Railway Square YHA
YHA Australia is a non-profit organization providing affordable hostel accommodation in the country. While YHA stands for 'Youth Hostels Association', the chain is happy to accommodate travelers of any age.
They are famous for re-purposing quirky establishments, like the 19th-century former prison's women's wing, a gentleman's club, or in this case, a heritage building of a railway station.
A unique feature of the hostel that involves heritage parts is the Green Wall, a vertical garden with old railway luggage racks for the plants.
As Railway Square YHA is located at the Central Railway Station, excellent transportation is a given, but it's also close to Sydney's most prominent sights like Darling Harbour, Chinatown, Sydney Harbour, and the Sydney Opera House.
The Railway Square hostel is currently under renovation and is due for completion in 2025/26.
Heritage Main Building
Railway Square YHA is located in a former Post Office building in the heart of Sydney's Central Station.
The landmark transportation hub was built in 1904, and it's still fully functioning.
YHA took over an unused part of the building, including a railway platform (Platform Zero), and converted it into modern and quirky accommodation.
The heritage-listed Railway Square YHA upgraded the historic building to create a contemporary industrial-style space.
The open-plan living areas where you can meet and greet fellow travelers include a large communal kitchen, a dining room, a TV lounge room, multiple cozy corners, and the main hall, where you'll find table football and pool games.
The hostel's main building is the former old parcel sorting shed, and its unique warehouse style is owed to a British company that designed it and the timber cuts transported from Canada.
Everything that's wood here is made from repurposed timber posts.
Authentic replica railways cars made by the same craftsmen who created the originals for NSW.
Railway Square YHA consists of 280 beds split into two parts of property. The historic main building has dormitories and twin and double rooms, but the real attraction is the rooms on Platform Zero.
Replica railway carriages offer dormitory-style accommodation. Don't worry; the replicas are as authentic as they can be because they were built by the same craftsmen who created the original railway cars.
