The Circus Hostel

Friendly staff Comfortable beds Good facilities

Beds were comfortable and semi-secluded, which didn't allow for much socialization. Very clean rooms and bathrooms. Great shower pressure (and hot!). Conveniently located near the Rosenthaler Platz station. Great 5 euro breakfast buffet, though it can get pretty busy. Friendly and helpful staff.

Wasn't a huge fan of having to use the elevator every time to get to my room. Felt more like a hotel than a hostel at times. Can be pretty loud at night since its near a busy intersection.

Everything was great!

Great breakfast. Great location. Great staff. In general, the whole hostel experience was quite great. It was the cleanest hostel I've ever been, the rooms were quite great and, in general, the staff couldn't be more lovely. Everyone made the best efforts to provide me the best services and treatment they could. The bar wasn't exactly cheap, but it also wasn't that expensive.

That being said... The happy hour had quite a small duration (only from 7 until 8pm). Also, missed a gathering entertainment point by the bar - such as, for instance, a pool table (which was available on my hostel before this one). Also, charging for basic services - which in my humble opinion should already be provided, specially considering the daily rate - was outrageous. There wasn't a padlock by default on the locker - which should be bought at the reception, for 5€. The towels also were charged - 1€ per rent. The breakfast, which costed 5€, provided only ONE drink - differently from a competitor, Wombat, which had the same price range and provided basically all you can eat and drink during breakfast, for virtually the same price. Also, the luggage room charged for lockers. 0,40€ per hour on small lockers and 0,80€ per hour for larger lockers. Charging for those items isn't actually a problem - There's basically nothing wrong on doing so. It'd be completely and perfectly normal... If the hostel rates were near 10€ per day or similar, meaning a completely aggressive pricing strategy. However, charging an average of 25-30€ per day and not providing these TOTALLY basic services already included sounds quite absurd. There's similar competitors offering them for free even on a smaller rate - and, of course, there's always the Airbnb option. The hostel was great. The staff was great. But, unfortunately, the devil lives in the details. I absolutely loved Berlin, and I'm planning to get back there as soon as possible. Unluckily, the hostel missed a customer that really loved its facilities - but got disappointed on paying small fees for basic services that shouldn't be charged at all. Which means, short, it missed a long-term potential consumer. Remember: a hostel isn't just a building. It's made of experiences. Services. Overcharging for small things can be quite fatal.