Cairns Sharehouse

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What if I want to stay for less than 4 weeks or extend my stay?

We prefer a minimum commitment of 3-4 weeks so that your share house is more like a home than a hostel. However chat to the team and we will do our best to offer you options to suit your needs. Often we find due to our low rates we have residents who are happy to pay for the full 4 weeks (even if they stay for less time) as we are still more comfortable than staying in a hostel and we provide you with a touch more luxury at a budget price.

Often we find when our guests arrive in Cairns they are keen to extend their stay. We are more than happy to extend your stay with us however we do remind guests that this is only subject to availability and cannot be guaranteed. The reason is that your room may have already been pre-booked to another guest who has booked in advance based on the departure date you originally provided. We do recommend that you do book a realistic departure date to avoid disappointment. If we are unable to extend your booking in your room, we will try to offer you accommodation in another property/room to suit your requirements.

Can I change rooms once I have checked in?

You are required to stay in any one room with Cairns Share house for a minimum stay of 3-4 weeks. If later you wish to change rooms, we are able to organise a 'room change' for you and a small administration fee applies. Please note in some houses it is not possible to change rooms until all rent paid has been used up in that specific house, so please ask us for further details.

Do you allow smoking in the bedrooms or apartments?

Smoking is not permitted in any bedroom or apartment at Cairns Share house. Smoking is permitted in outside balcony areas only and ashtrays are provided. If you are a strict non-smoker then please let us know and we will try to allocate you a room away from the outdoor patio area.

Please be aware that smoking is banned in all enclosed public places in Australia, particularly workplaces, restaurants, pubs, clubs and often commercial outdoor eating and drinking places such as patrolled beaches, children's playground equipment, major sport stadiums etc.

What is the maximum time I can stay at the share house for?

You are welcome to stay for up to 12 months (and sometimes longer if everything is going well) as long as you continue to enjoy sharing the apartment with new people and following the 'house rules'. We often have some students stay with us on and off throughout their 2-3 years study so it is flexible.

If you are planning to stay in Cairns more long term we recommend that you consider staying with Cairns Sharehouse for the first 1-2 months so that you can get to know the areas better before finding your own private rental and we would be happy to provide you with a rental reference.

What time can I arrive and what time must I check out?

Arrival check in is from 3.00 pm and check is at 10.00 am. Once you have made a booking and paid your deposit full instructions are emailed to you about how to pay your arrival balance and collect your keys. Remember if you wish to check into your room before 3.00 pm you will need to book your room from the day before to guarantee that it is vacant. Also if you wish to check out later than 10.00 am then you will need to book your room for a further night (especially if you have booked a cheap flight departing Cairns late at night). If you are arriving on an early flight and would like to wait until check in, click here for more details.

How do I pay my rent each week?

You can come into our office to pay by cash, or jump online where you can make a payment online by direct deposit or credit card. Then two weeks before you are leaving you will stop paying rent and we will start using the two week’s rent you paid in advance when you checked in. Click here for more information on what you will need to pay upon check in.

Are there house rules to follow?

Yes - like any well run accommodation we need to set guidelines in place to look after the homes and ensure that all our housemates are happy with the service we provide. These guidelines are common sense and easy to follow – the three golden rules for happy sharing is:

  1. Clean up after yourself (wash your own dishes, put them away, put food away and keep your belongings in your room)
  2. Visitors welcome but they must go home by 10.30 pm.
  3. Noise is kept reasonable as some people are working late or starting early.

At your welcome meeting we will go through our guidelines to ensure that you are happy with how things work and feel comfortable in your new home.

What happens if I don’t like my housemates or room?

If you have any problems with your housemates, firstly we ask you to come and chat to our team so we can help you. However we do have a large number of properties and if we have another room available which you like then we will happily help you move to another room.

Am I allowed to have visitors to the house?

You are welcome to have friends visit occasionally in the home between the hours of 10.30 am - 10.30 pm, as long as they do not disturb the other housemates. Your friends are welcome to come over and hang out, watch a DVD, have a barbecue/dinner with you etc. However they are not permitted to use the facilities (e.g have a shower, sleep over, cook dinner) and must be with you at all times. If you wish to have a friend actually come and stay for a few nights then please let us know and we would be happy to arrange fresh bed linen, mattress, pillows etc to ensure that they are more comfortable and charge a small fee.

What do I need to bring?

Just yourself, your clothes, towels and some toilet paper! We provide pretty much everything else that you will need for comfortable stay including bed linen.

How will I keep my food separate from the other residents?

Each housemate is allocated a shelf in the fridge and area in the cupboard which is for the use of their specific room. Each shelf and cupboard is labelled to ensure that all tenants have equal space to store their food.

Do the housemates clean the share apartment?

All housemates are responsible for cleaning and looking after their own room, to clean up after themselves, to put things away and to leave the bathroom clean after they have used it. We will provide you with linen at the beginning of your stay and you are responsible for washing this each week using the laundry onsite at the house. Once a week our cleaners will clean the bathrooms and every second week they will do a full clean of the apartment (not the bedroom). We visit the houses several mornings a week to ensure that the apartments are being kept clean and that all guests are washing up their dishes, emptying the bins and keeping the houses generally clean and tidy. We do this to ensure that everyone in the apartment is happy and to ensure we can record and repair and maintenance issues.

