Hostels in Venice, Berlin, Brussels

[jfishernc]

Does anybody have any good recommendations for cheap accomodation in Venice, Berlin, or Brussels? We are looking at them for the end of July. Also, how much do you think one should expect to pay? Thanks so much for any help.

John

[Eagle]

It would help if you could clarify which price range you consider as "cheap". Also, what types of accomodations would you prefer - Hostels, budget Hotels or ?

As you're travelling in peak season, the prices will be higher than other times of the year. Pre-booking for travel in July would be a really good idea!

Regarding "how much do you think one should expect to pay?", this will vary somewhat depending on location. I found Venice to be more expensive than other (similar) locations.

If you could provide a bit of additional information, I'm sure the group here will be able to offer some tips.

Cheers!!!

[jfishernc]

Hostels, most likely, although I've been looking at both. Here is a sample of what I've found so far...any feedback on these?

VENICE--
B&B Al Saor
Santa Fosca
Hotel Centrale
B&B Green Dauli
Hotel VVilla Dori
Magic Venice Barbato Apts.
(I've found it difficult to sort out where to stay in Venice!!!)

BERLIN
Circus
Jetpak
Mitte Backpacker

I've still more research to do. Obviously, I'm new at this, so any help would be great. Thanks!!!

[Eagle]

Again, what price range per night are you considering, and how many people??? Except for Hostels where travellers are charged "per bed", many rooms have slightly more favourable pricing for two people staying in the same room.

[jfishernc]

I'm sorry...yes, there are 2 of us travelling together. I am looking to stay under $80US a night for the both of us. I was hoping to stay for less than that, but it seems very difficult to do. Again, thanks for your help, Eagle. I really do appreciate it.

[herrbert]

For Berlin I would recommend the Circus, and the prices are good: www.circus-berlin.de/0/prices.html, but breakfast will cost you another 5 euros. I also heared good things about Mitte (but not stayed there).

[WillTravel]

For our August Berlin stay, we are staying (for the second time) at the Mercure Berlin an der Charité. We got a rate of 66 Euros per night through hotels.de, and this includes a transportation ticket, welcome drink, and free breakfast (the breakfast is great, btw). It works out to cheaper than the Circus's offer of a double room with shared bathroom and it's a very nice 3* hotel, although we will miss the camaderie of a hostel.

Try these sites for hotels:
www.hrs.de
www.hotels.de
www.booking.com
www.accorhotels.com

For Venice, you have a very difficult situation. Venice is more crowded every year, and more expensive. If you want to try a convent room, which might be tough at this late date, try looking for the book Bed and Blessings. At certain times of year, the hotel I previously stayed at, La Forcola, is within your budget range, but I doubt it will be in July.

Try the Eurocheapo.com/Venice site but I wouldn't expect any miracles.

I'd hate to recommend staying outside of Venice, because staying in Venice is so magical, but you might have to make a decision to increase your budget or move outside of Venice.

For Brussels, the above-mentioned sites might work.

I should also suggest these sites:
www.gtahotels.com
www.octopustravel.com
www.kayak.com

I'm sure you are looking on Hostelworld.com already.

[scribbledhearts]

I'm going to Venice soon, I've been looking on hostelworld.com, but there are several diff Venice, like Venice Mestre, Venice Lido? I'm assuming these are diff parts of Venice? Is there an area that is usually cheaper than the rest?

[Eagle]

Lodgings in the "outlying" areas are probably going to be less expensive than those in the centre of the city. I believe Mestre & Lido are more in the outlying areas?

Are you committed to staying only in Hostels, or would budget Hotels be acceptable also? You might have a look at www.albergodoni.it/ to see if they have any vacancies (I suspect they might be booked, as they're fairly close to Piazza San Marco). It's an older Hotel but I found the service to be great and the prices reasonable.

Good luck and hope you enjoy Venice!!!

[WillTravel]

From Mestre, check the details for getting from the hotel into Venice proper - usually it involves a bus which takes you to the edge of the island (Piazzale Roma) or a short train ride which takes you to the train station Santa Lucia. Then you can either walk around Venice or take the vaporetto.

From the Lido, you take a vaporetto to Venice proper - about a 20-minute ride or so, and there aren't any other options.

With both of these, you lose the immediacy of being in and on Venice itself, which is really nice. But you can often get nicer accommodations for a cheaper price, so it's a tradeoff.

If you do stay in Mestre or on the Lido, look into getting an ACTV pass which will cover buses plus the vaporettos.

Mestre is considered an ugly stepsister of Venice, with modern, industrial construction. Lido is a resort-type area.

A nice town from which you can take a 30-minute train ride to Venice is Padova.

[ryannorris]

I can only recommend Heart of Gold in Berlin. There's a good one in Venice but I cannot remember the name, sorry.