You’re not living here (yet) but just visiting? Or your friends are? Berlin has some cheap hostels and low-budget hotels – check out this overview.
First: Where to stay?
If you’ve never been to Berlin before, you might first want to know where to stay and where to go. And it of course all depends on what you want to visit.
However, there are some places that are suitable for any purpose because they are well connected with the whole city.
The districts most popular among young tourists are:
- Friedrichshain (where the famous Berghain club is)
- Kreuzberg
- the north of Neukölln, informally also called “Kreuzkölln”)
- Prenzlauer Berg
- Mitte
Roughly, these areas are north, east and south of the city center.
Another feature to check for is how well connected you would be to Berlin’s public transport. Berlin has a pretty good system: though the S-Bahn and U-Bahn work past midnight only on weekends and holidays, night buses operate all night every night.
The following stations are both well connected and also in the middle of busy/touristy areas with a lot of amenities like cafés, bars and late shops etc.
- Ostkreuz (in Friedrichshain): Eastern S-Bahn hub, connections to all 4 directions
- Warschauer Straße (in Friedrichshain), only 1 station west of Ostkreuz, connecting the main
east-west line (S3 S5 S7, to the main station) with the U1 metro (to Kreuzberg) and the M10 tram (to Prenzlauer Berg). It’s also close to the East Side Gallery. - Alexanderplatz (in Mitte), another public transport hub, connecting the main east-west line with two north-south metro lines (U2 to Prenzlauer Berg, U8 to Kreuzberg and Neukölln)
- Eberswalder Straße (in Prenzlauer Berg), connecting the U2 metro (to
Mitte) with the M10 tram (to Friedrichshain). Close to the Kulturbrauerei.
If you look for the classical tourist experience, you will be served well at these places.
In a broader view, you will be also fine if you’re close to any Berlin Ringbahn station. This is a circle train line, connecting all the central districts, the main bus station (ZOB) and with interchange stations to many other lines.
Cheap stays in Berlin
Since you know now where to go, here are some some direct links to search results on Booking.com:
Friedrichshain * Kreuzberg * Mitte * Prenzlauer Berg *
And if you want to search Berlin-wide:
Cheap picks from the search results above, with their ratings:
| Area | Hostel | Closest station | Rating | Prices from |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kreuzberg | StayComfort * | U1 Schlesisches Tor (500 m) | 6.1 | 11 EUR * |
| Prenzlauer Berg | Generator * | S Landsberger Allee (Ring, 200 m) | 6.9 | 11 EUR * |
| Friedrichshain | Sunflower * | S+U Warschauer Straße (450 m) | 8.1 | 12 EUR * |
| Friedrichshain | Check In * | U6 Kochstraße (500 m) | 7 | 13 EUR * |
| Mitte | Hostelo * | S+U Gesundbrunnen (Ring, 200 m) | 8.2 | 13 EUR * |
| Prenzlauer Berg | Lette’m Sleep * | U2 Eberswalder Straße (650 m) | 7 | 14 EUR * |
| Kreuzberg | Three Little Pigs * | S Anhalter Bahnhof (200 m) | 8.3 | 14 EUR * |
Links marked with a star (*) are affiliate links. If you click on such a link and then shop or order something, we will receive a commission for your purchase with which we can cover our expenses and keep the site free of ads. This does not change the price for you.
