Hotel Steglitz International

I keep coming back to Hotel Steglitz when I'm in Berlin. The rooms feel safe and are clean and comfortable, and the staff are pleasant and helpful. Breakfast is worth paying for, too. On my last visit, a few of us forgot that the buffet starts 30 minutes later on weekends. The staff kindly let us in early anyway. With major bus lines and S- and U-Bahn stations less than a block away, the location is hard to beat.

The place is spotless throughout, and everyone on staff was very friendly. It's especially handy if you're visiting FU: there are shops and public transport close by, and many university buildings are walkable. The hotel feels a little dated, though, and my mattress sagged enough that it wasn't very comfortable. Wi-Fi was available but slow. Renovated rooms would make this a solid four-star stay for me.

There's a good breakfast every day, and plenty of spaces for meetings or other functions. The central location is handy, too, with rail connections nearby that make it easy to get around greater Berlin.

I picked this hotel for its price and for being close to the S- and U-Bahn. My first-floor room faced the street, and the steady, metronome-like traffic noise from the intersection kept going all night. Service was friendly and the room was cleaned every day. At breakfast, though, I felt watched. The waiter tried to take my plate several times before I'd finished, which was a bit much. They advertise Wi-Fi, but in my experience the connection didn't work.