On the Wallaby

Fantastic experience: Auberges superbes, pleines de charme, très bien entretenues, avec une ambiance familiale, calme et agréable. Merci pour l’accueil chaleureux ! ❤️

Fantastic experience: Loved it!

Fantastic experience: All you need for your stay in FNQ! Clean and tidy place, comfortable bed and quiet room.

Fantastic experience: We are two French backpackers who stayed at the hotel from 19/03/2025 to 22/03/2025. The check-in went very smoothly, and the two girls at the reception were attentive and available throughout our stay. The place is quite small, with around twenty guests, which makes it both quiet and friendly. Moreover, Veronica kindly left a note on our door to let us know that one of her friends could offer us a job for the day. The check-out also went very well, and we were advised to visit the market, just a two-minute walk from the hotel, which takes place every Saturday. On top of that, the price is very attractive, offering great value for money. We highly recommend this hotel with our eyes closed!

Fantastic experience: Loved our stay here when visiting with uncle Brian’s tours. Lovely family feel and nice and peaceful. Lots of social areas indoors and out. Clean and functional bathrooms. Dorm rooms slightly small but very comfortable bed, fan provided. Really helpful staff that go above and beyond! Would recommend!

Fantastic experience: Si vous cherchez un endroit calme et reposant, je vous conseille vivement de passer un séjour. Le personnel es formidable, les chambres sont parfaite. Plein d’activités autour, petit village, très cosy. Merci à vous pour ce formidable séjour Je reviendrai avec grand plaisir

Fantastic experience: All good with the room and shared areas. People there are so kind that I'll definitely go back! Nice time spent

Positive experience: Backpackers lodge with shared facilities Veronica is very nice and upgraded us to ac. Rooms are small.

Fantastic experience: We could not have stayed anywhere better. This place is fantastic without the huge price tag. Veronica the manager is in tune with her guests and their needs. The place is warm and welcoming because of all the small details and hand crafted love around, you can see a lot of love has been put into the eco lodge. Plus the beds are comfy! Thank you for our lovely stay.

Fantastic experience: On the Wallaby has such a friendly vibe for people of all ages. Definitely NOT a party hostel. Loved the gardens, artwork and free filtered water on tap.

Fantastic experience: Such a wonderful experience at the wallaby lodge. The vibes were great, and the staff were lovely genuine people. If you are a backpacker or traveling, this is the perfect spot! They have tours and wildlife (Aussie wild animals!) such as platypus, tree kangaroos, turtles and more in local areas. The location is good too. The rooms were a good quality and all the guests were nice, very respectful and tidy. Would highly recommend. Wish we stayed longer than one night.

Fantastic experience: Wonderful little hostel. Lovely areas to relax and also prepare meals. Great to stay in an eco friendly place. We stayed in a mobile double room; loved the open air shower (there were covered showers too, in case of rain). Was close to the centre of town. Would definitely stay here again; loved it!

Fantastic experience: Thankyou so much V and V for yr hospitality and kindness in my recent 2 short stays. From long chats to sharing meals to early checkin to everything else these two ladies are critical to the success of this hostel. They drive a caring and respectful environment and pride in cleanliness and attention to detail is one of their key priorities. Don't go pass this wonderful 5 star hostel..I've stayed here b4 and everytitme it's the staff that drive my quality stay. Until next time ladies...keep cooking those delish..ONIONS!!!

Positive experience: The room was comfortable enough, though, even with the door closed it was very noisy. The large tour group that visited in the evening limited the use of the common areas during that time. The staff were friendly and the common areas were clean. Convienent location to local hiking areas.

Fantastic experience: Great value for money. Veronica gave amazing tips and made our trip very special :)

Fantastic experience: Loved this place, stayed there as part of a Tour, very cosy, well maintained and friendly staff!

Positive experience: Good spot - clean and comfortable

Fantastic experience: Awesome hostel, if you like a calm atmosphere and a sustainable accommodation. Very friendly and open staff.

