Payments made by partners impact the order of prices displayed. Room types may vary.
The listings of booking offers for each property take into account the compensation paid to us by our partners. Prices shown may be for varying room types. Prices displayed are the lowest available, corresponding to the least expensive room type available, as provided from our partners as of the time of the user’s search.
Reflects recent average nightly prices reported by our partners, and may not include estimated taxes or fees. Price at checkout may differ.
Cheaper
Average
Higher
About
4.0
#6 of 20 hostels in Queenstown
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Value
Nomads Queenstown Backpackers is located in the heart of Queenstown, New Zealands popular South Island holiday city. Designed with all budget travelers in mind this purpose built backpackers hostel has a variety of room types from small and large dorms with or without ensuite to private ensuite rooms with wide screen Sky TV.All dorm rooms at Nomads Queenstown Backpackers have storage lockers and individual bedside reading lights and many of the rooms have balconies with views of Queenstowns lake or mountains
Star ratings are intended to indicate the general level of features, amenities, and services to expect. This property is classified according to Qualmark.
HOTEL STYLE
Marina View
Centrally Located
Languages Spoken
English
Location
5-11 Church Street, Queenstown 9300 New Zealand
Nomads Queenstown Hostel
1,226 reviews
Getting there
Great for walkers
Places to stay are graded on a 0-100 scale. The higher the grade, the easier it is for travellers to find restaurants and things to do within walking distance.
Before posting, each Tripadvisor review goes through an automated tracking system, which collects information, answering the following questions: how, what, where and when. If the system detects something that potentially contradicts our community guidelines, the review is not published.
When the system detects a problem, a review may be automatically rejected, sent to the reviewer for validation, or manually reviewed by our team of content specialists, who work 24/7 to maintain the quality of the reviews on our site.
Our team checks each review posted on the site disputed by our community as not meeting our community guidelines.
We had been looking for a place to stay during the queenstown leg of our trip and came upon Nomads. We were already impressed by its central location and reputable brand and found the wider backpackers to be excellent. We stayed in a king room and found all facilities to be excellent with minimal noise during the night. The common areas supplied all equipment needed and had a friendly atmosphere.
A particular highlight of our stay was the information kiosk in the lobby, which helped us book up our events. In particular, Ewan was extremely helpful and did an excellent job directing us to the best spots in town.
Well be back for sure!
Read more
Date of stay: February 2020Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
A couple of nights in Queenstown prior to doing the Otago Rail Trail. At the time of booking our trip i couldn't find a hotel room costing less than $250 a night so we settled for Nomads. At nearly $130 a night i thought how bad can it be? Firstly the good. The service was great and the young staff full of life and fun. My wife and i arrived at the same time as a Kiwi Bus so were able to watch the entertainment as they were checked in and then listen to the sales patter for the various trips Nomads could offer. All good fun. Then the bad...our room. It was a shocker. No natural light at all i.e. no windows.The bed, an iron bunk bed with the bottom being a double. Sheets that didn't fit the thin mattress so i had to use the sheets from the top single to supplement our double. The TV on which we could only get 3 obscure channels not that i was keen to spend much time in our claustrophobic room. We ate in the communal kitchen-reasonable facilities and we enjoyed some interesting conversations with the backpackers. However, no workable tin openers-there were 3 all broken.We were reduced to opening cans with sharp knives! I reported this to reception as i was concerned about the dangers involved but there seemed not to be too much concern. I realise that this was a backpackers and not the Ritz-however, for $130 a night i do expect something far better.
Read more
Date of stay: March 2020
Value
Location
Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Approachable, helpful staff that will go out of their way to assist with anything. The location is amazing, making all of Queenstown accessible by foot, great value for money on our room (deluxe Queen private room).
We appreciated that it is a dry hostel which attracts sociable yet not messy guests.
Read more
Date of stay: September 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Nomads is located right in town less than 100M from the lake and about 200 metres from the airport bus stop (bus with a Q bus card is only $2.00 although at time of writing bus were free). Our double room with bathroom was compact but came with TV, a balcony (lake view) tea and coffee making facilities. The reception is managed 24/7 and can help with tours and activities.
