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The Old Countryhouse Reviews

437 Gloucester Street, Christchurch, New Zealand

Reviews & Ratings Explained

81%Overall Rating

From 34 ratings
  • 86%Character
  • 85%Security
  • 67%Location
  • 77%Staff
  • 80%Atmosphere
  • 89%Cleanliness

The following reviews were submitted by customers who booked in the last 6 months.

The reviews and ratings in the rating box are based on all-time feedback and are the opinions of the customers who submitted them and do not express the opinions of Hostelworld.com. This way, you get an up to the minute opinion of just how good a hostel really is. Read our review guidelines »

We now classify our reviewers based on how well travelled they are.

  • Novice Nomad: 1-10 Reviews Added
  • Avid Traveller: 10-20 Reviews Added
  • Globetrotter : 20+ Reviews Added
  • Show Translated Reviews In A Specific Language
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87%

Great Hostel with friendly stall and very clean rooms and kitchens. Enjoyed my stay here.

  • Novice Nomad
  • 08 Apr 2013
  • Anonymous
  • Ireland
  • Male, 25-30
  • (1 review)


60%

We didn't stay at this hostel as they overbooked and moved us to another hostel which was probably a lot worse than this one!

  • Globetrotter
  • 04 Apr 2013
  • Anonymous
  • England
  • Couple, 18-24
  • (23 reviews)


90%

A great hostel, quiet but still has a nice vibe .

  • Novice Nomad
  • 13 Mar 2013
  • Anonymous
  • Scotland
  • Female, 25-30
  • (1 review)


83%

Very comfortable beds kitchen facilities excellent and very clean

  • Novice Nomad
  • 10 Mar 2013
  • Anonymous
  • Ireland
  • Male, 25-30
  • (1 review)


63%

Very unhelpful staff. Expensive WiFi.

  • Avid Traveller
  • 07 Mar 2013
  • Anonymous
  • Brazil
  • Male, 18-24
  • (12 reviews)


87%

Good and kind service.Easy to find it and good location to walk around.

  • Globetrotter
  • 06 Mar 2013
  • KTCROC
  • China
  • Male, 31-40
  • (21 reviews)


97%

Spa was very nice

  • Globetrotter
  • 02 Mar 2013
  • Anonymous
  • Netherlands
  • Male, 18-24
  • (25 reviews)


70%

The Staff weren't too helpful but other than that the place was nice

  • Novice Nomad
  • 26 Feb 2013
  • Anonymous
  • Australia
  • All Female Group, 18-24
  • (6 reviews)


90%

This hostel is really good and on walking distance of the 'former' city centre. The hostel is made up of several cabins with all their own facilities (kitchen, bathroom and toilets) so never to crowdy. The staff is really helpful and friendly. Only minus were the shortage of energy points in the dorms, but the hostel manager stated they were working on that issue :-)..

  • Avid Traveller
  • 25 Feb 2013
  • Anonymous
  • Netherlands
  • Mixed Group, 31-40
  • (10 reviews)

Owner Comment (Show)
Hi Pascal, Thank you for taking the time to review your stay with us. We are glad you enjoyed your time here at the hostel and that you appreciated the facilities and atmosphere we created for our guests. Over recent times we found that travelers increasingly travel with more electronic gadgets that need re-charging and (as you mentioned) we are in fact planning to install more power points into all of our dorms, so that more people can recharge in their rooms rather than using one of the many power points in the communal areas. Thank you for bringing our attention to this important detail.

77%

The place is clean and the kitchen is nice, but its far out of town and expensive for a hostel dorm. You get 50MB of free wifi each day, but you have to ask the desk to reset the modem every hour.

Owner Comment (Show)
Dear David, Great to hear that you did enjoy your stay with us. Thank you for bringing the modem reset to our attention. We have just spent $1000 on a booster antenna for our WiFi and going by yours (and others) feedback, there seems to be still a problem with connectivity. Travelling often ourselves, we do appreciate the importance of being able to connect regularly and the annoyance when this is not possible easily. We are onto investigating this further and should have this issue resolved shortly. We are sorry that you found it too far to walk to town. We have always regarded our location as pretty handy with the supermarkets, butcher, subway and other take away shops just across the road from us. Additionally, there are two great cafes, two great pubs and various restaurants within a 10 to 15 minute walk. We have always enjoyed the 20 minute walk into the city centre or 25 minutes to the Botanical Garden but there is always the option to take the bus from the bus stop across the road.

