Cheap drinks, great staff, close to town and the airport, a pool. It’s literally got everything you need and it’s affordable as hell!
Stayed 1 night in Oct 2017

4/10 Poor

Charles E V

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
A bit disappointing.
I'm an oldie, but often stay in Backpackers as you usually meet interesting people, and I get on with younger folk. I took a private room, which was on the ground floor and adjacent to the pool. Unfortunately there was a lot of drunken shouting the first night, and an equally noisy drunken birthday party in the arvo of my 2nd stay. The A/C system is bizarre - centrally controlled, it is either off or full on. My 1st night I froze, despite the helpful Irish bloke at the desk turning it up to 23 deg. The 2nd night I chose to have it turned off after about 10, and the room got hot and stuffy. No-one seems to police the quiet time [I reckon after 11 or so things should be settling down], so I had loud conversation outside my window till very late. The little Dutch girl does not have enough English - she botched 2 messages for me, and told me I had to shift rooms when Fraser found - after I'd repacked and was checking out - that I didn't have to shift at all. Apart from this girl the staff were unfailingly friendly and helpful. I'm not an old grump - I think I was unlucky - but the ambience around the place, in the kitchen and elsewhere, was not conducive to the kind of interaction I've come to expect at Backpackers. Perhaps the place is just too big. I certainly would not stay there again.
Stayed 1 night in Sep 2017

6/10 Okay

Brianna, USA

Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Cleanliness
Good enough
Good hostel. A little far from town center, so if your schedule doesn't revolve around the free shuttle's you'd better figure out the bus system. Saw a roach in my ensuite the last shower of my stay. Was glad to be leaving. Aside from seeing a couple roaches I enjoyed my stay.
Stayed 3 nights in Sep 2017

8/10 Good

Taylor, Toronto

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Cool hostel
Free shuttle buses into town and back every hour, spacious outdoor area, lots of space to sit and chill, has a bar but you can not bring your own alcohol to the hostel. The floor I stayed on was quiet and my room was spacious and quite clean! Had a great stay!
Stayed 4 nights in Sep 2017

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Cheapest private room in Cairns
Have stayed here twice. The second room was much better. First room on ground floor was stuffy, and the noise from the air conditioning unit for whole building was relentless. Only 2 bathrooms o. That floor and one was out of order. The other one was pretty manky and the last 2 days of our stay the toilet was blocked.
Stayed 1 night in Sep 2017

8/10 Good

Brett, Perth Australia

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
Good hotel close to airport
A room i needed for a couple of niights. Served its purpose. Staff were friendly and helpful which made staying there enjoyable. Only problem were the guests made a lot of noise till early in the morning. Room was clean and tidy and bathroom could have needed more attention.
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2017

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Staff & service, room comfort
close to airport
staff helpful, cheap meals,clean beds, able to get sleep after camping for 9 days
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2017

6/10 Okay

JINHO

Disliked: Property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 1 night in Jul 2017

6/10 Okay

Terri, Sydney

Disliked: Room comfort
Great for backbackers
Excellent for backpackers with everything available at reasonable prices. Room was very, very basic.
Stayed 5 nights in Jul 2017

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Nomads a good place to stay.
A great hostel with friendly staff, good vibe and good food. Location is a bit out of town but it is quiet and the courtesy bus provided a good service.
Stayed 1 night in Jul 2017

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
Beep nomaads lover
All good esp in comparison to horror stories i heard about from international, seasoned back packers. Definately a lovely spot. People (some staff & locals) are very dismissive and arrogant. I witnessed this behaviour from a select few almost daily. Their poor service & behaviour reflects poorly for what i believe is a very good hostel. Their shuttle bus to central CBD hourly til 3am is wiked. Go Nomaads
Stayed 14 nights in May 2017

8/10 Good

Rose, cairns QLD

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Welcoming atmosphere & fun staff & clean
Although technically in north Cairns Shuttle is excellent. Its all good, very good service very clean premises and cleaned daily including ablutions. Comforting at home feeling. Great place to meet people. Cheap and includes shuttle to and from town hourly. Cool

