Berlin Hotel - 4 nights

Berlin is a very decentralised city where nowhere will be in walking distance of all the sites. Common places to stay are:

Kurfuerstendamm area: the old city centre of West Berlin, now a bit less prominent but still with good transport links. Look in particular for the area around Savignyplatz which has a fair amount of upmarket shops and restaurants.

Potsdamer Platz area: Redeveloped since the Wall came down and somewhat "international" and characterless, but close to the West Berlin art museum complex and good transport links.

Scheunenviertel in Mitte: Slightly hipsterish area right in the centre with good transport links. The area around the Hackescher Hoefe has a lot of nightlife but can be noisy.

We loved the location of our hotel on our recent visit to Berlin. It was right on the river by the Friedrichstrasse bridge. This is halfway between the Reichstag building and the Museum Insel and very walkable to both on the riverside path---less than a kilometer each way. The Melia and Riverside City hotel are right at this location, on opposite sides of the river. Both are under $150/night in May, at least according to Hotels.com, but that price may not include breakfast. Another nice place a few blocks up Friedrichstrasse ( so jot right on the river) is the Maritim.

Lola's suggested area is good, but do check TripAdvisor reviews about soundproofing, as the main railway line through the city is close by.

That is a good point, Philip. We stayed at the Riverside City Hotel, which is across the river from the Friedrichstrasse station, so noise was not an issue. I checked the location of the other hotels in relation to the station, and both the Melia and the Maritim are within a block or two. So it would be well worth asking about train noise.

The Riverside City Hotel was quite nice---we had a large and lovely corner room with a view over the river. But the breakfast arrangement was a bit odd---not the usual breakfast buffet with breads and cheeses, but a small tray brought to the table, with 2 croissants, butter and jam, and not much else. A nice cappuccino for my husband and tea for me, but not worth what we paid for breakfast. If we stayed there again, I would skip the extra charge for breakfast and go elsewhere.

and the Maritim are within a block or two. So it would be well worth asking about train noise.

I didn't notice any train noise at all when I stayed there.

We stayed at the Hampton Inn near the zoo. We were able to get around with no trouble, used the HOHO bus for transportation since we found it cheaper then the bus/trains, easier too. The breakfast was included and was varied and plentiful. Ate enough to last us till dinner everyday.

If you are looking for something interesting and unusual I recommend you to pay attention to the hotel Propeller Island City Lodge in Berlin. All the rooms are so different, delightful and fabulous, that it is worth going to Germany. I read that the hotel is visited by people from around the world. They just want to see this beauty with their own eyes. There are a lot of different and fabulous hotels now, but this hotel impressed me very much. Here, http://www.hotelyouwant.com/propeller-island-city-lodge/ you can see the most detailed its description with photos of the rooms.

This thread is 5 months old. I think the OP's trip is completed.