Jailhouse Accommodation Christchurch

The most uncomfortable mattress I’ve ever slept on in a hostel. You could feel the metal springs through it and it aggravated an old injury. When I spoke to staff about this they didn’t offer me any options. They said they were fully booked and that’s why I couldn’t move to a different bed, but it turned out that was a lie as the bed above mine stayed empty all night long. Otherwise, the hostel was adequate but there was no social vibe and the free parking was very limited. Would not r...

Staff is grumpy, charge for everything, place is indeed very far from downtown. The place is death, facilities in questionable condition

if you want to know what a prision must be like, then book a room here. I would not recommend this place. the theme of the place (ie a jail houhouse) is poorly implemented...

no staff when I came in. toilets and showers were dirty as well. had to ask around as no staff were ever available. not good location either. will not be back

The hostel is boring needs updating. When the staff clean the rooms in the morning they tell you to get off the bed so that they can clean behind them. I am paying to sleep not getting woken up at 9 in the morning. Not coming back

So the gimmick is cool, the kitchen was solid, and the hostel is clean and secure. The amenities are very bare-bones - one outlet per bed, hot water and WiFi were both only like 80% there. The atmosphere was dead - the staff was having a great time with each other, but otherwise it was completely silent. Main complaint - the place was COLD!! It’s a prison, I get it, but everyone was bundled up the whole time, PLUS it’s winter so basically constant rain outdoors and a moderate chill indoors. ...

The reception hours were poor, even during the open times there was often not someone on reception. Kitchen was small and 2 out of the 4 hobs were poor and did not get hot enough. Difficult to meet people and not a social hostel.

Dirty bathroom downstairs … there is only one toilet and shower combo on first floor with 14 rooms which meant if someone is showering you have to use toilets upstairs which are super small. Make sure you get email with room info as staff is never onsite. My room and sheets were clean. Kitchen was also not super clean. I would not stay again. Jailhouse is a 20 minute walk from train station and 40 minute walk to downtown . Stay at other hostel closer to downtown if you fly in.

The bathrooms were the worst I’ve seen in the many hostels I’ve stayed at recently. The sink faucets are so close to the edge of the sink you have to jam your hands in to wash them. They have the annoying rotating towel to dry your hands. Hope that you don’t have the misfortune of the urinals splashing water all over you when they self flush while you’re peeing. The staff are not particularly friendly and don’t really seem to want to interact with guests, when they’re actually at the...

Great automatic email check in system for late arrivals. However, as a result it seemed the staff don't see the need to acknowledge you. Pool table available (closes strictly at 9pm even on NYE). Considering the theme of the prison is quite fun it didn't feel echoed in the staff who seemed unenthusastic and mostly there as a point between there own travels.

Definitely worth a stay while in Christchurch. Really fun how they dressed up the old jail and included information about the history of the jail here. It's not super close to downtown, so you have to be prepared for a bit of a walk to most sights, but it's through the lovely giant park here so it's not a hardship! Quieter atmosphere, good for those who like a peaceful hostel. Would definitely recommend if you're staying in Christchurch and want something fun.

Auberge de jeunesse au locaux atypiques et "séduisants" (il s'agit en effet d'une ancienne prison et quelques cellules ont été laissées telles qu'elles). L'ambiance y est cordiale, les communs pas forcément prompts à l'échange mais agréables. Les chambres sont convenables. Il manque peut-être un vitrage convenable pour éviter d'avoir l'impression de dormir à l'extérieur (bruits du parc contigu). Un peu excentré mais offrant des places de parking gratuites. Un bon rapport qualité-pr...

Wonderful Accommodatio as well as staff.

Nice stay here. Hostel was a bit quirky and the layout was good. One minor nuisance was that my bed didn't have a power outlet near it. Overall good stay

Die Unterkunft war cool und teils noch authentisch als altes Gefängnis gehalten.

Would not recommend, check in process problematic if you don’t have cell service, absolutely no atmosphere, and far away from the city. The jail gimmick is not worth it.

Was pretty decent and comfortable. Only thing is I booked a 10 bed dorm and there were 11 beds. Didn't bother me, just strange to sell it as a 10 bed if there aren't 10 beds.

I always stay at the Jailhouse. Clean. Good staff. Great mix of people and ages. Lots of recreation space. Comfortable at night. A great hostel. Always lots of people so they must agree!

The theme is reflected everywhere – in the rooms, the common areas, the kitchen, and throughout the whole place. The staff were constantly cleaning, but unfortunately it got messy again very quickly. It would be great if guests also cleaned up after themselves. I really liked that there were two TV rooms, which gave people enough space to relax. The parking situation is a bit challenging. If you’re unlucky you might have to park a bit further away, but you can usually still find a s...

Super Hostel! I really recommend it!

Really big hostel, plenty of facilities and was great for a 2 night stay. Super easy check in but the staff weren’t there majority of the time as it was all self check in

Really awesome hostel, laid out like a prison so was a unique experience! Rooms are spacious with plug sockets for each bed. Kitchen and bathrooms were clean but a little small. The hostel is a little far out of the city centre, about a 30 min walk, but didn't bother me too much. Also cats in the front garden 🐱 Overall great stay!

fun hostel to stay at. nice that they had information about the jail, you get a hostel and museum rolled into one. Hard to rate the staff, because we didn't speak to any. Kitchen is a bit small and parking can be a bit of a pain because the carpark fills up fast. we had to park on the main road at times. TV worked well. Oh, and they have a couple of stray cats living outside which is cute. we didn't get much of a fun vibe, but then we didn't spend any time in the cinema room due to it being busy

Great hostel with a fun twist and lovely staff. Uday was especially kind and helpful.

Really nice place to stay for a couple of nights. The hostel itself is great, the staff is so friendly and helpful and the facilities are very nice, with clean bathrooms and a huge kitchen. It is well located with restaurants, bars, cafes and a huge park really close; but the inmidiate sorroundings are a bit sketchy. I had a weird situation with a person in the garden right outside the hostel. But the rest was great and we had a few really good nights of sleep there.

I like the concept. But the reason for the 4 stars is that the check-in process was more difficult than should have been, they said they’d send an email with room/code prior, which they did not. No reception staff upon arrival, was early evening. Fortunately a staff member happened to be around otherwise and saw I was struggling and was able to get me room. Having to go to the 2nd floor for the female toilets was just a bit of an inconvenience, but wasn’t too busy at least.

A great place to stay and amazing to see and read the history!

Really the best hostel in all of NZ for me! Staff are fab

it's been not enough room for that many people and barely found someone at the reception

Decent hostel. Really cool aesthetics. Bit away from everything. Staff are quite strict with quiet times