Best accommodation districts in Berlin and Prague
 

My husband and I are travelling to Berlin and Prague in July for 4 nights and 5 days per city. We are looking for 1 or 2 room apartment accommodation, but we're not sure what the best areas are in the cities. What areas are best to stay in with transport, cafes, parks nearby?

I would stay in Prague 1 as that's where most of the sights are. You'd be walking in most of this area but there is a metro or you can take a cab. I'm not sure what parks there are; I can't recall seeing any. I think it's more interesting to sit in a cafe and watch people go by or spend time sightseeing. Every other building seems to be a cafe/restaurant so you won't have any problem finding them.

Prague 1 Mala Strana (the caste side of the river) the nearest park is Petrin - the one which has a funicular going up from Ujezd and which has the famous tower.

I'll second Prague 1 Mala Strana, which is on the castle side. One caveat is that many accommodations on that side of the river are up the hill a bit, so the walk back to your apartment or hotel at the end of the day may be a little tiring. You can't really beat the atmosphere.

Prague 1 on the other side would be even more central, but could also be a little hectic or loud, depending on where you stay.

I have a recommendation for apartments in Prague, depending on what you are looking for, if you are interested.

Berlin is a tough call, because there are lots of districts with a different character. A lot of people will say Mitte, which is close to many sights and has some good transportation linkages. Berlin is a sprawling city, so the most important thing would be proximity to public transit. Charlottenburg and Tiergarten are nice areas, centrally located with lots of things to see. If you are looking for something a little hipper, Kreuzberg, Friedrichshain and Prenzlauer Berg in the east are also popular neighborhoods.

I found a good deal on a place kind of between Schoeneberg, and the south side of Tiergarten and Charlottenburg. I will stay there in June, so I can't recommend it yet, but I'd be happy to pass along a tip if you need a good lead.

If you havent been to Berlin before you're probably best staying in Mitte, like Woyzeck says there are many different districts but this way you'd be close to the main tourist attractions and the S Bahn from Alexanderplatz which will get you around everywhere quickly! Here are some nice apartment hotels: http://en.escapio.com/apartment-hotels/berlin the standard of accommodation in this city is really good and the hotels are not expensive like in some other European cities :-)

I always shill for The Bishop's House, which is where we stayed. It's 60 meters from the Mala Strana Tower of Charles Bridge, on a quiet street, on the Mala Strana side of the river, and the rooms are quite sizable. And it is in Prague 1.

If you're looking for an apartment, search as near as you can to the river on the Mala Strana side, or on Kampa Island.

Berlin is one of my favorite cities. I like staying in Charlottenburg - I find the Mitte a little sterile. Berlin has so many sights, but I would recommend the food floor at Ka-Da-We Department Store (have lunch there), a walking tour with Berlin Walks, an all day trip to Potsdam and the Pergamon Museum, the Reichstag dome and Charlottenburg Palace for starters.

Definitely the Mala Strana for Prague - we have rented twice with www.apartments-in-prague.org and would really recommend them (you can search using my name for a trip report).

I've stayed in the Friedrichshain area of Berlin before. It's a bit away from the city centre on the eastern side, but the area gives you a great feel of how ordinary Berliners live. We liked it very much.

We stayed at the Melia in Mitte last year and very much enjoyed both the hotel and the location. Proximity to the museums and public transport was excellent and there were lots of dining options near by.

I have previously stayed at The Westin Grand and enjoyed that as well but preferred Melia.