Name: Drifter Christchurch
Address: Lichfield Street, 96, Christchurch, 8011, NZ

8/10

Excellent

17 Jul 2026

Richard

Staff were brilliant. Couldn't do enough for you. Only downer was constant music in ground floor area preventing any form of relaxation. If you must have music try jazz

Family

10/10

Exceptional

15 Jul 2026

Inti

Awesome distribution and very clean. Great location

Family_with_children

10/10

Exceptional

10 Jul 2026

Thomas

Excellent place to stay especially for solo travellers

Self

10/10

Exceptional

05 Jul 2026

Judith

Drifter is central to everything in Christchurch. They have embraced technology with a phone app to access the elevator and room. Themed rooms for movies, yoga and a kitchen meant all needs are catered for. I'll pack my yoga clothes for my next visit.
We enjoyed the food in the bar area.
It was noisy up until midnight, so pack your ear plugs for a weekend stay.

Friends

10/10

Exceptional

01 Jul 2026

Lisa

Was a great experience. Very clean and kind. Lots of cool amenities like a cinema and library. Very cute and lots of space!

Family

10/10

Exceptional

30 Jun 2026

JAMES

My family and I stayed in the 4 bed with bathroom for one night. It was clean, quiet, and comfortable. We all slept well.

Family_with_children

10/10

Exceptional

25 Jun 2026

Ben

Lovely stay

10/10

Exceptional

14 Jun 2026

Mohd Bakhtiar

The shops nearby and within walking distance are so convenient.

Family_with_children

10/10

Exceptional

07 Jun 2026

Rochelle

Great property with an awesome vibe. Rooms and facilities were great and the location was so central and convenient. Would def stay again - and do yoga next time!

Family

6/10

Pleasant

31 May 2026

PETER

Room had no wardrobe to hang clothes in. Should be tagged as a hostel rather than hotel.

Family

10/10

Exceptional

17 May 2026

Amy

Staff were very welcoming and gave us early access to our room. Greatly appreciated, after a very stressful early morning that saw us nearly not make the trip.

Awesome location, to town, restaurants and One Stadium. Highly recommend for that.

There was a bit of noise from plumbing pipes in other areas - were woken early on our first night due to that.

Cool looking place, with a great vibe.

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

27 Apr 2026

Melanie

We arrived late and the staff were super helpful

Family

6/10

Pleasant

26 Apr 2026

David

great staff, great venue and amenities

however we stayed in a bunk bedroom that had a toilet/shower inside it however the rooms outside our front door in the corridor and had their bathroom separate from their room and across the hallway.

We had a group of four young ladies who kept on going in and out of the bathroom repeatedly for a few hours late at night (and I am in repeatedly like every five minutes or less which was crazy and I did say something to them about how it was keeping us awake) but it kept going (10pm to 1230am) and the door was very loud!.!!

So I don’t know why they want me to do that and what was going on, but it was very annoying

Friends

8/10

Excellent

22 Apr 2026

Hannah

Great vibe and perfect central location

Self

8/10

Excellent

16 Apr 2026

Chloe

All good!! Excellent!
except the shower water pressure is a little bit low, might be we lived on the top floor.

Family_with_children

6/10

Pleasant

14 Apr 2026

Ebrahim

Room amenities could’ve been better. Kettle is upstairs and tap is only downstairs in the toilet and tap cant fill the kettle
Properly etc

Family_with_children

10/10

Exceptional

30 Mar 2026

David

Great location and staff. Profits to transportation, shopping, sites and restaurants/cafe.

Friends_and_family Family

8/10

Excellent

27 Mar 2026

Angela

I didn't realize it was a hostel with I booked. No problems with hostels - I've stayed at them before. I was just surprised to find this was considered a \"hybrid\" hotel/hostel. In my 3 weeks travel through NZ, Drifter was the only place that required a passport for us to check in. It was odd. The other patrons in line were also puzzled, but it was done.
The room was a standard hotel room with bed, window, place to hang some clothing (bring your own hangers), a bathroom, and coffee station. We were at the top floor, so our ceiling height was really tall.
Odd things: The towel bars were behind the doors. So if you washed your hands, you had to step away from the sink, and close the bathroom door to get to the towel, or after the shower, you had to step outside the shower, and close the shower door so you can get to the bath towel.
No microwave or mini fridge - you had to go to the common space if you wanted to make popcorn or store foods. Super busy common area, even on off meal hours. The common space also had pool tables and lounges with the kitchen area.
In all, Drifter was new, clean, and comfortable. It definitely caters to young adults.

