Budget Travel Archives - Skye Travels

A Basic Guide to Visiting Cancun on a Budget

9 Mins Read May 8, 2021

Cancun is one of the three most expensive parts of Mexico, along with Mexico City and Los Cabos. As such, knowing how to travel to Cancun on a budget is essential if you’re a backpacker or don’t have a huge fund for your travels.

Backpacking Accommodations in Cancun

Cancun is a major destination for international travelers. During the pandemic of 2020-2021, it was one of the first places in the world to open up again to tourists. In the first three months of 2021, International visitors only dropped by 50% from the previous year (compared to places like Scotland, which saw the numbers drop by at least 78%). To accommodate the massive numbers of tourists, Cancun has hundreds of resorts, hotels, Airbnbs, hostels, and one campground.

The price range for accommodations in Cancun is massive. Some of the all-inclusive resorts in the Hotel Zone charge thousands of dollars a night. On the other hand, there are hostels that have rooms for rent under $10 a night. The one campground might seem like a nice place to stay on a budget, but sadly, they aren’t cheap.

There isn’t a huge range of hostels in Cancun. The cheapest are $5 per night, and the most expensive (a pod-bed hostel) is only $25 per night. All have surprisingly high ratings (over 8 on Hostelworld). Vanesa and I were going to stay at the Nomads Hotel/Hostel and Rooftop Pool, but we ended up finding a private room on Booking.com for even cheaper.

One thing to know about accommodations in Cancun is the occupancy tax. In Mexico, tax is 16%, except for the state of Quintana Roo, which is where Cancun is. In Quintana Roo, the tax is only 10% plus 2% lodging tax, but this didn’t seem the reflect the quotes on Hostelworld. Often, the occupancy tax given was closer to 30%. When you use Airbnb, they’ll also add on the service and cleaning fees, which can really start to add up.

Our room on Booking.com cost us $83 for four nights, which was just a couple dollars less than two bunks at the hostel would have cost us. It wasn’t fancy – just a private room in a house shared with two other rooms. There was a basic kitchen, air conditioning in our room, a comfortable bed and good security…all the essentials for a temporary lodging before we got down to our monthly rental in Puerto Morelos.

To summarize, your cheapest accommodations in Cancun will be around $10 per night per person. You can also stay in opulent luxury, but that has no place in this article for backpackers.

Cost of Cancun Transportation

Local transportation around Cancun is where you’ll be saving the most money…if you do it right. I’ll start off by saying you’ll need to avoid the taxi system if you want to stick to a budget.

There are two main forms of public transportation in Cancun (other than taxis). These are buses and colectivos. Buses are self-explanatory, but there are only four main routes that you need to know about, which you can read about in this great article. The two main routes to the Hotel Zone are R1 and R2. R1 runs between the Hotel Zone and the Ado bus station (and beyond). R2 goes from the Hotel Zone down Avenida Andrés Quintana Roo. Note that the fares have now increased to 10 pesos ($0.50), and will probably increase again in the future.

Colectivos are minivans with benches along the sides and back. There are two styles of colectivos. One is very simple, has no air conditioning or fan, and follows various routes around the city. The other colectivo runs from Cancun down the highway to Playa del Carmen, where you can then another colectivo all the way to Tulum.

The price for the coletivos around the city is usually 10 pesos. You can either pay when you get on or get off, but it’s better to pay when you get on. If the driver has his hand up when the colectivo approaches, it means the van is full. When you’re ready to disembark, say bajar (drop me off here) or la esquina (at the corner). At this time, you must wear a mask at all times in the colectivo.

Sadly, there’s no map or app that gives the routes of any public transportation in Cancun, at least that I was able to find. If you’re staying in a distant neighborhood, hopefully you can find out from someone what colectivo you can take to where you need to get to. Otherwise, you’ll have to settle for a taxi. Just make sure you settle on a fair price with the driver before you depart.

Where to Eat in Cancun on a Budget

Just like the accommodations, you have a huge range of prices when it comes to food in Cancun. By far the most expensive places are in the Hotel Zone. In fact, we didn’t find anything cheap along the beach.