Positive experience: My husband and I stayed here for one night and really enjoyed it. The hostel is very nice and in a good location. We did the guided night canoe and really liked it - we saw an echidna, a water dragon, an azure kingfisher, wallabies, and lots of possums. The star gazing from the canoe was fabulous. We did have issues with our booking that were a bit strange. We booked through Expedia but the receptionist couldn’t find the booking. Luckily there was a room available, so she booked us in and we paid. We later checked our credit card statement and saw we were charged twice. When we asked for a refund for the duplicate charge, the receptionist tried to say we had to get Expedia to refund us, even though both charges were from On the Wallaby, not Expedia, and we were able to show her this. We eventually got a refund for the duplicate charge so all was well.

Fantastic experience: Nice to see that they're all in with sustainability and education of how to be at home ☺️ hope they succeed in becoming best in the world

Fantastic experience: One of the nicest hostels I've stayed at! Cute eco setting with a big kitchen. The private AC rooms are little self contained trailers. I do wish the outside showers were enclosed I stead of open roof, as it rsined when we were there. Lots of wildlife, beautiful location.

Fantastic experience: Clean airy spacious well equipped friendly and Flexible

Positive experience: My partner and I stayed recently in a double cabin and were happy with our experience. We are twice the age of most people staying there but everyone was polite and friendly and it wasn't an issue for us. I liked the relaxed vibe and the fact that it had personality, it reminded me of Byron Bay in the 90s. Our cabin was compact but it was immaculate with fresh, clean bedding and good pillows. The bed was comfortable and we had a good night's sleep. There was a large tour group in and they were noisy at first around dinner time but after they got back from the night paddle they settled down pretty quickly and most went back to their dorms, so the place was much quieter after that. A handful of people stayed up chatting out the back but everyone was in bed by around 10:30 -ish, and I consider that to be a pretty quiet night for backpacker style accommodation. If you're an early or light sleeper I recommend you always take earplugs (no matter where you go). If you aren't fond of young people enjoying themselves maybe go somewhere else. My only minor criticism is that we were woken up early by staff talking loudly outside our cabin at 6am because there was a problem with the tour bus not starting, but as we had a good night's sleep, under the circumstances I felt forgiving of this.

Positive experience: Great location close to pub and park. Staff friendly. Room was bed only. Share toilet and shower.

Negative experience: The only positive about this place is the town of Yungaburra. If you are young and looking to meet college age kids, stay up late and make noise this place will be good for you. Very much like a youth hostel but without much in the way of rules or expectations. Don’t stay here if you want sleep or privacy. The place is a jumbled mess outside and in; people all on top of each other and big tour groups of college kids ruling the roost.

Fantastic experience: I recently stayed at On the Wallaby and had a fantastic experience. The cleanliness of the hostel is top-notch, and the amenities, especially the availability of filtered rainwater, were a nice touch. However, what truly made my stay memorable was the amazing staff. They were incredibly friendly, approachable, and went out of their way to create a safe and welcoming environment. I definitely felt at ease throughout my stay and look forward to returning in the future. Yungaburra itself is a stunning area, and I was delighted to explore its beauty. One highlight was spotting a tree kangaroo, which was an unforgettable experience. While the hostel can feel a bit crowded on weekdays due to daily tour buses, this minor inconvenience was overshadowed by the overall positive experience. Overall, I highly recommend here for anyone seeking a comfortable and welcoming place to stay while exploring the natural beauty of Yungaburra.

Fantastic experience: Highly recommendable. Staff friendly and helpful with changing the booking details

Fantastic experience: Stayed in a GoRoom, would definitely recommend it.

Fantastic experience: Belle maison écologique, propreté rien à dire. Pleins de douches. Toilettes. Laundry. Bon prix 30$ pour un lit en dortoir et 15$ pour campervan.

Fantastic experience: 10月頃に訪れました 日本人でも生活しやすかったです みんな優しく快適な宿でした 生き物のポスターが貼ってあったりイラストが描いてあったり内装も楽しい宿です

Positive experience: This place really is great overall. Super helpful and friendly staff. Great communal kitchen and lots of toilet and showers kept clean. The private rooms are the only quibble, they aren't as clean as expected and there isn't any other amenities. A desk and some extra outlets with USB connections would be a great addition.

