Wollongong's Keiraleagh House gets through COVID with a change in the guestlist

Ms Perger runs Keiraleagh House, one Wollongong's only backpacker hostels. She's raised five children there, housed people in need and spent three decades cultivating a temporary home for travellers.

But two years ago, Ms Perger had a drastic change in clientele. When borders closed and many accommodation providers were forced to shut their doors, the hostel became an unlikely home for an industry that never seems to stop: construction.

"They needed accommodation close to their building site and being the only backpackers in town, they stayed here," Ms Perger said.

"So, we had some of them here for six to seven months. We had a crew of specialist bridge builders ... because there were quite a lot of road bridges that had to be built."

Construction on the Albion Park bypass brought a flood of tradies into town, many of whom were from overseas and in Australia on working visas. For Ms Perger, this was backpacking COVID-style.

They are "the leftover of the backpacker genre," travellers with long-term jobs that allowed them to stay through COVID.

"For us that meant that they are backpackers of sorts. They were more long term working backpackers," she said.

Read More: Overseas tourists to return on February 21

Now, Keiraleagh's residents have changed yet again, Ms Perger said. A flood of returning international students, many struggling to find traditional accommodation such as share houses or rentals in Wollongong's crippling property market, have temporarily filled the hostel rooms as they search for something more permanent.

The lack of student housing forced the University of Wollongong to backflip on plans to sell International House last week, but the move is still unlikely to put a dent in the overwhelming demand.

Students have had little time to plan their accommodation this year, following the late release of ATARS and university offers, UOW Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Theo Farrell said last week.

Durga Prasad is one of many international students using Kieraleagh House as a "home base" while they search for accommodation. He arrived in Wollongong last week from India, after receiving a scholarship to study a Masters of Computer Science at UOW.

"It's been a great first few days here, even though it's been raining," Mr Prasad said. "I chose Australia because it's beautiful, and great for International study."

Although he's only been here for a few days, Mr Prasad is already on the hunt for somewhere to live. Like many students, he's had to rule out the university's accommodation buildings for their heavy price tag.

"It's very expensive. I would consider it if they brought the price down a bit," he said.

Read More: UOW cancels plans to sell International House following high rental demands

For Ms Perger, housing students at Keiraleagh House is a return to its origins. She bought the property 31 years ago, before the university had any accommodation. Many of her first customers were students.

Back then, Ms Perger's vision for the property, as a hub for students, travellers and everyone in between, was a far cry from reality. At the time of purchase, the property was unliveable.

"When we first bought it, it was a derelict building. And it was condemned to be knocked down.

"There were no kitchens, no bathrooms, it was all boarded up. There was no electricity. It was a bit of a mess. Eventually it came together and over the years, we just keep adding and adding to it, because it's our love and passion."

From travellers, to tradies, to international students, the pandemic has certainly redefined what it means to be a "backpacker", Ms Perger said.

"It's a very different clientele from the backpackers that we used to have."

As international borders reopen to tourists and the government announced discounted working visas, she's looking forward to welcoming new faces again.

"I'm very excited. It's been a nice, long journey. I've really enjoyed it."

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