Instead, head into the city center to find places to eat on a budget. Our personal favorites were at Mercado 23, about half a mile north of the Ado bus station. Along the southern end of the market is a strip of kiosks serving breakfast dishes, empanadas, tacos, tortas (sandwiches), and many other Mexican meals. This is also where you’ll find some of the local Mayan cuisine, such as huevos motulenos and papadzules.

Another option for cheap meals is Parque de las Palapas, a few streets southwest of the Ado bus station. Along one side of the park are several food stands serving traditional Mexican cuisine, empanadas, pizzas, hamburgers, smoothies, etc. We had empanadas that were the deep-fried Mexican style, not the Argentinian style which I prefer.

The best places to eat are the street food trucks that come out at night along the main streets. One night, we found a truck called 4:13 Taqueria. Five tacos were only 45 pesos, which converts to $2.25! Sure, you can get meals for cheaper than that in Albania, Thailand and probably Puerto Escondito (I haven’t been there yet), but that’s about the cheapest you’ll find in Cancun.

Cheap Activities in Cancun

To be honest, there aren’t that many activities and attractions properly IN Cancun. It’s the rest of the State of Quintana Roo that has the real attractions. Some of the excursions outside the city are as follows:

Isla Mujeres
Holbox Island
Chichen Itza – a UNESCO World Heritage Site
Diving at the Great Mayan Reef
Los Coloradas Pink Lakes
Countless Cenotes
Mayan Ruins
XCaret
And many, many more.

Not only are these attractions outside Cancun, they’re also crazy expensive. If you were to do everything on this list, you would probably have to spend several thousand dollars. As such, they don’t really belong in this article. They are incredible in their own right, and I’ll be writing separate articles for them as I visit each one.

However, there are good attractions within Cancun. Some are better than others. I review a few of these in my article about my impression of Cancun. Of the attractions I mention, the Mercados (23 and 28) are really the only attractions you can do on a budget. I could also add exploring downtown Cancun and finding as much street art as you can.

Cancun Hotel Zone

Of course, the main attraction of Cancun is the beach. To get there, you’ll need to go to the Hotel Zone. This is the wide sandbar along the coast with nearly a hundred hotels and resorts side by side. Thankfully, there’s a wide sandy beach to enjoy between the hotels and the water (unlike Playa del Carmen, where the hotels are right up to the waterline).

The water of Cancun Beach is simply divine. It’s warm (about 86°F year-round) and the most vivid blue you can imagine. The waves are decent – not big like California, but not small either. And it’s free to go to the beach. Just don’t be put off by the heavily-armed military men guarding the entrances of the beach from time to time.

If you want to do anything else in the Hotel Zone, you’re going to be spending a lot more money. The restaurants were the most expensive we found in Cancun, and the shows were comparable to Las Vegas. As such, if you’re traveling on a budget (which I assume you are if you’re reading this post), you’ll probably want to avoid the Hotel Zone as much as possible. But that’s hard since you’re probably in Cancun for the beach. So instead, bring a picnic lunch for the beach, and skip the shows.

How Expensive is Cancun?

Putting an exact price on a budget for any location is hard, as it can vary so much depending on your tastes, whether you’re going to be buying alcohol, if you want to stay at hostels or Couchsurf, etc.

For those on the tightest budget and not planning to Couchsurf, plan to spend about $10 per day for accommodations, $10 for food, and $2 for transportation in Cancun Obviously, that’s without any activities or excursions, but you can always haggle with those.

If you want a bit more comfort and plan to do an excursion every couple days, you’re probably looking at $50-60 per day. But don’t forget, you could also be spending thousands a day at an all-inclusive resort. Personally, I like to make my money last longer, which means more traveling. But a bit of comfort now and then is also nice.

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Budget Travel Guide: 5 Tips for Backpacking in Bordeaux

8 Mins Read March 23, 2020

France is not one of the cheaper countries to visit in Europe. If you’re on a budget, definitely avoid Paris and aim for one of the other gems. So far, my favorite is Bordeaux. If you end up backpacking in Bordeaux as I did, here are some tips to save you money. As always, the less you spend, the longer you can travel.