10/10 Excellent

Lifeguard, J

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Awesome the cleanliness the friendly staff I happy
Great well worth staying - I stayed in double room 2 nights then I found king room so much more luxurious than some nasty hotels in Australia Highly recommend this place only wish they do weekly rates for King room

8/10 Good

Ricardo, Cooktown, QLD

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Convenient. Airport pickup & town shuttle
I've stayed there several times and find it convenient. They do airport pickups but not drop offs. There's an hourly shuttle bus to the town centre. The bus to Cooktown stops there on request. On my last visit over the New Year, the only 4 toilet blocks out of 6 on one floor were working. I hope they get back to their usual good standard.

6/10 Okay

WIJAYARATNE

Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Perfect for backpackers
We stayed 4 nights.Good for the price. Room very smelly. Advertised as daily room service( turndown service) but didn't do any thing . Food in the bar terrible , Alcohol price ok. Free bus service to Airport pickup , morning drop off to pier, drop off to city and pick is good. Pool clean and good. Free breakfast only toast bread and butter and jam.

6/10 Okay

Alfredo

comfortable stay for the price

2/10 Terrible

Verified traveller

Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Low grade backpackers
Room and description was nothing like the site said showing photos. Share bathroom had a putrid smell literally choking..room had no bathroom as i paid for literally a double bed in a room and air con was controlled by front counter and is turned off at 10pm. i explained this to staff within minutes of checking in and requested my $70 back as it was NOTHING like i paid for and i told them immediatly and showed them the add. I just required 2 single beds and a bathroom.. was told no refunds was basically told too bad but a manager would call me to discuss it. Never rang of course. One staff member was lovely and did her best to help but by then we were over it. We left and paid the same money for another motel room with kitchenette and bathroom.. NOMADS are dodgy as!!!!

4/10 Poor

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness
Disliked: Staff & service, room comfort

6/10 Okay

Danielle & Lidi, London

Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Room comfort
Good shuttle service into town!
Dylan at the travel desk was super helpful and chill, it was raining for our 3 day stay and he helped us not only book the next part of our trip but find something cool to do (Kuranda sky and railway) The room itself, well it's a hostel so probably do go if you expect Hilton service, but it's got a good vibe and it's pretty clean. The sheets were a bit damp for our first night and the room was freezing cold (only due to the weather at the time) Overall I'd stay again if travelling Oz

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Liked: Staff & service
Staff at the front desk were really helpful, the only problem I had was trying to lug 2 heavy suitcases up all the stairs, but that is no fault of the staff.

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Comfortable
After being out bush for 2 weeks, and not having stayed at a backpacker’s for a few years, I remember why they’re so appealing after my stay. Staff were friendly and accomodating; room was reasonably clean and comfortable and the price was right.

4/10 Poor

esco

Disliked: Staff & service
some staff were rude
overall it was okay. i had difficulty getting to the hostel. i was lied to that i would get a complimentary shuttle drop off but it was hard redeeming it. also some of the staff members were very rude and abrasive. they did not serve customers in the order of the queue and showed preferential treatment to certain people instead of being courteous to everyone. they were always high pressure sales tactics to sell packages instead of letting customers choose

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Comfortable
Good facility that was comfortable. It was clean and staff were amazing

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Reasonable with all facilities and friendly staff
Courtesy bus in and out to night market .Bit noisy when bus returned later in night with party animals returning but ok and close to everything

6/10 Okay

Paul, Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada

A nice Hostile!
A great low budget hostile stay! Great atmosphere, great amenities overall.

8/10 Good

Jane

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
we had a good experience at Nomads
The staff picked up us from the airport at middle night. Very good service :)

8/10 Good

Robert

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities

6/10 Okay

Robert, Melbourne AU

Disliked: Room comfort
Cheap rates, nice facilities
Excellent cost to stay 2 nights. Lots of international visitors staying as guests. Good central kitchen, great pool, limited shared spaces.

