Budget travellers coming to Vancouver once again have a Hostelling International (HI) option in the city's downtown.
After being closed for three years, HI Downtown reopened in June at 1114 Burnaby St., at the intersection with Thurlow Street.
"During the pandemic, BC Housing rented our hostel as a shelter," the hostel's general manager Lenny Yeung tells V.I.A. "After two years we took back possession and did renovations for about a year."
The renewed 220-room hostel is still going through the last of its renovations, but all the major pieces are in place and ready, Yeung adds, noting that guests so far have been understanding of the bits that aren't quite finished.
Brand loyalty for HI is high he adds, and not just with guests. While the downtown location has been closed for years, some former employees returned with the reopening.
"They just love the hostel and working here," Yeung says.
The city is down to two HI hostels now; the other is at Jericho Beach. Formerly there was a third on the Granville Strip, but that was also rented out by BC Housing during the pandemic. Ultimately, the provincial housing agency purchased the location and turned it into social housing.