Find a Host on Couchsurfing

My favorite accommodations will always be Couchsurfing. There’s no better way to visit a city than staying with a local host who can help you with suggestions. It’s even better when you provide some ingredients so they can show you how to prepare a local dish. I’ve even had several hosts who went out of their way to tour me around their city, show me the landmarks, perhaps take me out to a party and generally integrate me into the culture better than any hotel or hostel could have.

In Bordeaux, I was honored to stay with Bertrand and Stéphanie. They both had very busy schedules, but still made the time to talk with me, watch a French movie, and cook some amazing meals. I arrived late on Sunday night after all the shops and restaurants were closed, and they had a delicious quiche ready for me. For the next night, I brought home the ingredients for fondue, and they provided the proper cooking dishes and utensils. At Lidl, the ingredients were less than $10 for all of us. I might not have made it to any restaurants in Bordeaux for a fancy meal, but I still felt I ate like royalty.

Only Go Window Shopping on Rue Sainte-Catherine

France is one of the best countries in the world when it comes to fashion and shopping. I think the French actually spend more time shopping than any other country in the world. In Bordeaux, the primary walking and shopping street is called Rue Sainte-Catherine. This street follows the original course of the Roman market street and is now one of the longest walking streets in Europe (or maybe the world). It travels north and south over three-quarters of a mile from the Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux to the Gate of Aquitane.

There are hundreds of shops of every type lining the street, and hundreds more down the side streets. A slightly fancier area is the Saint-Catherine Promenade, located on the west side of the street not far from the Grand Theater. If you’re on a budget, this probably isn’t where you’ll end up unless you’re looking for McDonalds or Starbucks, but those are two places you’ll never hear me recommending, as I’ve been boycotting them for years.

One product you absolutely have to try on the street is called canelé. This is a French pastry unique to the Bordeaux region and has its own interesting history. When they make wine in Bordeaux, they use a ton of egg whites by putting it into the top of the vats and letting them settle to the bottom, collecting any bugs along the way. Afterwards, they have all the egg yokes left over. They use the egg yokes to make the canelé, along with flour, butter, salt, sugar, vanilla and a touch of dark Agricole rum. I thought they were delicious.

Purchase the Bordeaux CityPass

If you’re going to be in Bordeaux for a couple days or more and want to see many of the key attractions, or even just want to visit the Cite du Vin Wine Museum, you need to get the Bordeaux CityPass. A 48-hour CityPass is worth well over $100 between all the attractions, a tour of Bordeaux and transportation that it includes. Cite du Vin by itself is $22, and a 24-hour public transportation ticket is $5.50, so $43 for the 48-hour card isn’t bad.

The best value is the 72-hour card, which includes a full-day tour to either Saint-Emilion or the Citadel of Blaye. This card is $47.50. The cost for three days of public transportation and Cite du Vin comes out to $38.50.

If you’re on an extreme budget, the CityPass might still be too much. However, Bordeaux is one of those rare cities with attractions that you just can’t miss. Cite du Vin was voted as one of the best museums in the world by National Geographic. So if you can swing enough money to get this card, I’d highly recommend it.

Eat at a Corner Deli

If you want to eat on a budget in Bordeaux, you’ll be hard-pressed to find any restaurants within your price range. Numbeo.com puts the average meal in an inexpensive restaurant at $13.20! While there are the usual cheap options like fast-food restaurants and kebabs, I’d suggest finding a corner deli to get a meal at, or all your meals for that matter. The one I found was called La Mie Câline. They provided everything from sandwiches and focaccia to several flavors of Croque monsieur.

At lunchtime, I scored a fantastic deal – a mere $5.50 for a sandwich, pastry and drink. The sandwich flavors are all in French, but the staff speak English and are really helpful in getting you the perfect lunch. There are three La Mie Câline locations in the center of Bordeaux, plus plenty of other corner deli options to choose from.