2/10 Terrible

Verified traveller

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
air con issues and clueless backpacker 'staff'
Cheap, but same priced hostels closer to the centre. 40 minute brisk walk from esplanade. First room we stayed in (King) the air con was REALLY loud. Moved to a double, broken air con and fridge. Agreed to move us but no fan provided so hot night. This was on other side of hostel above the social area, people shouting and loud music until midnight. I was up at 6am for a job interview so not happy. The next day, a man bangs on the door saying we should of checked out by 10am and was very rude. Turns out the changes hadn't been noted on the system and had to clear this up. 4 times our door was opened after one knock for 'room service' (everyday until about 1pm expect your door to be suddenly opened by multiple staff with no clue who's in what room, if its been cleaned or what room number they are after) they do free toast and coffee in the morning so thats nice, and $3 meal in the evening, nothing special but its food. The kitchen is DISGUSTING. I watched a guy making meatballs and he got raw meat everywhere and didn't clean up his mess. The sink is streaked with food and you are expected to clean your dishes with what may have been a sponge in a previous life.Staff consist of uncaring, clueless backpackers. One couldn't even speak English so I think her job at the reception desk was to blink at you and go find someone else. We didn't expect much, it is a hostel after all, but its been a lot of faff for what it is and wouldn't recommend.

4/10 Poor

Verified traveller

Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Cleanliness

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great Hostel choice
For a hostel, this accomidation was very clean, comfortable, and had very friendly staff.

6/10 Okay

Detlev, Central Coast

Liked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Disliked: Cleanliness
Basic Okay Hotel
Okay hotel not close to crocodile, stinger, shark beach, but close to seaside esplanade walkway. Free shuttle bus provided to and from centre of Cairns and from airport but not to airport, which appears strange. Quite laid back atmosphere.

8/10 Good

PHAM Y.

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
Good value for money
I have arrived earlier in the morning )9 am, normally the hostel ask to check in at 1pm but they are very helful to get me check in while i was too tired after the long flight. I will recommend to my friends. Phi Yen

2/10 Terrible

Verified traveller

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
NOT AS ADVERTISED..... NOT RECOMMENDED AT ALL.....
Booked the room with TV, cable channels in room and daily housekeeping as advertised on hotels.com. Per hotels.com, was supposed to be billed in AUD at motel. At check-in, was charged in USD, which resulted In extra $30. in their pocket due to a much higher currency exchange rate !! There was NO TV, NO cable Channels & NO daily cleaning in room either for entire stay. Garbage cans weren't emptied during A WHOLE WEEK stay. Beds were NEVER MADE !! -(took several pictures)- VERY Loud and VERY noisy young people at 3:00 am for several nights. Couldn't get much sleep either. Very worn down, ripped, peeled and cracked living room sofas, dirty kitchen with flies. Despite several complaints, Manager refused to rectify.... total RIP OFF ... Quite disgusted with overall stay, attitudes, over charge and false advertising. WILL NEVER RETURN EVEN IF THE ROOM IS FOR FREE. MY MOST HORRIBLE TERRIBLE MOTEL EXPERIENCE EVER! MY WORST STAY!

8/10 Good

Quang, Australia - QLD - Townsville

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service

10/10 Excellent

John, Australia - QLD - Brisbane

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Staff & service
Cairns visit
fun and easy to get around...... :)

8/10 Good

Daniel, Germany

Nice resort-like accommodation for budget and back
Nice resort-like accommodation for budget and backpacker travellers. Rooms are very basic (pretty much a bed, power socket and mirror) but affordable bar and restaurant on side. Remote location is made up for via shuttle bus and free parking.

8/10 Good

Elaine, Australia - QLD - Cairns

Liked: Property conditions & facilities
Disliked: Staff & service
Facilities: Modern; Value: Acceptable price; Service: Below average; Cleanliness: Neat;

10/10 Excellent

Pierre

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

6/10 Okay

simo, sydney

Disliked: Property conditions & facilities, room comfort
meh!
not the best but not the worst I've stay in. Better go somewhere near the esplanade