Hostel Profile – Adventure Queenstown
Hostel Profile – Adventure Queenstown
Adventure Queenstown opened it’s doors in 2011 to one of the most competitive hostel markets in the world, the adventure capital of New Zealand: Queenstown. Since that time, the hostel has won “Best Hostel” in Australia and New Zealand in 2011, 2013, 2014 & 2015, and according to Hostelworld.com for the last 3 years has been one of the top 5 small hostels in the world – A massive achievement that is owed to the owner and operator, Brett Duncan. A native Australian working in London, Brett decided to drop his successful engineering career and open his dream hostel. Having visited over 50 countries and more than 100 hostels, Brett has a serious passion for travel and knows what works in a hostel and even more importantly, what doesn’t.
Here are 10 of the reasons this hostel is a must-stay when in Queenstown:
1. The Deck – The hostel features a large wraparound deck on both floors that’s accessible from the rooms and common areas. The wood deck is complete with lounge chairs, a large BBQ, picnic tables, coffee tables, patio umbrellas, clothes lines, and everything else you think a deck should and could have. Also, sunsets on the deck are legendary!
2. WiFi – Free WiFi is available throughout the hostel to all guests. Oh yeah, it’s fiberoptic too! In case you don’t have a portable device with you, there are two computers and Ipads available.
3. The Television – Despite having a fully functional 46″ flat screen television in the lounge area, Brett felt he needed more of a “wow factor”. So he bought a 60″. Watching Lord of the Rings on this bad boy is epic to say the least.
4. Extras –
- Technology starved with no phone or laptop of your own? Or maybe you feel like checking emails in the sunshine on the deck? Grab an Ipad. Yes, you read that right, Adventure Queenstown offers Ipads to use during your stay. Check and mate.
- Want to try skiing or snowboarding for the first time but don’t want to spend lots of money on high end rentals just to see if you’ll like it? Maybe you left your gloves on the mountain yesterday and don’t want to buy a brand new pair for your last day on the slopes? Grab ski and snowboard gear from the hostel! Every winter, one of the hostel storage rooms gets filled with everything guests might need…are you starting to sense a theme?
- Bikes can be borrowed all year
- 2 USB charging sockets at every bed
- Towels, extra blankets, pillows, hair dryers, coffee, tea, and just about everything else you can think of is available and free. The hostel policy even states: “Don’t charge extra – include as much as possible in the room price.” We are all thankful for that.
5. The Kitchen – Brett loves to cook and wanted the kitchen to be the best stocked and most accessible kitchen you’ll ever come across at a hostel. The kitchen is laid out with three major stations. Each station has 4 or 6 range tops, convection oven, and every pot and pan you can think of. Did I mention five refrigerators, a freezer, boxes for your dry goods, a sandwich press, rice cooker, slow cooker, waffle iron, bread-maker, microwave, and enormous outdoor gas grill? I think you get the gist.
6. Dinners – Another reason for having an epic kitchen is that Brett makes dinner for anyone interested twice a week. The cost is only to cover the price of the food and is generally no more than eight dollars. The dinners are often had by the entire hostel and it’s the perfect way to make new friends. The dinners range from a proper English Roast to homemade pizza, and everything in-between.
7. Location – The hostel sits above a pedestrian only shopping street and is opposite a liquor store, grocery store, and bank. The post office is just down the road, and you can be lakeside in less than a minute. I’d say “central,” but the location is even better than that.
8. Staff – Brett only hires a select few and almost always waits to do that until the hopeful employees have stayed at the hostel for a few days to see how they interact with fellow guests and the other staff. Long story short, he’s picky, and it shows. The staff also live at the hostel, and take great pride to ensure that they are living and working at the best hostel in the country.
9. Brett – The man lives and breathes travel. Start talking to him about a country you just visited or a trip you’re planning and then just try to get him to stop engaging you about it. He loves chatting with guests about their plans, their trip, where they’ve been, and what they loved so far. He’ll do anything for his guests and his ability to remember the names and stories of everyone that comes through the hostel door is uncanny.
10. Bathrooms – The showers, sinks and toilets were imported from Italy. Need I say more?
If you want to stay at Adventure Queenstown, we suggest you book ahead. You don’t want to miss out on one of the best hostels in the world. Check them out at www.aqhostel.co.nz.