Take the Right Backpack to Bordeaux

If you’re planning to be backpacking in Bordeaux, chances are you’ll be taking one of the budget airlines to get there and will probably find a ridiculously cheap ticket. I found my tickets from Edinburgh last minute for only $13 each way! Unfortunately, the budget airlines make their money from baggage and other fees. I usually travel with my Osprey Farpoint 40 backpack, but that’s no longer free with companies like Wizz and Ryanair. In fact, the fee for the bigger backpack (usual carry-on size) is sometimes more than the ticket itself.

Instead, try to travel with something like the Osprey Daylite Plus 20L backpack. This one will fit under the seat in front of you on the plane, which is what is now considered a free carry-on with many of the budget airlines. It’s big enough for a laptop and several days worth of clothes, if you pack smart and roll everything up.

Traveling with a small backpack has another benefit – it prevents you from loading up on souvenirs and thus saves you more money. Then again, Bordeaux has some really lovely items that you’ll probably want to take back with you. I would have brought back a large pack of canelé, but unfortunately I found the Lindt outlet – Switzerland’s finest chocolatier – with every manufactured flavor available…and a mystery box containing 10 flavors for only $11. I obviously had to get my own, thus using up the tiny bit of extra room I had left in my backpack.

Of course, if you’re arriving by train or bus, such as Flixbus, using the Osprey Farpoint 40 backpack is a great idea. I learned that having a great backpack was of the utmost importance before I even started traveling, and it’s become even more true over the past five years.

How Much Does it Cost to Go Backpacking in Bordeaux

On an extreme budget, you could always get by in Bordeaux on just a couple dollars a day (like I used to do in my early days of travel). It would require Couchsurfing, eating cheap meals at a local supermarket like Carrefour, walking everywhere and not going to any of the paid attractions. Personally, I got tired of that kind of shoestring budget. If you utilize the five tips given above, you could spend three days in Bordeaux for $25-$30 a day. If you only spent one day, it would cost more like $40-$50, since the 24-hour CityPass itself is $32. It really just depends on what and where you eat, and if you want to see any paid attractions not covered with the CityPass (there aren’t many).

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Budget Travel Guide: How Expensive is Berlin on a Budget?

15 Mins Read March 23, 2021

Back in 2016, I spent a week exploring Berlin on a budget without really knowing what I should be doing there. I had originally planned to go to Hamburg and only changed my plans at the last second. Now I’ve gone back for the holiday season, once again without a plan.

Getting to Berlin

Both times I’ve traveled to Berlin, I’ve gone with Flixbus. The first time was from Copenhagen, and the second was from Hamburg. In 2016, I chose Berlin over Hamburg because the bus ticket from Copenhagen was cheaper, which didn’t make any sense as Berlin is twice as far as Hamburg. Back then, I was on a pretty tight budget and my gameplan was always to choose the cheaper bus. I couldn’t complain as I fell in love with Berlin (although I’ve now found Hamburg is even better!).

If you’re already in Europe, most of the low-cost airlines fly to Berlin for a ridiculously low price. For example, you can fly round trip from Edinburgh or London to Berlin for $32! FYI, that’s one of the reasons I love living in Edinburgh. Conversely, you can fly round trip from Berlin to nearly every country in Europe for under $50 (depending on the dates, of course).

On my last trip, I got a Flixbus from Hamburg. The trip lasted three and a quarter hours and cost a whopping $10 each.

Once you get to Berlin, you’ll probably want to get the Berlin WelcomeCard. This gets you free transportation and discount tickets to 200 attractions. There’s also a premium, all-inclusive card which gives you free access to 31 attractions in town, including the hop-on, hop-off bus tour and a boat tour. Both cards are available for 2 to 6 days. The regular card starts at $26 for 48 hours, and the all-inclusive card starts at $99 for 48 hours. If you’re on a budget, stick to the regular card. If you’re planning to use public transportation a lot and visit at least one or two attractions, the card is worth it.

Where to Sleep in Berlin

Between my two trips to Berlin, I had a chance to stay at several different locations across town. Here are some options to consider.