Are there safety boxes in each room?

We do not provide safety boxes in each room. All of our rooms are lockable, however we do ask housemates to always lock their doors, purchase travel insurance and never keep large amounts of cash in their room for peace of mind.

What are the differences between the apartments available?

Each house has a different price as it depends on what facilities are available. For example, The Martyn which are apartments in Category C are in a large apartment block that features a resort pool and BBQ facilities. The lower priced apartments may be in houses with a garden spa instead of a pool, or do not have television/DVD's in the individual rooms. All apartments are furnished in a similar style and colour scheme. Different properties attract a different style of guests so if you are a backpacker and we know this we will try to offer you accommmodation with other backpackers, and the same if you are a student, working professional or more mature guest. Click here to view our photo gallery for a better understanding of the different rooms.

What types of people stay at Cairns Share house?

Cairns Share house attracts working travellers, apprentices, divers, students, couples and travellers who are interested in living in Cairns like a local person. We are also a popular place to stay for Australians relocating to Cairns or people working/studying on short term placements. We are not a backpacker hostel and offer a home away from home experience in quality accommodation at an affordable price. We have such a diverse range of properties that we are able to accommodate all budgets and tastes. All guests must be a minimum of 18 years old, and there is no maximum age as long as you are young at heart and enjoy meeting people of all ages and from all cultures!

Does every room have air conditioning or ceiling fans?

Every room in our share houses has either a ceiling or wall fan, and are designed to be as cool as possible (with blinds in the rooms and tiled floors). Air-conditioning is available at most of our properties at an additional charge of $20.00 per week (single rooms) or $25.00 per week (double/twin rooms). Our air-conditioning is key activated so you pay only if you use the air conditioning in your room. When you return the key to our office then we will no longer charge you for air-conditioning. This helps you save money by not paying for air conditioning during the winter months. It is important that you book a room with air conditioining in advance.

Do you allow pets or children?

Unfortunately we are unable to accept bookings for tenants with pets or children (anyone under 18 years of age) in the sharehouses.

What is the difference between our standard Category B properties and Category C the luxury' properties?

  • Generally the bedrooms are larger and more spacious.
  • Generally bedrooms have air conditioning, study desks and TV/DVD players.
  • The properties are large and spacious with more lounge & relaxation areas (e.g lounge rooms, dining room and outdoor decks)
  • Share with a smaller number of people.
  • Some rooms feature own bathroom facilities.

Click here for more information.

What kind of Internet access is available?

At Cairns Sharehouse we offer either wireless internet or using a LAN connection (you can loan a Cat 5 cable to connect)). If internet is very important to you then we recommend that you choose a house that has wireless internet as it will be faster (the fastest internet is available at 'The Grand Draper' and 'The Martyn' at an extra cost of $75/month). Please remember generally the internet service available in Australia is not as fast or as cheap as available in Europe (remember we have only a small population!) but is more than ideal for facebooking, emailing, banking, skype etc.

What is the difference between a 'Cairns Share house' & a hostel?

The share houses are designed as a place to relax, unpack your stuff and call home for a few weeks. In our share houses you have your own private room (or you can share a room with one other person upon request), and you share the kitchen, bathroom and lounge facilities with 3-6 other bedrooms. The other housemates have all committed to staying with us for several weeks so you get to make friends quickly and easily. Most of our guests choose to stay with us so that they can chill out during the day, and head into town to enjoy the nightlife.

In a hostel you are usually sharing kitchen, bathroom and dining facilities with a larger number of people. There is more of a 'party' atmosphere due to the large number of young people coming and going each day and a constant change in faces. Hostels are a great way of meeting lots of new faces each day and having a lot of fun, and when you have finished partying hard the sharehouse is a great place to come to make new friends, save some money whilst you work and chill out for a while.

Why do working travellers choose to stay in Cairns so long and not go to a bigger city?

Cairns is a very popular destination for working travellers. Most travellers have usually travelled up the coast from Sydney or spent some time in Asia and Cairns is their first stop in Australia. Cairns is highly attractive to the weary traveller for several reasons: the weather, the scenery, you can walk easily around the main town and our share houses offer the chance to take a few weeks to 'recharge the batteries' before putting the backpack on and continuing their exciting travels (without the stress of finding accommodation in larger cities and the commute times). The Cairns Esplanade also offers a huge free swimming pool/lagoon, free music, exercise classes and tropical palm trees to sit under and relax so you can feel like you are on a holiday without spending a fortune each day. We often find that our guests commit to staying only one month and before we know it they have found jobs and end up staying for several months.

What if I want to cancel my booking after I have paid my deposit?

All guests are required to pay a minimum of a $50.00 booking deposit per person to hold a room. This means that we will not sell your room to anyone else and also means that we may not be able to offer accommodation to another guest because we do not expect to have any rooms available. If you pay a deposit, or any monies to Cairns Sharehouse for accommodation and cancel your booking, you will be charged a $50.00 cancellation fee per person. We are very popular and we highly recommend that you prebook to avoid disappointment.

Do you need some information in a different language?

Click here for information in Korean.

Click here for information in Mandarin (chinese)

Click here for information in French

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