Berlin: Wombats' City Hostel & Local Eats

Berlin: Wombat's City Hostel & Local Eats

25/8/2015

Wombat's City Hostel Berlin - Tily Travels.

A review of Wombat's City Hostel in Berlin, Germany and a guide to cheap eats in the local area.

My 7-night adventure is one I'll never forget!

Wombat's City Hostel Berlin - Outside of the hostel.

Hostel exterior.

Wombat's City Hostel Berlin - Hostel sign.

Wombat's City Hostel Berlin - Hostel key card.

Keycard access.

After leaving a week open in my travel plans due to indecisiveness, I finally selected Berlin and Wombat's City Hostel as my next destination. Hastily packing my belongings in Greece, I made the silly mistake of not including a change of clothes in my carry-on bag, flying into Berlin dressed for a warm 28 degrees (Celsius), however, was unfortunately welcomed by a chilly 11 degrees and the daunting reality that Aegean Airlines had lost my luggage.

Arriving at the hostel after such a delay and being greeted with a smile, advice, heating and extra welcome drinks to ease my first world struggles, helped to settle my anxiety.

I selected Wombats precisely because there was a bar on-site and as a solo traveller I find it is easier to meet people staying in "party hostels". Everyone is more sociable and enthusiastic about the whole hostel experience, and this was the case at Wombat's; Every person I met here was happy, a lot of fun and memorable.

My first four nights were spent in a 6-bed all female dorm, and my last three nights in a 4-bed mixed dorm, both en-suite, below are my opinions on the hostel separated over 12 categories

FEATURES & AMENITIES

★★★★☆

• Free WiFi.
• Rooftop bar.
• Computer
area.
• Tourist info.
• Guest
kitchen.
• Guest
Laundry.
• Courtyard
• 24-hour
reception.
• Great
location.

• 4-6 bed
  dorms,
female only
  dorm, double
  rooms and
  apartments; all
  en-suite,
some with
  balconies.
• Linen included.
• Elevator
  access.
• Wheelchair
friendly.

CLEANLINESS

★★★★★

The dorm rooms and en-suites rooms are serviced every day. The foyer, computer area, bathrooms and hallways were always clear of rubbish/ mess, and the WomBar (rooftop bar) is the cleanest hostel bar I have ever seen.

Can't comment on the kitchen as I never used it, I was too obsessed with the felafels sold down the road and the feta salad next door at Louisiana Kid.

COMFORT

★★★★☆

I found the beds comfortable, and you have the option of 2 pillows which was a bonus. There were no complaints here.

The one thing Wombat's Berlin lacked was a decent lounge area, however, downstairs in the foyer, there were plenty of large cushions to lie upon and laze about. The presence of the bar upstairs made a lounge seem non-important anyway.

ACCOMMODATION

★★★★☆

The dorm rooms feature traditional bunk bedding and secure lockers. Each bed had a shelf, power outlet and tiny light which I found very useful when stumbling in hours after my roommates had gone to bed. Every room has an en-suite.

WiFi

★★★☆☆

The WiFi is free but isn't the best. I was only able to access it properly inside my room on my first night, all other times it was a constant battle for bandwidth, often dropping out or not working unless I was downstairs at reception (where it was always reliable).

With all there is to do in Berlin this wasn't an issue, I didn't travel across the world to sit inside on a computer all day.

LOCATION

★★★★☆

Centrally located in Berlin's Mitte district, the hostel is in an excellent location, with Alexanderplatz only a short walk away and a tram, bus and train link (Rosa Luxemburg Platz) just around the corner.

PEOPLE

★★★★★

I met a lot of really great people here, mainly Australians as the hostel name suggests it would attract, but you'll also find other nationalities in the mix. Without Wombat's I would not have had the pleasure of meeting Mark and Paul, and my memory bank definitely wouldn't be as interesting without our adventures.

Wombat's City Hostel Berlin - Wombats Berlin reception.

Wombat's Berlin reception (photo via Flickr).

Wombat's City Hostel Berlin - Ground floor seating.

Ground floor seating area (photo via TripAdvisor).

4-bed mixed dorm.

Wombat's City Hostel Berlin - Berlin Photoautomat/ photo booth.

Paul, Mark, me at the Photoautomat/ Photobooth across the road from the hostel. Guests are invited to add their
portraits to the hostel collection.

Wombat's City Hostel Berlin - Drinks at the hostel bar.

Drinks with Amanda and Paul at the WomBar.

Wombat's City Hostel Berlin - Wombats rooftop bar.

WomBar - rooftop bar (photo via wombats-hostels.com).

Wombat's City Hostel Berlin - Rooftop bar.

WomBar - rooftop bar (photo via TripAdvisor).

Wombat's City Hostel Berlin - Rooftop bar terrace.

WomBar rooftop terrace (photo via wombats-hostels.com).

Wombat's City Hostel Berlin - View of Berlin at night from the terrace.

View of Berlin from the rooftop terrace.

CRAZY CHARACTERS

★★☆☆☆

Scale:
☆☆☆☆☆ no crazies → ★★★★★ bat country

Wombats would have scored a 0 in this category, accept the behaviour of the naked girl in my room was the most revolting thing I have ever seen another person do in my life.

Of course, every hostel has a variable amount of crazy characters and Wombat's isn't any different. Some are the excellent type that provide laughs and enhance the memories of your stay, and the other is the type that makes you wish the neuralyzer out of Men in Black wasn't fiction.