Check In Hotel

The first hostel I stayed at in Berlin back in 2016 has since converted into a hotel, and opened a second location as a hostel. I got really lucky with my room, as it ended up being an en-suite 2-bed dorm! The disadvantage was the location was quite far outside of town, but the new hostel is much closer to the center. Check In Hostel is still one of the cheapest hostels in Berlin with a decent review score.

Hostel Ballhaus

The first hostel I stayed at on my second trip was Hostel Ballhaus, located about a mile north of Brandenburg Gate. My planning for Berlin was quite last-minute and I didn’t have a lot of options left to choose from. Ballhaus was a no-frills hostel with some of the cheapest rooms in town. It’s located several floors up and the elevator was broken when I went, so it’s not the best for people with large suitcases. Otherwise, there’s a good common area with WiFi and the rooms are very clean. The bathrooms on the second floor of the hostel (5th floor of the building) are full most of the time, but those on the first floor are mostly empty.

Citystay Hostel

Ballhaus was fully booked on my second day, so I made my way to Citystay Mitte, located across the street from Alexanderplatz. Mitte means center, and the hostels and hotels with this in the title are thus in the best locations. Berlin is the most-visited city in Germany with 13.5 million visitors each year, and the hotels and hostels are built to accommodate that. Citystay is a huge hostel with dozens of dorms and private rooms. Due to a mix-up at reception, I was given the key-card for a private room and got to see inside. It looked really cozy and had an ensuite bathroom. This hostel had a lot of other nice amenities, like a huge, secure storage room, laundry service, a large dining area (which we used for work), and dozens of showers.

Meininger Mitte Humboldthaus Hotel

For my last night in Berlin, I went for something a bit nicer. Meininger Mitte Humboldthaus is a hotel with ridiculously cheap rooms. Some of the rooms are also dorm rooms, but with only 4 beds. At first, I thought I’d be alone in the room, but at the end of the night, a couple arrived. Sadly, they smelled like they hadn’t showered in weeks which kinda spoiled the experience, but that certainly wasn’t the fault of the hotel. Other than that, everything was really nice, just as you’d expect in a mid-range hotel.

For other hostel options, check out this list of best hostels in Berlin for under $10.

Couchsurfing

Of course, my favorite accommodations when traveling will always be with Couchsurfing. There’s nothing better than staying with a local. During my first visit to Berlin, I stayed with Petra in the tranquil Samariter Quarter, just a stone’s throw from the bohemian center of Berlin. She had a really comfortable spare loft bed with one of those ancient concrete heaters beneath to keep the room warm. In the evening, she invited me to a potluck picnic in Mauerpark. I didn’t understand most of what was said there (since I’ve long-since forgotten the German my Granny taught me), but the park was fascinating with all the people hanging out, playing and partying in the evening.

What to Eat in Berlin

Burgermeister Schlesisches Tor

I thought Hamburg would be the German (or world) capital for hamburgers. It turns out that Hamburg is more famous for its fish burgers. What’s more, I found one of the best burgers ever in Berlin, and that’s not hyperbole. Located beneath the Oberbaum Bridge, Burgermeister Schlesisches Tor just knows how to make a perfect burger. Perfect beef, perfect bun, perfect bacon and cheese toppings, just perfect! What was even better was the price – less than $5 for the burger! I was exceedingly lucky with only a five-minute wait, as I had been told there’s usually at least a thirty-minute queue and never a spot to sit.

There are four Burgermeister locations across Berlin, with a fifth opening this year. What makes the Schlesisches location interesting is not just that it’s under a bridge, but that it used to be a public toilet!

Scheers Schnitzel

Schnitzels actually originated in Austria, and they’re called wiener schnitzels in Vienna (Wein is German for Vienna) where they’re made with veal. In Germany, they’re usually made with pork. As popular as this dish is in Germany, for some strange reason, it was actually hard to find a good schnitzel restaurant in Berlin. The one I did find was called Scheers Schnitzel, also located under the Oberbaum Bridge. I ended up going back to the same restaurant two more times during my three days in Berlin. I think the “proper” way to eat a schnitzel is with a side of fries, but I preferred mine in a bun like a chicken burger, topped with coleslaw and tartar sauce.

