Bern · Switzerland
Hostel 77 Bern
A free Bern transit card and a frequent bus out front ease trips from outside the center; breakfast is included, but most bathrooms are shared.
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Vibe Analysis
Booking a room here gets you a free public transport card for Bern, handed over at the front desk with directions on how to use it. That matters, because the place sits about 2km from the train station and well outside the historic center. The bus stops right out front and runs often, roughly every 10 to 12 minutes, so the trip into town is short and easy. There's also paid parking directly in front of the building, usually cheap, though one stay was charged about 10 francs for it. The building is a former hospital, and it shows. Old elevators, long corridors, and a somewhat institutional, dated feel give it more of a big-hotel scale than a cozy hostel. Most bathrooms, toilets, and showers are shared down the hall rather than in the room, and many rooms have just a sink and mirror. Cleanliness of the shared facilities is generally good, though there are exceptions, including black mold spotted in a shower and one floor that smelled bad. Breakfast is included and splits opinion sharply. Some find the buffet generous and delicious with plenty of variety; others describe it as sparse, generic, or barely stocked, with food that needed constant refilling, weak coffee, and bread that wasn't always fresh. One stay traced a likely food poisoning back to the breakfast yogurt. So expect anything from a solid buffet to a thin spread depending on the morning. Staff are mostly a strong point, warm, multilingual, and willing to help with early showers, luggage storage, and questions. That said, it isn't universal: there are clear accounts of rude and confrontable treatment at reception, including a staff member named Alex who one person found friendly and another found aggressive and unwilling to help after their food was cleared from the kitchen fridge. There is a guest kitchen, a bar, and a pool table, plus a quiet garden in an inner courtyard. This is a quiet place, not a social one. Most people keep to themselves, and there are few or no events, so it suits a solo traveler wanting a calm few days more than someone hunting for hostel nightlife. Prices run high, which is normal for Switzerland but still feels steep for shared-bathroom hostel rooms.
Signals to check
- Most rooms use shared bathrooms, toilets, and showers down the hall, often with only a sink in the room.
- Beds frequently creak and squeak loudly, so any movement can wake roommates; mattresses are often thin and hard, and some find them uncomfortable.
- Rooms get hot in summer with no air conditioning and limited ventilation.
- Dorm beds have no privacy curtains and usually no power outlet nearby.
- Luggage lockers often need your own padlock, and some lockers are out in the hallway rather than in the room.
- You frequently have to make your own bed on arrival and strip it before leaving; towels may need to be requested at check-in.
- School groups sometimes book in and can be loud in the halls late at night, so bring ear plugs.
- Late-night arrivals turning on lights or making noise can disrupt sleep in shared rooms.
- It's quiet with little social atmosphere and no real events.
- Prices are high for what is offered, and a city tax may be added on top of the booking price.
- It's well outside the city center, though the free transit pass and frequent bus out front make it manageable.
- Breakfast quality is inconsistent, ranging from generous to sparse, and one stay reported likely food poisoning from it.