Berlin is a city rife with culture, history, and a bohemian attitude that takes a lot of visitors by surprise. It’s an easy city to enjoy on a budget, with plenty of free attractions to keep even the most frugal minded traveller happy.
If that’s not incentive enough to book those cheap flights, Berlin is a city bursting with great cheap eats. No matter how low your budget is, you’re sure to find some awesome food for a couple of Euros on the streets of the German capital.
Curry 36
If you’re set on seeing Berlin on a budget you’re bound to find yourself eating currywurst at least once, and you can’t say “Ich bin ein Berliner” unless you’ve sampled the wurst Curry 36 has to offer. Currywurst is steamed and fried sausage topped with curry powder and ketchup: it’s that simple, and that delicious. This little shack has queues of hungry locals in front of it night and day, and it has such a strong reputation that they’ve even launched their own range of official currywurst sauce.
Burgermeister
It’s well worth leaving your hotels in Berlin for a day out in Kreuzberg, and if it’s meaty goodness you’re looking for, look no further than underneath the U-Bahn tracks near the station. Of course, there are some vegetarian options too: the tofu burger is nice enough, but nothing can compare to the bacon laden Meistaburger. The chilli cheese fries are pretty good too.
Tadim Lamacun
Despite Angela Merkel’s declaration that multiculturalism has failed in Germany, there are some pretty great budget eats to be found once you start visiting ethnic restaurants like Tadim Lamacun, which specialises in the Turkish dish lamacun: basically a Turkish burrito. Thin flatbread is topped with minced meat, salad and sauce, then rolled into a burrito shape.
Miss Saigon
You can pick up a dish of delicious Vietnamese soup (pho) for around €6 at this modest little fast food joint. Like most great cheap foodie options, it’s popular with Berlin office workers. You might find yourself standing in a queue if you turn up at lunch time, but your first bite of the fresh, crunchy spring rolls will make it all worthwhile. Try the milkshakes, too: the coconut and avocado one sounds a bit strange, but the flavours really do work.
Rogacki
Back to German style food, this deli offers a lunch time platter of blutwurst, leberwurst, sauerkraut and mashed potatoes for €4.50. The sausages (blood sausage and liver sausage respectively) are somewhat of a delicacy, so if you don’t enjoy black pudding then it’s perhaps better to avoid this one and try something else on the menu, like the fried fish. If you do decide to go for it, you’ll be rewarded with a taste of real hearty German fare. Splash out on some weisbeer to cut through the rich flavours. Once you’re finished dining, browse Rogacki’s fine selection of 150 varieties of cheeses and over 200 cured meats; you’ll be spoiled for choice.
Location
When we visited the charming city of Lubeck in Northern Germany earlier this year, we stayed at Hotel Baltic, a budget and family friendly hotel located just one minute away from the Lubeck Central Station and the bus station and only a few minutes from the heart of the city. As we arrived by train, the location of this hotel was ideal, as there was no need to use the public transport to get to the hotel, nor to carry our luggage for long.
The Room
The room was basic but comfortable, with a small flat screen, carpet covered floors, and free Wi-fi. We really liked how comfortable the beds were, which provided us with a very good night sleep, especially that the double glazed windows were protecting us from any unwanted noise from outside. Even though the bus station was just in front of our window, there didn't seem to be very many (if any at all) buses running during the night. The only real inconvenience was that the hotel has no elevator, and we had to struggle with the luggage for three floors.
But we were really smitten by the views from our window, and the way the afternoon sun was entering our room was simply surreal.
The Bathroom
The bathroom was newly renovated, spacious and very well organized. Everything one needed, from towels to shampoo and soap was provided, and everything sparkled.
Breakfast
We simply loved the setting in which the breakfast was served, with all kind of interesting little details in the sailing theme and the fact that there was a lit candle on each table. I think this was the first time ever we had breakfast by candle light and we were thrilled. I mean, what a great idea! We should totally do this at home too. It really adds a festive mood to what is supposed to be the most important meal of the day.
The guys at Baltic Hotel are currently working to fit the very green inner courtyard for breakfast purposes as well, so I can only imagine just how even more wonderful having breakfast here it would be in the near future.
The Reception
During the day there's always somebody who speaks perfect English in the reception and one can hang out there or get guidance and advice regarding the places of interest and the best restaurants in town. However, the reception closes during the night, and we were given an extra key for the front door, so we had no inconvenience coming back from town a bit later.
For it's location and value for money, Baltic Hotel from Lubeck is the ideal place to spend the night when visiting the town, be it for business or tourist purposes. Especially for the budget conscious guests traveling by train, either using an Interrail or Eurail pass or not, this hotel is a God sent.
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