A Kebab Shop

Cooking meat on a rotating stick (doner kebab) goes back millions of years. Serving it in a sandwich roll is attributed to Berlin, Germany in 1974. I can’t say that the kebabs in Berlin are particularly special, but there are certainly plenty of them. Germans love their kebab sandwiches and consume a staggering 600 tons of doner meat every day. If you want to mix things up a bit, you can try a Pakistani or Persian kebab shop instead of the traditional Turkish kebab. What’s the difference? Mostly the spices and vegetables that they use. Some of them even do all their marination and preparation by hand each day.

Almost Any Currywurst Stand

One meal that definitely originated out of Berlin is the currywurst. The origin of this dish goes back to 1949 when Herta Heuwer got ketchup and curry powder from British soldiers. She used these to flavor her bratwurst sausages she then sold to the construction workers who were rebuilding post-WWII Berlin. Nowadays, you can get two types of currywurst in Berlin, or mix them together for the “double currywurst special.” In East Berlin, they didn’t have sausage lining. Instead, they would batter and deep-fry their sausages, essentially creating a European version of the corndog. They are wayyyyy too tasty, and I had several portions of these as well in the three days I stayed in Berlin.

Any Vegan Restaurant

Berlin has been labeled the vegan capital of the world, and ranks up there with Tel Aviv, London and Bangkok with the biggest number of vegan restaurants. What’s more, they have four different supermarket chains selling only vegan food. If you’re not a vegan, it would still be worth trying some of these restaurants in Berlin. I’m not a vegan myself, but I love vegan food (although I didn’t actually make it to any of the vegan restaurants in Berlin, mainly because I was stuck eating schnitzels and currywurst).

Take the Berlin Secret Food Tour

If you really want to get a sense of the food culture in Berlin and learn about even more dishes and amazing restaurants, I’d highly recommend taking the Berlin Secret Food Tour. I’ve long since learned that a food tour is the best way to learn about a city. You get to walk around, learn the history, taste the food, indulge in the culture, and generally have a great time.

Things to Do in Berlin

Tempelhofer Feld

I’m a huge fan of urban ruins, and Berlin proves to have some of the best in the world. Tempelhofer Feld, named after the Knights Templar land it sits on, is the site of the Templehof airport which served Berlin until 2008. It was originally built in 1923 and was used by Hitler in World War II. Now it’s used for kiteblading, picnics, comedy shows, and morning runs. The two 1.3-mile runways are perfect for sports or just an afternoon stroll. There’s a large community garden on the east end to explore too. When I visited in 2016, thousands of people filled it in the evening for all kinds of activities.

Treptower Park

Berlin is simply full of fantastic, huge parks. Treptower is located along the Spree River and has two big sections. The first is a dense woodland with numerous paths crossing it and the defunct Spreepark hidden behind a tall metal fence. The rest of the park was just as busy as Tempelhofer Feld when I went (in the summer), primarily with people singing or performing on musical instruments, playing sports, having picnics, or smoking and lounging for the sunset. This isn’t the kind of attraction I would recommend if you’re in a rush, but if you have a few days in Berlin, definitely stop at a couple of these parks!

East Side Gallery

The most important attractions to visit in a city are those which are completely unique to that city. You can see parks and castles anywhere, but the Berlin Wall is a one-of-a-kind. The Berlin Wall lasted 30 years from 1961 to 1991 and separated West Berlin from communist East Berlin. True, hundreds of chunks of the wall have been sent all over the world, but there’s still a huge display along the Spree river in Berlin called the East Side Gallery, and seeing it in its original location is different than just seeing it in a museum yard somewhere.

Alexanderplatz

If you’ve seen The Bourne Identity or Atomic Blonde, you might have caught a glimpse of Alexanderplatz. This is the large square in the center of Berlin with the Berliner Fernsehturm television tower rising above it. The square is surrounded by shopping malls and food stalls. In the center is the iconic World Time Clock. It might not be the most interesting attraction in Berlin, but why skip it.

