Hostel StayComfort Kreuzberg

The people seemed nice, and things were generally very uncomplicated. The location is central and really good. It's extremely cheap, and that shows in the poor beds, shabby look, cramped rooms, and occasional strange smells. They do keep up with hygiene even if it doesn't look that way, and the showers and toilets are okay for a hostel.

For my first trip to Berlin, I came for a concert and paid around 28 Euro a night for two nights. The room was meant for four, with two bunk beds and one double bed. The sheets on four beds were clean, but one bunk still had dirty sheets, which was disturbing. Everything else seemed clean. Our cabinet looked brand new and had plenty of room for our things. There was no fan, so with the window open it was noisy at night, but with it shut we'd have been sweating. Getting to the Mercedes Benz Arena, the reason for my trip, took about 15 minutes on foot. There's a bus stop right by the hostel, and plenty of restaurants and late-night convenience stores nearby. The kitchen was fully stocked, with lots of tables and a fridge, and there was a washer and dryer too, though I didn't use them. The showers and toilets were the bad part. They were cleaned once a day, but by the time we wanted to shower, they were filthy. After the next day's cleaning, the janitor still hadn't refilled the toilet paper in any bathroom, so I had to do it myself. We stayed two days and chose not to shower. If you need to, I'd bring disposable slippers so your feet don't touch the floor. Disposable hotel slippers are cheap on Amazon. Free body, hand, and hair wash was available, and towels cost extra. For a longer Berlin stay, I'd pay a bit more for somewhere better. For one or two nights, this place is perfect.

The stay might have been fine if not for the black-haired cleaning woman. She threw one of my things away, then went over to the trash laughing. She came across as arrogant and unpleasant, and despite seeming to clean, left things dirty. I hope the hostel managers fire her, because she is clearly a weak point here. Without that experience, it wouldn't have been bad.

I usually choose hostels when I travel, but I really regret booking this one. I wouldn't give it even one star, and it's the worst place I've stayed. There was a bad smell throughout, and the cafeteria wasn't fresh. The receptionists weren't kind, though they weren't especially rude either. There's a sign in the cafeteria banning alcohol, smoking, and drugs, yet someone was drinking there anyway. The low price isn't worth it. Look for another hostel so you don't end up regretting this one.