The Circus Berlin hostel was one of the best places we ever stayed. Of course, it is still a hostel, so there are no extras. But all the essential things you need on a trip were there. The rooms were very clean, the bathroom was good, as long as you take a room with a bathroom. The Hostel is located in the north-east of Berlin in a quite quiet and green district. But it takes only five minutes by U-Bahn (subway/metro) to get to the center of the city—The Alexanderplatz next to the TV tower—or five minutes by tram to get to the Museum Island. We payed €62 a night for a double room with a bathroom. The breakfast was not included in the price. "All-you-can-eat" breakfast was available for €5. The hostel has a bar and a cafe. The reception was extraordinarily friendly, you can borrow books about Berlin, get good advice, and rent a monthly ticket to all the transport in Berlin which is cheaper than buying an all-day ticket.

I stayed at the Circus last year. It's a great place in the old East Berlin. It is easy to get to and very professional. The staff is quite international, and the breakfast is a great deal. The bar is nice. I've been hosteling for 12 years and this place is one of my favorites. Also -- don't miss the Brewers walking tour of Berlin - the best €10 you can spend on understanding Berlin and modern Europe.

This IS the best youth hostel in the world. It is cheap, clean, and secure in a great location.

Located in the former East, two stops on the U-Bahn from Alexanderplatz or a short walk, it is situated in a nice up-and-coming area. It has plenty of low-priced shops and restaurants nearby.

The rooms are excellent, decked out in the standard IKEA furniture, but very comfortable and homely. They consist of five bedded dorms, but have apartments on the top floor I think. There is a bedside table with drawers and a reading lamp by each bed. The rooms are very clean, and the beds are well spaced.

The bathrooms, again, are clean and very modern. There are about eight showers for four rooms, which is a good ratio in my opinion. Each room, floor, and corridor has swipe-card locks so security is excellent. Lockers are free of charge, but do require a deposit of around 10€.

There is no lockout or curfew, and if you have come on an overnight train and your room is not ready, you can still use all the facilities, including the shower. The staff is very friendly and regularly organise tours and excursions out. They can also book hostels and trains for you, and have a goldmine of information on them, too.

Downstairs there is a bar that can be lively and sociable, depending on the night and the people in. I think a better place to meet people is the seating area in reception, with its comfortable leather sofas.

Breakfast is not included, but there is a nice café adjacent to the hostel that is quite nice and averagely priced. Internet access in the hostel is good with four terminals, but it is quite expensive, so it is best to head to the easy Internet café in Alexanderplatz, where it is cheaper and more comfortable, with more computers.

The Circus is of a higher standard than some four-star hotels I have stayed in and is cheap. It is, in my opinion, one of the best places to stay in the world.

After hanging around the west side of Berlin for the night, we finally got a few hours of heavenly sleep! Circus Hostel is a comfy, modern, and clean hostel with great internet access, friendly staff (some of whom aided me in getting a flight back to Ireland when I was short on cash!)and excellent shower facilities.

The Turkish kebab stall across the road was always a tasty treat, and was cheaper than the hostels "all-you-can-eat" buffet. The seating area outside the hostel was always a nice area to meet people from around the world, play cards, and drink some local beer!

This was my first time staying at a hostel and I was not disappointed at all! The rooms and bathrooms were very clean. You can request different types of rooms - four-bed, five-bed, and a bigger room.

The other good thing about the hostel was the various discount cards, tickets, tokens, etc. they were able to provide their guests. I was able to get a subway day ticket for only 5 Euros, a 10 Euro museum pass, and other restaurant discounts.

The staff is very friendly and fun!