We stayed here for 1 night and there were some rough looking characters staying there. Staff told us that one guy has been living there for 4 months. He looked like he just got out of jail. We think he was following us because he kept showing up suddenly whenever we went to use the bathroom or when we went into the kitchen. We couldn't stand using the kitchen. The staff was not honest with us. They should have told us these kind of people were living there. Hostelling International has certain standards and people are not supposed to be living there, especially people that make others feel unsafe. They were happy to take our money though. Hostel was otherwise clean but cold. They could have turned up the heat. The impression we first got of it is that is a rooming house for derelicts. We left with that impression too.

I stayed at this hostel for one night while travelling with my husband and 4 year old daughter. They made us feel very welcome. When we mad our reservation they told us that the family room was already booked but that the 3 of us could have a room designed for 4 people to ourselves. The room was perfect.

And though we were the only family (with young children) that we saw we were made to feel very welcome. There was a wide variety of travelers: of all ages, singles, couples, local and international travelers.

This is a renovated heritage home. Which means (similiar to other hostels which are renovated historic buildings) that all the rooms are different and can vary greatly in shape and design. It looked to me as all the "bunkrooms" had 2 bunks in them.

The bedrooms and common areas were clean. Lots of information about local attractions were available. I liked the location - it was walking distance to the beach but in a quiet are of penticton. The hostel itself was very quiet at night. Penticton is hot in the summer and though we were told there was air conditioning it didn't seem to kick on until about 3am.

There is limited free parking available. But we lucked out as the meter parking out front wasn't in effect during the evening nor on Sundays and were staying on a Saturday night.

I was in a bad mood when I arrived here, staying in kelowna and kamloops just before for a few nights, I was overloaded and glad for a break, the check in was simple and easy to find my way around after a welcome from the staff and orientation.
Plus the staff were very helpful, arranging my orientation and helping to check in for my vancouver stay later,,
It was a very good price considering the price of some other HI in Canada..


Unique Qualities: FREE internet station(with donations)
Unique staff members
Great nights out at the hockey matches of the penticton vee's..
Bike hire
Nice tv room underneath and quiet nights on occasion,

This hostel is not on the main drag but about 2-3 mins from - this is ideal because there is very little street noise. Towels and bedding were included which is the same as many HI hostels (most but not all provide this).

We have a private room which has a comfy enough mattress with bunk over it. The only HI bed we've liked more was the one at Banff - but this hostel is our favourite of all. Even if you were to stay in one of the share rooms, they are not big dorm rooms and it wouldn't be a big issue I don't think, ie 2 bunks in the rooms I've peeked into which would be good for families too. The women's bathroom is great and very private although there's only 1 upstairs - but there is another downstairs so its not an issue.

There is a washing machine & dryer which is $1.25 which is fantastic. The facilities of dining area/lounge/kitchen are really lovely with natural light. There's lots of bench and fridge space in the kitchen. The staff here are really lovely and fun to have chats with.

There are only 3 carparks out the back so you might need to park on the street - in which case you'll need to put money in the parking machine every 2 hours during business hours m-f. it's a good motivation to get up and go early.

This region is not exactly your party-hard type area so we were pleased to see the people staying here are "mature" (not meaning many are much older than us in our 30's) but there is a much broader range of people here and we all respect a good nights sleep!

It's worth having a car in Penticton because you can drive to all the wineries. There are some great walks here too and the area is hilly so you'll have no probs getting your heart rate up! Also, go to CK's Grill on the foreshore (in the "Mediterranean" building up from the Mexican place) as it's an inexpensive but delicious feed with the best views - and the SANGRIA is to die for!!!!! $11 a half litre can't be beat! Mondays in Penticton at the Pasta House there is $6 pasta, a great feed.