We stayed at The Wanaka Purple Cow YHA Hostel which was in stark contrast to the terrible hostel we had stayed at in Franz Josef. It was spotless, and cheap. We paid a little bit more for a lake front room, and it was still only 90 NZD. Lake “front” was a bit of stretch, as there was a big park in front of us, but we certainly did have beautiful views of the lake and mountains beyond. The room was a little on the small side, but very comfortable with a nice bed, and a super clean bathroom. A big window opened up to the amazing view of the lake and mountains. Unfortunately, we were only staying for 1 night, and we really didn’t get to take advantage of where we were.

Checkin was very smooth and fast, although the reception desk does have limited hours. There is a clean open common area and kitchen, pool table, and movie room, with lots of backpackers milling about – although some of the language I heard would certainly not have made me comfortable with children.

Internet access was not too expensive, as all of the hostels in New Zealand share a common internet access service – so you can just buy an hour at a time and if you don’t use it, you can use it at the next place you stay at.