Tasman Bay Backpackers It's the small things that make us different

A big howdy Autumn 2025

Autumn is here and it's cooler and darker.   We have some new team members. When you come to stay you will be greeted by any or all of the following: Fran, Mark, Luke and/or Henk-Jan who all run TBB, with me and our amazing team of Exchange Workers.  Each week I make soup & bread for a staff communal lunch and every night we offer all our guests Chocolate Pudding & ice cream.

With a chill in the evening we will start to light the fire and turn on the 4 new heat pumps to keep everyone toasty warm.  And as usual we offer our guests as much bedding as they need to feel very warm plus hotties for those that need that extra boost of warmth. 

Being autumn the hostel is starting to get a little quieter but like always the hostel has a lovely vibe to it.  If you are thinking of chilling out for a bit and taking a break from travelling then, Nelson and TBB is really a great place to come - come stay and ask about our weekly rates & work that's available in Nelson at this time.  Winter is a really great place to spend at TBB and in Nelson.

And ... thinking of the vibe - we like to think our Hostel might be like your favourite café - a place where you feel relaxed, comfortable and safe, there is good music playing (whether that be ours or current guests playing guitar or other instruments), people are friendly and the atmosphere is just right.  A place which feels good to be in, a place where you might have a coffee, a glass of wine, play a game, do some yoga, share stories, have a few laughs.  A place which is a little like home & as one guest wrote, who was with us for lockdown 2020 - "maybe the first home you have every really had".   We are not a Flashpackers - relationships and caring for each other come first.  Our walls are a bit thin, the furniture is second hand - so if you come stay, please know this and come for the vibe, the relationships you will build, the care you will feel.

We are very committed to the traveller community and providing a hostel that nurtures care, relationships, fun and sharing of stories.  To further nurture this we are experimenting with inviting guests to join in with "7-9 Off-Line Time" - a social/creative time when we serve chocolate pudding and ice cream is served.  Inspired by the popularity of Off-line cafes popping up in The Netherlands we encourage off-line time here in the evenings for games, music making, meeting new travellers and sharing stories.  And just recently we started TBB Connect which is a What's App hostel group that you can sign into when you arrive.  It's a place for travellers so join and put in ideas about what you'd like to do and/or create at TBB - I'm excited to see what might bubble up as this group is used more.  Georgie