Original Backpackers Lodge

Kings Cross & Potts Point


This long-standing hostel meanders through two creaky-floored historic mansions, offering dozens of beds and great (if a little noisy) outdoor spaces out the back. Rooms have high ceilings, fridges, fans and shared bathrooms (some doubles have en suites).


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Kings Cross & Potts Point attractions

1. The Cross Arts Projects

0.11 MILES

This little commercial gallery stages interesting curated shows, including lots of Aboriginal art.

2. Fitzroy Gardens

0.15 MILES

It’s testimony to the ‘cleaning up’ of the Cross that this once-dodgy park is now a reasonably safe place to hang out (probably helped by the austere…

3. Coca-Cola Sign

0.19 MILES

A Sydney landmark, this huge sign marks the entrance to Kings Cross. You're actually looking at the 2016 model: the previous one was replaced, then…

4. Artspace

0.25 MILES

Artspace is spacey: its eternal quest is to fill the void with vigorous, engaging Australian and international contemporary art. Things here are decidedly…

5. McElhone Stairs

0.25 MILES

These stone stairs were built in 1870 to connect spiffy Potts Point with the Woolloomooloo slums below. The steep steps run past an apartment block:…

6. Elizabeth Bay House

0.27 MILES

Now dwarfed by 20th-century apartments, Colonial Secretary Alexander Macleay's elegant Greek Revival mansion was one of the finest houses in the colony…

7. Embarkation Park

0.29 MILES

The top deck of a multistorey navy carpark doesn't sound like a great place to hang out, but this beautiful park is a hidden gem, offering a secluded…

8. St John’s Church

0.33 MILES

This lovely neo-Gothic sandstone church (1858) makes for a hushed escape from the urban jangle of Darlinghurst Rd. There's some fine stained glass; the…