97%

Everything was available that every backpacker needs.....

  • Novice Nomad
  • 22 Feb 2013
  • Anonymous
  • England
  • Male, 41+
  • (3 reviews)

Owner Comment (Show)
Dear Philip, Thank you for your review on your recent stay in our hostel. We take pride in checking regularly our current hostel facilities and services and always have an open ear for suggestions to improve on we already offer to our guests. We are grateful to hear that you noticed and appreciated our efforts to provide a great hostel for today's travelers. Thank You.

87%

Home style, clean hostel. Excellent dorm beds.

  • Novice Nomad
  • 06 Feb 2013
  • Anonymous
  • Finland
  • Male, 31-40
  • (5 reviews)


100%

Top notch hostel! Squeaky clean, excellent facilities. Our en suite room was perfect and the staff couldn't do more to help. Probably the best hostel we have stayed in on our travels!

  • Avid Traveller
  • 19 Jan 2013
  • Anonymous
  • England
  • Couple, 41+
  • (20 reviews)


63%

Thought the hostel was average. Receptionist from Texas was nice, but the other girl seemed stand offish and unfriendly. The hostel was nice, but Christchurch as a city has some major work ahead of it. I would not recommend going here until not only the buildings, but the residents morale is repaired.

  • Novice Nomad
  • 12 Jan 2013
  • Anonymous
  • Canada
  • Male, 18-24
  • (3 reviews)


73%

I tought it was a goto hostel, but I missed lockers in the room to lock up en storage safely your personal and valuable things like wallet, laptops, pasports etc.

  • Novice Nomad
  • 11 Jan 2013
  • Anonymous
  • Netherlands
  • Female, 18-24
  • (1 review)


87%

Overall a very good hostel. The staff were friendly and helpful. I loved the fact that there was a spa and sauna! :) The property was well looked after - nicely renovated and had a homely feel. Plenty of communal space which made it easy to get to know fellow backpackers.

  • Novice Nomad
  • 05 Jan 2013
  • Anonymous
  • New Zealand
  • Female, 18-24
  • (4 reviews)


67%

Nice, surprisingly big hostel with great facilities built between the various buildings. Kitchens were really well kept and dorms comfy.


70%

Overrated. $35 for a 7 bed dorm in a hostel that is VERY far from anything of note - they need to review pricing policy. Wifi was awful and very expensive. **NO PLUGS in a 7 person dorm and all of the top bunks had short mattresses (suitable for people no more than 170cm tall)** By NZ standards this place is for showers and kitchen etc BUT it's way overpriced. They have a spa and sauna sure, but their gimics so long as your dorm room has no plugs and short beds. Won't return here, ever.

  • Globetrotter
  • 02 Jan 2013
  • Anonymous
  • Ireland
  • Male, 25-30
  • (22 reviews)

Owner Comment (Show)
Hello Mr Murphy. Thank you for taking the time to review the Old Countryhouse . Now having read your rather harsh review, I would like to point out that you appear to have somewhat over exaggerated on a few points. 1. The WiFi is run by a third party company throughout New Zealand and I do believe, having looked at your bill that my staff provided you with free WiFi vouchers for your stay, yet you claim it was expensive? 2. All our mattresses are hotel standard length and not the specially made length that you claim. 3. We are still only 1500meters from the CBD. 4. Since the Earthquake 2 years ago insurance for hostels in Christchurch has gone up between thirty to two hundred thousand dollars per year for less cover, which unfortunately means backpackers have to pay slightly more for their beds going into the future while staying in Christchurch. As for plugs in your room, I would agree, that in this modern day of most people traveling with electronic gadgets, we could do with some extra power points in the dorm for our guests and are looking into it. We appreciate you pointing this out. Hope you have a great trip around NZ Kind regards Andrew

80%

Stayed one night before heading north. There's plenty of spaces to sit indoors and out. Too few toilets and showers.

  • Globetrotter
  • 28 Nov 2012
  • Anonymous
  • Wales
  • Female, 41+
  • (30 reviews)

Owner Comment (Show)
Hi I just wanted to respond to your comment about too few toilets and showers as we have there are 13 toilets and 12 showers for our guests to use around the property.



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