Positive experience: It was nice eco friendly house. Some people were noisy until midnight….except that everything was fine.

Positive experience: Perfect location for our needs, different to what I expected but definitely works. Great for meeting travellers

Fantastic experience: A lovely little place which to spend a night or two. Basic rooms that have everything you need, shared bathrooms are cleaned regularly and it was nice to see sustainability promoted and used throughout. Great value too!

Fantastic experience: The price is not expensive, the staff is kindly, the facilities are very nice.

Fantastic experience: Great place to relax, cook for yourself, clean, friendly, central, relatively inexpensive and a great blend of ages, cultures and co-operative or as detached as you want to share.

Positive experience: Nice room. Perfect location. Clean kitchen. Toilets flush was malfunctioning but overall was fine

Fantastic experience: Great place for the price

Fantastic experience: We were here 11 years ago when Tracey used to work here and they had a resident dog named Jed. We're just reminiscing about how amazing our time here was. 11 years on me and my partner still remember the great memories made here ❤️ thank you !! Sonny & Becky

Positive experience: It was overall a great place to stay, except when the lodge is hosting a large group. We stayed overnight there during our holiday, and at the same time a group of 24 teenagers from Uncle Brian's Tour were also staying there. Some of them were racists and extremely disrespectful, saying how they hate staying in a hostel with Asians in a loud voice around 11 pm at night, just outside of our room. They blocked the door and entrances by standing there chatting, and were very loud and noisy when leaving early in the morning. Staying in this lodge is probably part of the teenager tour, which is a shame for solo travellers. Otherwise we would have enjoyed the lodge.

Negative experience: When you pay 5 Star price you don't expect 1 star accommodation. Shop around.

Fantastic experience: Very nice, smiling staff makes you want to come back! :) Clean rooms, access to a well-equipped kitchen. I definitely recommend!

Fantastic experience: Lovely hosts Laided back. Relaxed. Top value for money. A beautiful atmosphere created by staff.

Fantastic experience: It is a lovely, quiet place to stay while in yungaburra. Paul and his staff are very welcoming and friendly, and make the stay worthwhile.

Fantastic experience: Loved this place..Great vibe..Clean and tidy...Friendly staff...Very happy with our stay. Will most definitely be back.

Fantastic experience: Amazing place with super friendly staff. Really impressed by the whole setup. The night kayaking was really cool and we saw lots of wildlife with our kayaking guide Jeff!

Fantastic experience: Beautiful and cosy lodge in a great location for exploring the Tablelands. The staff are extremely friendly, the rooms are comfortable and bathrooms nice and clean. We did the night canoe with Jeff which was incredible, we were lucky to see lots of wildlife

Fantastic experience: Bful hostel..very safe, practical, friendly, respectful place to stay..all facilities plus lovely staff. Want to saynbig thanku to Bec, Mon and Jess for making my stay fantastic

Fantastic experience: Great place to stay! We were with kids and it was wonderfull. The staff are nice and helpful, the place is absolutely beautiful, very well maintained and feels like home. All is clean and tidy. The rooms are very good as well.

Fantastic experience: Great place. Friendly people. Thank you.

Fantastic experience: Got in late, the owner was in the middle of family time and still sorted me out!!! The room is decorated beautifully it's just the cutest little place to stay in Yungaburra ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ thanks again

Fantastic experience: Amazing homey lodge in Yungaburra. We stayed here in our camper (parked in the driveway) for 2 nights and loved every minute of it! Toilets and showers were clean. They have indoor and outdoor fireplaces, which were the highlight for enjoying a morning coffee or reading before dinner. Mona who runs the Place is incredibly friendly and makes everyone feel at home! We could walk to see the platypus and tree kangaroos and easy driving access to the crater lakes. Would highly recommend it!

Positive experience: Backpacker style timber home accommodation for a fair price. It would benefit from some refurbishment.

Fantastic experience: Very cute and homely. All communal areas were kept so clean and tidy. Showers were very good also. Highly recommend!

Fantastic experience: Lovely friendly stay in a beautiful part of the world.

Fantastic experience: Great place for a quick getaway with a great bunch of guys and girls

Fantastic experience: Great centre

Fantastic experience: Brilliant place, will definitely be back!