Partner

6/10

Pleasant

25 Mar 2026

Gregory

Room was clean and bed was comfortable. However they have issues with technology:
-They pushed you to use phone to open elevator/doors. There are big delays (link to web site vs app) to open doors and calling elevator is still a bit of mystery to me after staying there for 3 nights
-Turning lights in bathroom on/off are a a bit of a mystery to me as they are tied into motion sensors.
-Shower door touches floor so you cannot put a towel on for.

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

20 Mar 2026

Cindy

Room was small but super clean

Friends_and_family Family

10/10

Exceptional

20 Mar 2026

Lai Chu Pearl

good stay

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

19 Mar 2026

Joanne

Amazing facility with great staff and a safe environment for young people travelling

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

17 Mar 2026

Sharon

Super clean, nice room, great location. Nice work areas with electrical outlets. I did not use the kitchen, but it seemed that those were good as well. They even have a movie night(s) with popcorn and the guests select the movie.

Self

8/10

Excellent

15 Mar 2026

Simon

Lovely room. Could improve these things: AC was noisy and a bit cold in the day and hot at night; the shower went hot and cold - good pressure though; no desk to work at.

Self

10/10

Exceptional

13 Mar 2026

Bernadette

Great venue, cooking facilities and shared relaxation space. Wonderful for travelers of all ages!

Partner

8/10

Excellent

12 Mar 2026

Mary Anne

Great hostel. Not much space in room if you 2 suitcases.

Partner

8/10

Excellent

11 Mar 2026

Grace

The room was very interesting. We booked a two bedroom suite. The bathroom and one bed room were on the main level which also had an immense foyer. The bunk bed room on the second floor was also immense and felt as though there was wasted space in both places that could have been better utilized. The rooftop balcony was lovely but it was a rainy day so we did not get to fully enjoy it. The bathroom was sooooo small and we are not large people but you have to basically touch the toilet to get the door closed to get to the shower. It is hard to brush your teeth in the sink which has a shallow depth and just be used from the side angle. Love the concept, lots of communal spaces being fully utilized by other guests. Would be awesome for young adult travelers. It’s like an upscale hostel for people who don’t want to share rooms with strangers. Love all the community events like trivia and movie night etc. Would love to bring friends to a drifter property.

Friends_and_family Family

4/10

Poor

10 Feb 2026

Kathryn

Tiny elevator and room. All digital elevator access and lack of space meant long unnecessary delays. This hotel is designed for GenZ only - this should be mentioned in hotel listing. Won’t be staying again.

Friends_and_family Family

8/10

Excellent

05 Feb 2026

He

Room was good and high tech, good location to catch the busses too. But short of reception staff and water was not very hot in shower

Leisure Self

6/10

Pleasant

01 Feb 2026

Anabel

Room was fine but very awkward layout. Bed and lounge upstairs and tiny toilet and shower downstairs. No mini fridge and worst shower I have ever had. Check in is a pain, you need to do it all through the app, the you need the website in you phone to use the doors. Then the doors don’t work and you need to call staff to open. Wouldn’t stay again. Better as a backpackers than a hotel.

10/10

Exceptional

20 Jan 2026

Rhiannon

Great location and vibe.

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

15 Jan 2026

Kristine

New, clean and central

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

13 Jan 2026

Zak

Lovely room, amazing shower and bed. Great staff, great coffee.

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

12 Jan 2026

Kobus

Clean and friendly staff

Friends_and_family Family

10/10

Exceptional

10 Jan 2026

Khalid

Very cool how they mixed a hotel and hostel vibe. We brought our family and it was good for them to see how fun it is for young people to travel like I used to. Check-in was a bit clunky, but not too bad.