Brandenburg Gate

Another icon of Berlin is the Brandenburg Gate, completed in 1791 back when Berlin was the capital of Prussia. Similar to Alexanderplatz, it’s an iconic monument worth a visit, but I wouldn’t say it’s particularly special. Perhaps more interesting is the balcony of the hotel nearby where Michael Jackson once held out a baby. At least, that’s what my tour guide felt was more vital to talk about.

Berlin Cathedral and Museum Island

In the center of Berlin, not far from Alexanderplatz, is Museum Island. This small island has five different museums, as well as Berlin Cathedral. The museums are Pergamonmuseum (Pergamon Museum), Bode-Museum, Neues Museum (New Museum), Alte Nationalgalerie (Old National Gallery), and Altes Museum (Old Museum). Tickets for all five museums combined are €18 ($20) for adults. If you want to visit the Cathedral, entrance is €7 ($8) or €5 with the Berlin WelcomeCard.

Free Walking Tour

There are a handful of attractions in the city center, such as Checkpoint Charlie, the site of Hitler’s bunker, and the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe. Rather than list all these out, you should take a free walking tour and let your guide tell you about them and their history. I could easily write a full article on these spots, but why spoil the tour.

Christmas Markets

I specifically went to Berlin over the holidays to see the Christmas markets (and to take the food tour). I visited several of the nine main Christmas markets in Berlin, including the Eco Market on Sophienstrasse, the sprawling Alexanderplatz Christmas Market and, of course, the Berliner Weihnachtszeit at Roten Rathaus (Berlin Christmas Time at Red City Hall) with its big ice skating rink around the Neptune fountain. I also walked by Weihnachtszauber (Christmas Magic) at the Gendarmenmarkt, but they were charging for entry and it looked like that market was mostly just selling beer. To get an idea of how magical these Christmas markets are, check out my article on the Christmas Markets in Cologne.

Berlin Olympic Park

The main attraction in Berlin that I really wanted to see but never made it to is Olympic Park. This is the series of stadiums and buildings built for the 1936 Summer Olympics. Unlike many of the Olympic villages around the world, this one is still in use…kinda. You can go swimming at the restored outdoor swimming pool, and the Olympic Stadium reopened in 2004. There are some sections that are not open to the public, but you can still explore them on a guided tour. I’ll be making it out there myself the next time I’m in Berlin.

Not Spreepark

When I visited in 2016, I’d learned that the climax scene in the movie Hanna was filmed in the abandoned amusement park Spreepark. With my love of urban ruins, I needed to explore the park myself. The only problem was that the park was closed to visitors and guards patrolled throughout the day. I managed to find one spot where there was a gap in the fence and took some photos of a roller coaster decaying in a pond. Sadly, most of the park’s features are now gone, due to looting and two large fires. Now, it’s mostly just the Ferris wheel and the remains of a T-Rex.

I returned in 2019 to find the holes in the fence had all been patched up. As much as I love to recommend urban ruins, this one is off the list. You’ll have to just watch Hanna to see what the park looked like after it was closed.

Exploring Berlin on a Budget

Thankfully, Berlin’s cost of living makes it one of the cheaper cities to visit in Germany. Hostels start at under $10 a night, and you can even get a private room for 2 for under $30 a night. Then again, there are over 100,000 Couchsurfing hosts in Berlin (5,000 active within 30 days of this article). I found it quite simple to find meals under $5 each. I would highly recommend getting the Berlin WelcomeCard if you plan to see any of the paid attractions. Otherwise, stick to a 24-hour transportation ticket for €7 ($8). If you just plan to see all the attractions around the city center and have a hostel around there too, you won’t even need to use public transportation.

As always, the budget is quite variable. You could easily stay with a Couchsurfing host, buy your food from a supermarket and walk everywhere, keeping your budget to well under $10 a day (as I did back in 2016). Or you could find a cheap hostel, have some nice but cheap meals at the street food stands around town and get the WelcomeCard, and still keep your expenses to about $30-40 a day (as we did in 2019).

If you really want to stay in a hotel and see as many of the attractions as you can, you’ll probably be looking at $100-200 a day, but I don’t consider that budget travel. As far as I’m concerned, why spend more money when you can spend less and travel more?!