Fantastic experience: ultimateaussiebucketlist.com.au (FB and IG for more) My wife and I stayed here - one night in the portable cabin and two nights in our campervan. Awesome experience - and the host, Paul, is a deadset legend. He really makes guests feel welcome, spends time chatting, sharing his knowledge of FNQ (he knows a lot!), he is clearly passionate about the region and animals. The other guests were friendly and it has all the facilities you need for a stay. We hired kayaks for a night time paddle on Tinaroo - highly recommended! PS - Paul, if you read this and remember Daniela and Joel - we seen a Boyds Forest Dragon (two of them) on a night rainforest walk in Cape Tribulation!!!! Woohoo!

Fantastic experience: If home is where the heart is then this amazing gem is home away from home! ❤ clean, spacious, homely and a welcoming feeling from the moment you step foot inside. Run by lovely people who are very accommodating and knowledgeable about the area and things to do. Couldn't recommend this place highly enough!!!!!⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Fantastic experience: Really enjoyed staying at this lovely place. I stayed a few weeks, travelled further north, then came back for another few weeks.

Fantastic experience: Could not speaker higher of Sonia who went above and beyond to make my stay feel comfortable and homely. On the Wallaby feels more like a home than a hostel. One of the coolest hostels on the East Coast! It’s also super forward thinking in terms of sustainability which is rare to find in accommodation. 10/10

Fantastic experience: What a great place. Ended up staying here for a few months. Felt like home straight away. Had a lovely time here and made some great friends. Would definitely recommend staying here and in a great location if you want a place to explore the beautiful tablelands.

Fantastic experience: Clean, convenient, quiet and great service. Even though I didn't meet anyone, I was provided with information on where to find the room and what I had to do. Couldn't have asked for more. Thank you for a great stay

Fantastic experience: Great stay - friendly, clean and comfortable

Fantastic experience: This place is a perfect place for a stop over. It was the 1st time I had been here and discovered that I needed extra pillows and the bed was too hard for me. I had not expected my injuries would be aggravated by the hardness of the bed, however I managed to work out my own solution. Not sure if you can ask for an extra pillow. I just brought my own the 2nd time. Still had difficulty sleeping but that's just probably not being used to a single bed or the hardness of the bed. We just came up for 2 seperapte overnights so my son could get rest before the Equestrian School holiday workshop the next day. The facilities are awesome. The Guest Fridge gets packed though so if you have a lot to put in fridge maybe best to invest in a portable cooler for your vehicle. Communication and check in is super easy here. Friendly service and overall a great place to stay.

Fantastic experience: This place is great - my accomodation in Atherton fell through and I turned up here hoping they might have a bed. They booked me in immediately, gave me a tour and offered plenty of advice on stuff to do in the area. Really nice, unique hostel with great people.

Fantastic experience: Excellent cleanness ! Such a cosy atmosphere.like at home. Free tea and coffee. Shop 200 m away. Very helpful staff member , always smiling and helpful. ..thank You !

Fantastic experience: Best place of Yungaburra to stay for a couple of days or long term ! Jess is absolutely lovely, and we feel like home at the first second Nice garden and facilities ! As a backpacker it is affordable for me too ! Thanks a lot Jess and Sonia !

Fantastic experience: Very much an above average hostel. Very eco, very friendly and well run in the middle of everything. Loved the downstairs communal area and the chill back yard with all the fruit trees etc.

Fantastic experience: Very great and comfortable place for cheap price, people are so nice and kind.

Fantastic experience: Great place.so friendly

Positive experience: Nice chilled place, very helpful, lovely herb garden out back definitely be back

Positive experience: I loved it there it was a great place to stay if you just wanted to sit back relax or enjoy the company of other guests

Fantastic experience: Honestly the best. This place was a home away from home for me. The manager, Jess, was so sooo chill and kind; she'd go buy me things from the grocer, she gave me all the best recommendations for places to visit, and we would literally just hang out during the day! I lovvvve the eco focus of the lodge too - i've adopted a few of their practices and taken them home with me haha. The community feel here is lovely, and the other guests were so nice too. Such a good place, I would 100% recommend for anyone who wants to do the Tablelands or Chillagoe.