Read more
Date of stay: July 2020Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
I booked a private room here for my friend and I. It looked nice from the photos so we booked two nights non refundable. We got to our room which resembled a jail cell. One bunk bed in a tiny box with no windows and a light that flickered. It was tho most depressing bedroom I’d ever seen, and my friend who is claustrophobic could not stay there. When we spoke to the front desk about possibly moving to another room, it was impossible because they were booked and they couldn’t offer even a partial refund. I understood it was my fault for booking something not refundable, but Jack at the front desk proceeded to show me the google definition for “internal room” as if that justified a jail cell with no windows and implying I didn’t understand English. We had to book another place and now have lost $300- this jail cell was not cheap! Save yourself the tears and do not book!
Read more
Date of stay: February 2020Trip type: Travelled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from EmerC64, Public Relations Manager at Nomads Queenstown Hostel
Responded 17 Feb 2020
Hello and thanks for taking the time to leave a review. We are so sorry that you had problems with the room. There are two different types of private rooms available to book from and unfortunately we cannot refund you if you chose the non refundable option. On the day you booked, we were fully booked however you were offered a free upgrade for the day after which you refused. It did clearly state that it was an internal room you were booking for. We will always try to get you into a room you prefer however if we had no availability, unfortunately we couldn't. Safe onward travels.
Read more
Report response as inappropriate
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
We stayed for one night in a large dorm. There were small lockers for valuables and a balcony with seating which was nice. The hostel offers free breakfast of toast which is handy and there is a large seating area near the kitchen. The shared showers and toilets were fine and lots of cubicles. Reception is 24/7 which is helpful and you can also leave bags in a baggage room. My only complaint was that when we returned for our bags in the afternoon I physically had to walk/climb over a huge mound of bags which were in the walkway as the baggage room is too small for the size of hostel.
Read more
Date of stay: February 2020Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
I felt so comfortable at Nomad hostel. It has a great location right by the lake, clean bathrooms and showers on each floor, and helpful employees (shout-out Eoin and Mary Anne) that helped us plan our days and the rest of our journey in New Zealand. You can’t get much better than this :)
Read more
Date of stay: February 2020Trip type: Travelled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from EmerC64, Public Relations Manager at Nomads Queenstown Hostel
Responded 17 Feb 2020
Hello Ansowi, thanks for leaving us a great review. We are so glad the Eoin and Marianne helped you out! Enjoy the rest of your travels!
Read more
Report response as inappropriate
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Great location, this facility is suitable for those not fussy about where they stay. I did not enjoy it. I think I was expecting more and didn’t do enough research. I imagined there was the backpackers part and also a motel part of this facility.
The room is what it is and it just wasn’t for me. Below is my experience of the facility. The room was dirty and very basic with no breakfast capability in room. No bowls, spoons etc if there were these items in the building somewhere to use, I was not advised of this.
The Air con can not be controlled from the bedroom and you need to go down three floors to reception to ask them to set it to the temperature you want. You need to do this every time. The pillows are stained yellow and I was only given one pillowcase for two pillows. I’m not sure what was expected with the other. The shower door opens in front of the faucet making it difficult to switch on without getting wet.
There was cobwebs and dust on vents and aircon.
The balcony is very small but looks out over the beautiful lake and mountains. The balcony was shared with the neighbouring room.
The carpet had something spilt on it which had not been cleaned. It wasn’t stained, it was hard and dried.
The beds were comfortable enough and the sheets were crisp and white.
Overall I wouldn’t stay here again as I prefer my hotels a lot nicer and more resourced but for a young adult looking for somewhere to sleep for a party weekend/backpacker I’d say it’s more than suitable.
Read more
Date of stay: March 2023Trip type: Travelled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Aimee Jeffrey, Guest Services / Front Office at Nomads Queenstown Hostel
Responded 20 Mar 2023
Kia ora Candy, Thank you for your review. We appreciate your feedback. We do our best to be as transparent and detailed as possible in all our listings so our guests know what to expect. Although we are a backpacker hostel we do our best to cater for our older guests in our private rooms as well and have our third floor specifically for only private rooms while our dorm accommodation is located on the two floors below. We do not advertise our rooms to have cooking facilities however we do offer coffee and tea along with a small fridge. We have a communal kitchen located on our first floor which is equipped with crockery, cutlery and cooking devices. We have signage to let our guests know where to find this area. Our air con units can be controlled via the Goki app or we do have a speedy elevator to our 24 hour reception from the third floor. Today myself and our maintenance manager checked the vent and air conditioning unit in the room you stayed in to ensure it is clean and in good working order and we have reminded our commercial housekeeping team to check these daily too as well as our linen. The shower door opens to the outside of the shower, I am unsure how this blocks the tap however they are very straight forward to turn on and adjust to the perfect temperature :) Thanks again for your feedback and we wish you the very best for your future travels.
