Another Fodorite overwhelmed by choices. Needs are basic, don't require all the amenities of larger hotels, just a private bath, quiet location a plus, with good access to transportation. Going to Denmark and Russia ($$$) after Berlin so looking for budget hotel here. Would like to stay as close to $100 as possible but will pay $150. If doable, would like the Mitte/Potsdamer Platz area

If anyone has any recommendations I'll be your fan for life!!

Thanks.

I know you were looking to be close to Potsdamer Platz but I will post this anyway.

July of 2004 we were in Berlin and stayed at a place called Pension Peters, www.pension-peters-berlin.de
It is maybe a ten minute walk from the main train station, Bahnhof Zoo, or you can take the S-Bahn to the Savignyplatz stop and it is just a few minutes walk from there. We had a huge "family room" with bath for our family of 4 and it was very nice. It also included breakfast. Sorry I can't remember what we paid but I know it was quite reasonable. It was a safe neighborhood and the family that runs it were very nice. There are numerous restaurants close by.

That should be very easy to do, unless your dates coincide with a major trade fair. We're getting a centrally located 3* hotel for significantly less than that in 3 weeks. Try these sites:
http://www.bookings.org
http://www.hotels.de
http://www.hrs.de
http://www.accorhotels.com

Berlin has some of the best accommodation deals in western Europe, IMO.

Cheap, comfortable (if a bit basic) and with a fabulous weekend breakfast included with the price. Pretty good bkfst on non-weekends, too: Pension Schall und Rauch, 11 Gleimstrasse, Prenzlauerberg. Only 3 minutes by foot from the Schoenhauser Allee S-Bahn stop.

P-Berg is an 'alternative' neighborhood, on the east side of the city, so not exactly in the center of things. Schall and Rauch -- which translates as "Noise and Smoke", though S&R is neither noisy nor smoky -- advertises as a Gay and Lesbian Pension. However, during my extended stay, the other residents seemed to be all over the spectrum in every regard.

A bonus: a multi-screen movie theater is a block or so away, so if you come to the end of the day dog-tired and just want to relax with a movie -- it's right there!

Another Berlin pension/hotel I can recommend is Pension Adam in Charlottenburg. It too is close to public transport (which almost every area in Berlin seems to be), and within a few blocks of the Ku-damm and Savigny Platz areas, which abounds in restaurants and shops. Again, inexpensive, clean, comfortable.

You'll have no trouble finding satisfactory places to stay in Berlin, for far less than $US 100 per night.

Fritzl

And, despite the risk of appearring to be an insufferable egotist, I'll attach a link to my Berlin trip report from last year. If it provides you some addn'l insights into what to expect, then it's to the good.

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34628125

Fritzl

I doubt if you want to be out of the center but you can really save bucks at the ETAP hotel - about 35 euros per room and right by a suburban rail station in East Berlin, about a 20 min commute to the centre. www.accorhotels.com - Marzahn (sp?)

How about the incredibly interesting Propeller Island Lodge? It's an art hotel, with each room constituting a work of art, in its own way. It was quite convenient to public transportation - about a 2 block walk to the metro. Our room was about 110 euros in 2004.

Even if you don't stay there, check out its website: http://www.propeller-island.com/room...l/01/index.php

$100-$150 is budget?

We thought we were splurging because we're spending $125 a night at the Arcotel Velvet. Seems like a pretty nice hotel in a pretty good location to be considered budget.

It's all what you're used to, isn't it?

Rufus - Compared to hotels in Scandanavia
and Russia $100 is budget. Believe me we don't do 3 & 4 star hotels and I'm checking into apartments in Russia because they're less expensive! After more searching I realize hotels are much cheaper in Berlin!

We stayed in Berlin in May this year in a one room appartment, very convenient situated near Alexanderplatz. It is a very nice app., well equipped, in a new building, at 9th floor. It is near bus station (bus 200 and 100; bus 200 takes you most of the sights in the city).
We booked it via www.123zimmers.de It is "City apartment near AlexanderPlatz O.001103" , it costs 49 Euro / night.

USD 100 to 150 are going to buy you a lot of value in Berlin.

A friend of mine recently stayed at Hotel Casa in West Berlin on Schlueterstr. and really raved about it. I know its location, which I think is really nice if you want to stay in the center of West Berlin.
Schlueterstr. is a refined sidestreet of Ku'damm and the hotel is only a short walk from metro station Uhlandstr. and S-stop Savignyplatz.
Savignyplatz is also a nice area to sample a meal and a few drinks at night - but there are also a number of noteweorthy eateries and restaurants on Schlueterstr and its immediate surroundings. Should you require any tips, give me a hint.
You might want to look into it at

http://www.hotel-casa.de/index.php?o...amp;lang=en_EN

If you are going to be in town over a weekend, you also might consider staying at one of the bigger chain hotels that usually offer quite favourable rates over the weekends (and accommodation will come at only a fraction of the cost you are likely to spend for lesser quality in Russia).
A great place which I keep recommending is the fairly new Radisson SAS Hotel opposite Museum Island and just a short stroll from Hackesche Hoefe and Alexanderplatz, as well as Unter den Linden in the Eastern center called Mitte. If you book at least 5 days in advance, you can get rates as low as EUR 99.00 over a weekend, which is a deal that is hard to be beat for such a quality place. I am aware that this is not exactly a budget hotel - but if you can get more for your money why shy away from it?

http://www.berlin.radissonsas.com/

Definitely looking for under $100 now!

We stayed at the Marriott at Potsdammerplatz for $50 US/night through Priceline in October 2004. Check it out at www.biddingfortravel.com. I'm not sure if it's still on the PL list of possibilities, but we loved the almost-new hotel and it's location.

Just checked at BFT for PL hotels in Berlin. If you bid at the 3* level, you'd have a very high likelihood of getting one of the following hotels:

Top Concept Hotel
Marriott
Top Alsterhof Hotel
Holiday Inn Garden Court Kurfurstendamm

On BFT there's a link to reviews of each hotel, so if any of these four would be acceptable to you, study the bidding process and go for it.

We stayed at Pension Peters twice, though it was a while ago ('97 and '01). Good to see they're still in business, and still nice. I agree that the family who ran it was very nice, and the rooms clean and bright. As Jan57 said, not Mitte or Potsdamer Platz, but everything feels very close via S-Bahn. Close to the Ku'damm for meals and shopping...

Check out Hotel Ravenna. It's near U-bahn and S-bahn "Steglitz" but no a/c.

http://www.ravenna-hotel.de/english/index.html

Berlin is a great priceline city - I stayed at the 4* Moevenpick two years ago for $65. Great hotel!