Pacific Coast Lodge and Backpackers

Amazing hostel!! Super clean and great vibes - lovely staff too. Nice social areas to mingle with other travellers & chill out. The location is great, 15 min walk from main bit of the Mount. Highly recommend to anyone passing through/looking for place to live in Mount Maunganui! :)

My stay at pacific coast lodge was so amazing! Having just moved to New Zealand I didn’t know what to expect especially as a solo traveler but PCL made me feel so welcome from the workers to the environment. I stayed in a long term room which was very convenient for meeting other backpackers. The facilities were all nice and clean as they are cleaned regularly. Definitely recommend PCL to anyone passing through the Mount!!

Such an awesome stay. The real kiwi experience. We will be back! Friendly staff and amazing location. We made friends for life staying at Pacific coast lodge. Everything was clean and tidy and we felt welcomed the moment we stepped in the door.

We had an amazing stay. Bed was super comfortable and the hostel was very clean. The staff were friendly and very knowledgeable of the local area and NZ as a whole. Great location, close to the beach with FREE surfboard hire.  I would definitely recommend staying here and can't wait to come back!

Nice mattress with good pillows, made so many friends staying here, great variety of people but the best thing was the staff, nice ladies at reception with a lot of local knowledge. Huge lounge area free wifi, cheap laundry compared to some places, beach is close and can light fires on beach until 10pm so a great time to be had

My stay at Pacific Coast Lodge was absolutely wonderful. The relaxed and welcoming atmosphere made me feel at home from the moment I arrived. The staff went above and beyond to ensure that I had a fantastic experience throughout my stay. Their exceptional service, friendliness, and attentiveness truly made a difference. Without a doubt, I would highly recommend this place to anyone looking for a peaceful and hospitable environment for their vacation. Thank you to the entire staff at Pacific Coast Lodge for making my stay unforgettable!

There's been a surge in pricing at some NZ backpackers, spurred by a shortage of beds in Auckland this season post-covid lockdowns where many backpackers in the city shut down. In Auckland, this has resulted in an actual hostel shortage and a surge in pricing from $20-40 per night at most hostels to $60-70 per night. In Tauranga/Mount Maunganui, where there is no shortage of beds (certainly not at Pacific Coast which had a least one fully empty dorm on the night of my stay), this pricing has been matched. An 8 bed dorm in a windowless internal room cost me $65. I think the pricing is greedy. What to do? There are so many better coastal areas around the North Island (try Hawkes Bay, Gisborne or even Whakatane/Ohope), with ample access to the ocean and a truer representation of the best of the 'kiwi' way. Free of the wealthy pretensions and over-development of Mount Maunganui: bypass Tauranga, its horrendous traffic and concrete conglomerate shopping malls and go elsewhere for better value in a better environment. Case in point: the next night in another beautiful town in Hawkes Bay I stayed in a four bed dorm with a 1st level view of the ocean, just minutes walk from the town centre. The cost? $30. Back to Pacific Cost Backpackers itself: kitchen and bathroom facilities are good, with the opening up of the kitchen to the outdoors a nice touch. Outdoor seating in the paved carpark/washing line area at the rear is limited, a few more tables out there would be nice. There's a $30 key deposit that the hostel insists on taking in cash. This can be an inconvenience if one is leaving early prior to reception opening: in my case I didn't get a key for my room or the front door. The hostel should consider offering an option to hold the deposit on card such that the amount can be debited should keys not actually be returned, allowing people to depart outside of reception hours while still being able to come and go as they want to. Otherwise they can consider adding key-code entry for their front door at least.

Best place! ❤️ Met so many nice people here and it’s always a good atmosphere in the evenings. Felt like a little family. Close to the beach and bars/restaurants. Hanging out at the mount, good times 🤙