Friends_and_family Family

6/10

Pleasant

08 Jan 2026

Donna

More of a young back packer accomodation not what I was expecting unfortunately

Partner

8/10

Excellent

04 Jan 2026

Scott

Room was tidy and clean. Common areas were also tidy. Though, for a somewhat steep price point - I wouldn’t call this a hotel. It is more of a hostel. There are very limited in room amenities - basically none. It’s a safe, convenient hotel that is a place to rest really - no frills.

Leisure Partner

6/10

Pleasant

03 Jan 2026

Fuk Hing

一般

Leisure

10/10

Exceptional

29 Dec 2025

Caren

Lots of interesting characteristics. Nice large balcony that needed cleaning.

6/10

Pleasant

07 Dec 2025

Robyn

Poor access - wheel chair access down a side lane - you need to request access. Have to take luggage up stairs to get in. No parking. Noisey at night from in house bar / club. Multiple emails requesting on line check in - no check in at desk. No fridge in room despite being a Superior King suite. Stayed 4 nights - room not vacuumed. Cups not washed. Not always provided with hand towels and wash clothes. Mixed accommodation - someone sitting on hallway floor. Hotel prices but hostel services.

Leisure Partner

2/10

Poor

22 Nov 2025

TRICIA

I arrived at 4:30 and my room wasn't ready. The digital check in was brutal. If that's how they're going to run it, the lobby should be auto-connect wifi. I wasn't connected, so I didn't receive the message about my room not being ready. I went through the digital checking crap with both my backpacks on me (lobby was packed), finally got to my room to find cleaners in it. I had a zoom meeting I needed to join, so I wish I had known. I didn't realize this was a hostel, so I guess I was just expecting the warm reception of a typical hotel, for the price.

Self

8/10

Excellent

17 Nov 2025

John

Quirky.
The balcony didn't really look out on anything, but we didn't use it so no big deal.

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

13 Nov 2025

Mark

All was good

Leisure Friends

10/10

Exceptional

10 Nov 2025

janet

Great room ,spotless throughout. Great to have big bathtowels too. Staff always helpful and comfortable beds with good quality linen

Leisure Self

8/10

Excellent

09 Nov 2025

HAOYANG

Where hospitable staff and stylish decorations! To all landmarks walking can complete 💯!very cool !

Business_and_leisure Family_with_children

10/10

Exceptional

08 Nov 2025

Lori

Loved the location right next to bus terminal, food shopping across the street, and walkable to so many great venues. The hotel offers so many different room types and includes a communal cooking, gathering space. My room (with bathroom) was small, but comfortable and quiet - with a library and outdoor space on the same floor. Have already booked it for our next visit.

Leisure Self

8/10

Excellent

05 Nov 2025

Henry

Clean room, friendly and helpful staff

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

02 Nov 2025

Hila

The hotel is clean and is located in a central area within walking distance to many must seen sites.
The staff was very friendly and nice!

Business_and_leisure Friends

10/10

Exceptional

21 Oct 2025

Summer

Great room, awesome concept the bar had really tasty sharing menu couldn’t fault my stay

Business Self

2/10

Poor

21 Oct 2025

Michelle

check in was a nightmare. very stressful.

Business

10/10

Exceptional

11 Oct 2025

Joanne

Safe, convenient location - next to tram stop & walking distance to great food venues- plus supermarket

Leisure Self

10/10

Exceptional

07 Oct 2025

Debra

Shower was amazing

Leisure Friends

8/10

Excellent

29 Sep 2025

Renee

Location was fab, but lack of parking is an issue!

Leisure Family

10/10

Exceptional

26 Sep 2025

Abbey

Fantastic staff and excellent room (suited our family perfectly)! Right in town so close to restaurants as well.

Friends_and_family Family

10/10

Exceptional

26 Sep 2025

stephanie

Staff, room, security all out of this world great!!

Partner

8/10

Excellent

25 Sep 2025

Shikha

Clean room. Little noise from other occupants. But nothing major.