Read more
Report response as inappropriate
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
My wife & I booked a room online via booking.com & our credit card had been debited prior to our arrival. We checked in but a day later discovered we had been charged again, leaving us only with $80 to spend between us for the remainder of our trip. We immediately went to reception & requested the money refunded. They advised they couldn’t reverse/refund the transaction & advised that it was the banks fault. As I work for a bank, this didn’t sound correct but I contacted ASB whom confirmed that the transaction can only be processed by the hostel & couldn’t be stopped. As it was the weekend, the bank was also unable to provide a short term overdraft or loan till Monday. The bank contacted the hostel to inform them that they needed to sort it out & help us. The hostel tried to credit our card with $500 but this failed cause it would not be available till Monday. We were ultimately forced to cancel our plans for sightseeing & doing other activities in Queenstown. The only sightseeing we did was walking the streets like homeless people. We were reduced to eating 2 minute noodles & instant cup-a-soups till we could get to the airport on Monday & get out of this hell hole. Luckily, we had already paid for our flights home.
This is the worst holiday we have ever had, through no fault of our own. They should of at least had some cash on hand to offer, to tide us over the weekend. The reception staff & on- duty manager are not entirely to blame but I suspect poor training or no training in how to deal with these situations. They didn’t even offer us any compensation. The duty manager (Jack) had also confirmed this had happened previously but are obviously still making the same mistakes.
My advise is to never ever stay at this hostel or any Nomads hostel.
Read more
Date of stay: August 2022
Rooms
Location
Service
Room Tip:Don’t ever stay here
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Mike Brain, General Manager at Nomads Queenstown Hostel
Responded 21 Aug 2022
Kia Ora, Thank you for taking the time to provide such valuable feedback. I'm so sorry this happened during your visit and completely understand your frustrations, I appreciate how this would have ruined your holiday. However, as advised during your stay, the double charge fault ultimately lies with your bank. When processing a payment we send one request to the bank in order to obtain the funds, unfortunately on this occasion your bank not only processed the payment but put an additional hold in place, you would have seen this on your bank statement as "pending". The duty manager on shift did everything within their power to assist you, we provided letters to the bank, spoke with the representative over the phone and attempted a refund to return some of the funds to your account, during which time you became abusive at the front desk. We have had a situation like this happen before, as Jack confirmed, the same bank admitted they were at fault and removed the hold within the hour, I'm sorry the representative you spoke with at the bank was unable to assist you, I suspect poor training. We processes multiple payments every day without a problem, so suspect this is a processing issue on your banks side, as mentioned the same bank has previously admitted fault. Again, I extend my sympathies and hope your next holiday goes without a hitch.
Read more
Report response as inappropriate
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
We arrived around 6pm and didn’t realize that you didn’t have room keys, so had to download the Goki app. Got up to our room and there was no towels and tv wasn’t working. Asked at reception about both and was told that they would have to put some more in the dryer and they sent someone up to look at the tv but he had no idea. We weren’t too bothered as we had a big day traveling so just wanted to sleep but had to wait for the towels to be done. Staff were great and friendly but it was just a bit disappointing. Try not to use the basement car parking as it is expensive!! $58 from 6pm til 8.30am
Read more
Date of stay: August 2020Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Emer Collins, General Manager at Nomads Queenstown Hostel
Responded 1 Sept 2020
Thanks for taking the time to leave a review. We are so sorry that these things did let you down with the stay. We had an issue with a delivery when you were here which is why we had to wash them ourselves. We are super sorry about this but the issue has now been resolved. The feed back is essential in improving so we are glad you let us know. The car park is not part of the hostel so we are sorry you were unaware about this. Our reception staff are always able to locate you to the nearest free parking, which is only a 5 to 10 minute walk from the busy town center. Safe onward travels and we hope to have you back again in the future.
Read more
Report response as inappropriate
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
There is a free public parking street nearby, it is about 200-300 meters away, but there is no need for a car in Queenstown, it can be all done by walking.
There are more places to choose from in the Queenstown area.
PRICE RANGE
$89 - $188 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
ALSO KNOWN AS
nomads queenstown backpackers hotel queenstown
LOCATION
New ZealandSouth IslandOtago RegionQueenstown
NUMBER OF ROOMS
80
Prices are provided by our partners for one room, with variable occupancy rules as provided by the property, and reflect total costs of the stay, including all taxes and fees known to our partners. Please see our partners for more details.
Is This Your Tripadvisor Listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