Fantastic experience: Cannot recommend enough, definitely one of my favourite place while travelling the east coast! Really felt like a home away from home! Jess was so helpful with great information of the local area ☺️

Fantastic experience: Very beautiful and unique lodge which is 100% eco friendly. They have the most beautiful rainwater to drink and you can pick leaves, herbs and fruits from the garden to eat. The rooms are very clean and cozy and the staff is super helpful and friendly. The place has a very special and welcoming atmosphere where you feel like home as soon as you walk through the doors. In high season they also offer cool tours to get to know the area. Highly recommend a visit!

Fantastic experience: Close to the platypus viewing point. Good Eco design details all around the Lodge. Love the edible backyard! Had some organic lettuce with my lunch and even lucky enough to taste a Panama cherry!

Fantastic experience: Really tidy and everyone’s friendly. Yungaburra and the hostel are cute, so it’s a good base to spend a couple of days seeing waterfalls.

Fantastic experience: On the Wallaby was probably my best hostel experience and I've stayed in a fair few hostels. The hostel was at about 20% occupancy because of the "pandemic" so my experience was more like being in a large flat share than a hostel and I imagine my experience might have been completely different had the hostel been at 100% occupancy. On the Wallaby is excellent because: 1) I slept in a room all to myself despite paying for just a dorm bed in a room with others, 2) the hostel is one of the best value accommodations in the Tablelands (I didn't notice any good value Airbnbs in the region), 3) the hostel has an Alpine lodge feeling and has many comfortable sofas, chairs etc, 4) the showers are good (hot water, good water force), 5) the place is kept clean, 6) the owners Paul and Laura obviously care about the hostel and care about the experience of the guests, 7) the beds are comfortable and the there is very little road noises so I slept well, 8) the cooking facilities are decent and there is sufficient fridge space, 9) there is a nice outdoor space to relax in, 10) 10 minutes drive to lake Eacham which is one of the best lakes in Australia to swim in, and 11) the generally cheerful temporary manager Chris had a delightful dog Layla. Other comments: 1) The hostel is in Yungaburra which is very small with a horrendously priced supermarket and very few amenities (everything is in the nearby town Atherton). 2) The internet works in the common areas but is slow and can get very slow if many people are using it. The wifi signal is weak in the dorm rooms. 3) There are many guests who don't seem to know that headphones exist (I don't particularly want to hear Spanish Skype conversations or Graham Norton's chat show being blasted out). It would be good if the hostel could encourage guests to use headphones. 4) Improvements to the kitchen include replacing the non-functioning tin opener, replacing the pan with a loose handle (could easily cause an accident) and updating the clock time on the microwave. 5) The dorm room walls are very thin and one night I was kept up as a man in the room next to mine snored heavily. 6) The pricing is disorganised. I noticed the dorm room priced at $20/night on Airbnb but priced at $25/night booking directly with the hostel so I called the hostel and got the Airbnb rate for my initial 3 night booking. For the subsequent nights I stayed, Chris charged me $25/night though Airbnb still quoted $20/night and I think some other guests were paying $20/night. I didn't make an issue out of it as it was still great value for money and I didn't want my booking request to be rejected but it is irritating to know you're paying more than what others might be paying and what Airbnb is quoting. The hostel also seemed to experience confusion over who had paid/not paid due apparently to some new booking system in place. 7) The blackboard shows many things you can eat in the garden but they don't actually exist (ie no parsley) - blackboard needs updated. 8) As in all hostels, there are some odd characters like this old unhinged Australian woman who would spend the day coughing in her dorm room and would wander around at 2 or 3 in the morning in the common areas. 9) There was no lock to my dorm.