10/10

Exceptional

24 Sep 2025

Priscilla

Lovely place to stay, easy walk to the shops and dining!

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

11 Sep 2025

Xuan

Clean and nice staff

Leisure Self

8/10

Excellent

24 Aug 2025

Claire

Great location, easy walking distance to all of central christchurch. Friendly staff, modern, clean facilities, good price.

Business Friends

10/10

Exceptional

10 Aug 2025

Darshaka

Very Helpful Staff

Staff (Roo) were very helpful as I sustained an injury whilst out on a trek. Made our a stay very comfortable.

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

07 Aug 2025

Robyn

Great option

10/10

Exceptional

13 Jul 2025

Rachel

Such a cool place to stay in the cbd. Beds were super comfy.

Leisure Family_with_children

10/10

Exceptional

11 Jul 2025

Igor

Trendy place for your peiple but also suits families. Good value for money.

Friends_and_family Family

4/10

Poor

31 May 2025

Eming

Self check in property, super tiny wash face basin, ceiling light only worked once when we entered the room and thereafter despite informing a guy at check in counter upon going out for dinner problem was not resolved. How did this hotel get 4 stars ?

Leisure Partner

6/10

Pleasant

27 Mar 2025

Katie

The digital check in didn’t work, none of the digital keys worked. Thankfully someone working at the bar was able to help us open the elevator door. There was no actual employees when we checked in because it was 11pm. The one towel in our room had blood on it, but once again no employees were there to get us a new one.

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

20 Mar 2025

Keith

Good quiet room and modern facilities

Business Self

10/10

Exceptional

18 Mar 2025

Andrea

Great hotel - was recommended to me and I would recommend to others.

Leisure Friends

8/10

Excellent

15 Mar 2025

Andrew

A pleasant place to stay. Quiet and comfy bed.

Business Self

8/10

Excellent

12 Mar 2025

Marla

So enjoyed the design, the combination of old building and renovated chic and funky details. It was super clean, had unique spaces like a cinema with bean bags, an open to the sky courtyard, and lovely bar, barista and breakfast space. Also, many options for rooms from dorms to private rooms with ensuite facilities. The only issue is no affiliated parking and not convenient drop off/pick op space. I would go back for sure!

Leisure Partner

4/10

Poor

09 Mar 2025

Noretta

Hotel Room too small for couple . Bathroom sink small and have no place to put personal toiletries, no cups are provided for tooth brushing. Bathroom light sensor not effective at all, it just switched off many time during showers, very very annoying. Room felt clean when we arrived, but felt no one really clean our room the next few days, may be just empty trash bin only. Smell from common kitchen does comes into the room. However, the bed is comfortable so we slept well. Location is very convenient. Overall, if anyone expecting a typical hotel service n facilities, this is not the place. It's really for young travelers and backpackers.

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

08 Mar 2025

Debbie

Great places to stay we stayed for a girls night in town and was perfect

10/10

Exceptional

05 Mar 2025

Kimberly

First time staying here and we loved it. Every is new and modern, and it was great having the bar downstairs - great margaritas!

Leisure Friends

8/10

Excellent

24 Feb 2025

Kate

Staff were excellent. Location was ideal.

Leisure Self

10/10

Exceptional

22 Feb 2025

Mealofa

This was the best hotel i have stayed at, the room was beautiful, great comfy beds & pillows. Location is the best, right in town with the bus exchange right next door and a supermarket straight across the road. Rambler Bar was a great spot, and made the best espresso martini, yum. My new favorite hotel in Christchurch and i would definitely stay here again. Great customer service from all the staff, so well done. Cheers, Mealofa

Leisure Friends

10/10

Exceptional

16 Feb 2025

kevin

great stay in Christchurch

We traveled as a family - four kids and mother in law, and got two suites. the outside of the building is very nice, but its next to a run down building so we were a little skeptical when we saw it. But the fears were misplaced. Great location, inside was great. More set up for the backpacker crowd - lots of rooms to meet or meet up with people. Great vibe. But it wasn't at all bad for families.

Friends_and_family Family