111op

Hi, do people know? I looked up some sample schedules for a Saturday and the answer seems to be yes for some trains. I checked an S-bahn train.

Will there be difficulties going between (former) East and (former) West Berlin in the wee hours of the morning, say?

Thanks.

Cowboy1968

Weekends are no problem.
Subways, and a number of trams, run 24hrs from Friday till Sunday night (actually 0030 hrs Monday morning).
So does the S-Bahn.

Unless you already know that you will have to use the S-Bahn I would also suggest to check for some sample schedules at www.bvg.de, the Berlin Transit Authority. On their website you also get the connection for (night) buses, subways, etc.

On weekdays you find subways to be replaced by night buses and which go (mostly) parallel to the subway lines and night trams between 0030 and 0430 hrs.

Regular subway & tram services run weekdays from 0430 until 0030 hrs.

111op

Great, thanks. I've made a temporary booking for a hotel near Savignyplatz, so that's the S-bahn. I checked some random connections for the Saturday night/Sunday morning I'll be there and the train runs every 15 minutes.

I did this on bvg, prior to posting here -- very useful website, definitely.

But obviously I can't do an exhaustive search since I don't even know what I'll be doing that day exactly, so I figured I'd ask here to see if there're some general rules of thumb about transportation.

WillTravel

On the other thread you asked for my Berlin hotel recommendations for 24-hour reception. I don't have anything specific. Priceline 3* bids seem to yield the very nice Marriott Courtyard near Potsdamer Platz most of the time, but the problem is you are taking a significant risk of ending up in the boonies.

Of course check www.accorhotels.com . All the major brands from the Ibis level and up have 24-hour reception.

I know you already checked www.hotel.de .

Maybe you could get very lucky and get the Melia for a cheap price as happens now and then - www.solmelia.com

111op

No such luck with Melia. It wants 99 euros a night that night (on their website). It came up on hotel.de also for a higher rate so I didn't think of checking it.

My own favorite -- Holiday Inn near Anhalter Bahnhof -- is also running at a higher rate. Especially high for the weekend I'll be there. I think it's because of the Berlin Film Festival.

Actually I think that I may be able to get some deals on asiarooms.com, but I'll have to request for the hotel and wait for an answer.

I don't necessarily require 24h reception, but I'm a little hesitant if I'm not sure if I can come and go as I please. Also as you know early Sunday morning I must leave Berlin, and I think the reception at that B&B starts at 8 am.

If you say PL is risky I won't attempt it. If you can't figure it out I'm sure I can't figure it out.

WillTravel

Where do you want to go for nightlife? If it's Oranienburgerstrasse, then Melia is perfect. You could see it as a splurge .

I have seen great deals on the Hotel Angleterre, a 3* hotel on Friedrichstrasse. I think these were at lastminute.co.uk as a Top Secret hotel, but it was quite easy to figure out it was the Angleterre.

111op

That's the thing. I don't think that there's much nightlife near Savignyplatz especially, though I think it's pretty lively and it's a nice area. Plus if the trains run all night I'm not concerned about getting back. I'm more concerned about the lack of 24h reception. But I guess I can settle my account in advance and leave my key in the room, which I've done before elsewhere.

Given what I'm spending my money on, what's another 50 euros? The Melia gets nice reviews on Tripadvisor as well.

The Angleterre is $130 (all in) for a single on Expedia. For a double it's about the same price as Melia. The lastminute deal must be better than this? Angleterre has nice reviews on Tripadvisor also.

WillTravel

Yes, the better deal I saw (albeit for a different time) was 53 Euros for the Angleterre for a double room. But I don't know if you can get it now.

111op

Guess not. Right now the cheapest single for that date is 44 pounds. There are three hotels. The cheapest one is a 4* in "Berlin City West." Therefore cannot be Angleterre.

GottaGo6603

I stayed at the Melia earlier this month. I loved it. It was much nicer than I was expecting and the staff were wonderful. Plan to spend a day sleeping: the beds are incredibly comfortable.

The only negative: I had to pay for wifi, though, which irked me since they're not cheap.

If you join SolMelia's frequent stayer program, you get 2-for-the-price-of-one on the impressive breakfast buffet.

The location is excellent - practically across the street from the main train station where you can get the U- or S-bahn easily.

I had a wonderful room on the 5th floor overlooking the Spree.

I say: go for it!

111op

I'm always unwilling to pay for hotels because I spend little time in them. Especially with this one -- I'll probably need to leave around 5 am or earlier. But I'll think about it. I do like convenience.

111op

I switched my hotel to Motel One on Alexanderplatz for 59 euros a night. I called the B&B this morning, and they seemed a little hesitant about comings and goings. I checked hotel.de again and Motel One sounds nice from TripAdvisor, plus I've not been to Alexanderplatz.

111op

Sorry -- they seemed hesitant about *late* comings and goings -- and most likely I'll be out late at night and I also have to leave early in the morning. 24h front desk will be better.