During my stay, I met an Aussie guy who painstakingly tried over and over again to roll the perfect joint. He finally succeeded and wandered off into Schendelpark only to never be seen again. For those of us in the Pink Wing (dorm 114) I don't think we are forgetting the girl from New Zealand who loved exercise so much that she would wake the room up each morning huffing, puffing and moaning like she had taken a German lover. Or the slightly batty, naked and drunk Korean girl who stuck a panty-liner to the wall and repeatedly flooded our bathroom during her 2-night stay. I woke up one morning as she was climbing the bunk ladder to the bed above me (i.e. THE WRONG TIME) and my first vision of the day was what she had for breakfast - needless to say, we were all thankful when she was gone (including the cleaning lady).

STAFF

★★★★☆

The staff here were friendly and available to help with any question you may have. They were kind enough to give me extra welcome drink cards when I arrived stressed and without my luggage.

ATMOSPHERE

★★★★★

I found it easy to meet people. Everyone was in a really good mood here which made for a great place to stay. At any point, you would walk through the building and be greeted by smiling faces, which is always nice.

SECURITY

★★★★★

The electronic room key given to you at check-in opens your room, your allocated luggage locker and also gives you access to all other guest areas of the hostel. The front door is locked (keycard access) for safety during the evening, this helps to keep the patrons of the rooftop bar limited to guests, and friends of guests only, as well as stopping any random passers-by from walking in. As a solo female traveller, I always felt safe here, both inside the hostel and out.

VALUE FOR MONEY

★★★★☆

All rates are per person, per night and include linen, a Berlin city map and a welcome drink at their rooftop bar. Although priced a few dollars higher than other hostels in the area, I found this hostel completely worth it and would stay here again.

OVERALL: 4½ out of five

Inside Louisiana Kid.

Luxa.

LOCAL EATS

LOUISIANA KID

ALTE SCHÖNHAUSER STR. 2, 10119 BERLIN, GERMANY.
(MAP LOCATION B)

Located next door and accessible via the foyer is Louisiana Kid, a restaurant serving a traditional American-Cajun style menu with generous portions. The burgers were good, and as I mentioned above, I was a fan of the feta salad.
(The restaurant also supplies the Pizza's ordered upstairs at the WomBar.)

LUXA

TORSTRASSE 56, 10119 BERLIN, GERMANY.
(MAP LOCATION C)

The incredible kebab shop three doors down from Wombats. The falafel wraps here were amazing! I devoured one every day as I couldn't resist the smell while walking past on my way to the ATM. Quick and easy Middle Eastern food which was reasonably priced and great tasting.

They were open late which made them perfect for a quick lunch, dinner or drunken 2 am kebab. The staff are fantastic, nicknaming me Mrs Boombastic, which according to 1995 and Shaggy means I'm totally fantastic, so let's run with that. I recommend Luxa.

GOOD MORNING VIETNAM

ALTE SCHÖNHAUSER STR. 60, 10119 BERLIN, GERMANY.
(MAP LOCATION D)

A Vietnamese restaurant located across the road. I never ate there as I didn't feel like Vietnamese food. However, the restaurant always looked busy.

ROSENTHALER GRILL & SCHLEMMERBUFFET

TORSTRASSE 125, 10119 BERLIN, GERMANY.
(MAP LOCATION E)

I am unsure if this place is 24 hours. However, it always seemed to be open. Reliable for a drunken 3 AM feed the Rothenthaler is my favourite late night mixed grill in town.

.... EXTRAS

MOMO

FEHRBELLINER STR. 5, 10119 BERLIN.
(MAP LOCATION F)

DUMPLINGS.
DUMPLING SOUP.
VEGETARIAN.
ORGANIC.

FLEISCHEREI

SCHÖNHAUSER ALLEE 12, 10119 BERLIN.
(MAP LOCATION G)

ITALIAN - PIZZERIA.

YAMYAM

ALTE SCHÖNHAUSER STR. 6, 10119 BERLIN.
(MAP LOCATION H)

KOREAN.

MÄDCHENITALIENER

ALTE SCHÖNHAUSER STR. 12, 10119 BERLIN.
(MAP LOCATION I)

ITALIAN - PASTA.

MONSIEUR VUONG

ALTE SCHÖNHAUSER STR. 46, 10119 BERLIN.
(MAP LOCATION J)

VIETNAMESE.

DOLORES

ROSA-LUXEMBURG-STRASSE 7, 10178, BERLIN.
(MAP LOCATION K)

BURRITOS, TACOS, QUESADILLAS.
VEGETABLES, BEANS & SOUPS.
CHIPS, RICE & SALADS.

ESCADOS

KARL-LIEBKNECHT-STRASSE 29,10178 BERLIN.
(MAP LOCATION L)

STEAKHOUSE & GRILL.

HOFBRÄUHAUS BERLIN

KARL-LIEBKNECHT-STRASSE 30, 10178 BERLIN.
(MAP LOCATION M)

TRADITIONAL GERMAN CUISINE.

LOCAL EATS LOCATION MAP

MAP LOCATION A = WOMBATS CITY HOSTEL

WOMBATS CITY HOSTEL BERLIN

Alte Schönhauser Str. 2, 10119 Berlin, Germany PH: +49 30 84710820

** I don't have many photos due to losing my Camera in Berlin. The photos in this post were snapped on my iPhone, taken in a photo booth or sourced online.