Positive experience: My 22 year old Granddaughter and I stayed at this hostel in a twin room on 1st October 2020 It is one of the best hostels I have stayed in Well equiped kitchen comfy beds everything was clean The staff were friendly and helpful The little township of Youngaburra is Beautiful with green rolling hills and easy access to the lakes waterfalls and curtain fig tree The platapus walk and town is an easy walk from the hostel I would highly recommend On The Wallaby Lodge

Fantastic experience: Such a sweet little place that suits the tablelands so well! Wonderful and very friendly man Keith and his long dog were super helpful. The property is really cute and the owner has gone out of their way to make it as environmentally friendly as possible with composting on site, edible gardens and potable rainwater. The rooms are cozy and the beds are so comfortable. I felt like I was in a sweet old lady’s cottage. 10/10 recommend (-:

Fantastic experience: One of the best hostels I've ever stayed in. Awesome vibe, great people, just great all round. We will be back (again...) :)

Fantastic experience: Really beautiful stay. So grateful.

Fantastic experience: Really nice showers and well stocked communal kitchen. Living area had some of the most comfortable couches.

Fantastic experience: Such a clean, and eco friendly place. One of the best hostels I’ve stayed at in FNQ. Will definitely be back for day trips from Cairns. Thanks guys!

Fantastic experience: The best place to stay in Yungaburra. For long term or just for a few days. You really feel like in your own home. Everything is clean and nice. Kitchen with all the necessary, and shower with hot water. Nice garden in the back, perfect to chill or make a bbq. The owners really nice people and really helpful. Flexible for the check in and out. Really lovely place.

Fantastic experience: Great backpackers. Super clean and friendly.

Fantastic experience: Clean and friendly. Free milk , coffee, tea, fruits, small cooking area. I wonder how they cope when it's busy. Laundry $4. Spacious backyard. Birds chirping and Relaxing vibe

Fantastic experience: Paul hosted a bunch of 20+ from Townsville and all our bikes and gear, for a brilliant long weekend, good food, good rates and a host that is happy to tell you about the local area.

Fantastic experience: Fantastic laid back fun place to stay in Yungaburra

Fantastic experience: Best place great setup Ecco friendly Paul is an amazing host Short walking distance to town centre eg Pub Iga etc Walking distance to dam Yungaburra markets at your back door (last Saturday of month) Children friendly Dog friendly Great amenities Saw a platypus down the road from Hostel And great value to top it off A big 10 from me and my family.

Fantastic experience: You couldn't ask a for better host nor service, the location it amazing with views and a short walk to everything.

Fantastic experience: Paul was a fantastic host, we had 27 people in the lodge and there was plenty of room for everyone. Beds were comfy and warm. The food which we had as a package was top notch. Paul was very accommodating with all our needs and wants. We had a real party atmosphere with music and a few beers. With no neighbors we were free to do what what we wanted. Most definitely will stay there again.

Positive experience: Lovely people, comfortable place, very relaxing.

Positive experience: Super süßes Städtchen, das Hostel ist sehr sauber und charmant eingerichtet. Die Sanitäranlagen sind super! Negativ und daher keine 5 Sterne: - einmal aus dem WIFI angemeldet kommt man nicht mehr rein... Mir konnte vor Ort auch niemand vom Personal helfen :(

Fantastic experience: Very cute and clean eco backpacker, loved everything! Excellent service too!

Fantastic experience: This Eco lodge close to the centre of yungaburra is a great spot to stay. Close to Lake Tinaroo and some great cafes. Emma is amazing and works hard to look after everyone. The lodge itself is eco friendly, lots of fresh edible salad and fruits growing in the garden. It’s really homely and comfortable. We also went on the night canoe tour, I have to say this was one of my favourite trips in my 12 years in Aus. We saw .. Brush tailed possums Copper brush tailed possums Pademelons Wallabies Water dragons Echidna Tree kangaroo mother and baby Water rats Platypus Bandicoot Barn owl And more I forget the names of. The whole experience was fantastic and I would highly recommend. I’ll be back :-)

Fantastic experience: Awesome lodge run by a great team! I spent the night there for a work Christmas Party and can't thank the team enough. Having a shower with the Christmas music blaring from the kitchen was the best! Very clean lodge with everything you need. I loved the little notes everywhere to educate you on how to be more environmentally friendly - AMAZING Christmas dinner too! Thanks so much guys! Lara Lain - larasstory

Positive experience: Very Nice place, pity about charging for wifi