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Germany is where the youth hostel movement began over 100 years ago so it should come as no surprise that its capital and largest city is loaded with them. There are hostels in Berlin in virtually every neighborhood, and very few of them have age restrictions and daytime curfews anymore so don’t worry about it if you’ve been out of school for a few years or even a few decades. The Berlin hostel scene is welcoming to all and these places have become a popular way for budget travelers of all ages to get more for their money.

Berlin is a gigantic city, similar to London, but unlike London its sights are quite spread out. This is both a good and a bad thing in different ways. The good part is that there are Berlin hostels spread all over the city that are in decent locations, and the bad part is everything is spread all over the city so you’ll be spending quite a bit of time on public transportation no matter what.

West Berlin, or at least what used to be known as West Berlin before the wall came down, is the more posh part of town. The high-end stores are in this district, and prices of just about everything are a bit higher. It may sound nice, but to be honest it’s not nearly as much fun as the former East of the city, which is a much larger area anyway.

The Mitte district in the east is a great central location. The area just around the famous Oranienburger Strasse is filled with small cutting-edge shops, bars, and nightclubs. There are a few hostels in this district and this is a great area to sleep in if you want to check out Berlin’s notorious nightlife. Spending 30 minutes each way to get to a museum during the day is no big deal, but spending 30 minutes (or more) going back and forth to the nightlife district after midnight is a pain in the ass. It’s usually best to plan your hostel around what you’ll be doing at night rather than what you’ll be doing during the day.

The Kreuzberg section in the south of the Mitte district is rougher around the edges, but still a good choice. This has been home to a large number of immigrants, particularly Turks, for decades, and now the area is beginning to spruce up and host some interesting nightlife and funky shops. Berlin hostels that claim to be near any of these areas will be fun and should be relatively cheap.

The public transportation system in Berlin is excellent so you can really stay anywhere and be okay. There are pockets of interesting restaurants, bars, and clubs all over the city so even if you find yourself in a somewhat remote location there should be things within walking distance. Most of the hostels in Berlin are situated near bars and some even have friendly bars on the premises so this is one city where it’s tough to go wrong no matter what you choose.

Hostels in Germany (Berlin)