Crowded House Travel Lodge

Budget option in central Bergen

I stayed at Crowded House for one night during my visit to Bergen in July 2006.

Cheap accommodation is particularly difficult to find in Bergen, especially during the crowded summer months, so at just 390 NOK for a single room (without bathroom), Crowded House represents one of the town's better budget options.

Location

Crowded House is located on Hakonsgaten in the heart of central Bergen. The picturesque lake and parkland of Lille Lungegardsvann is just a few minutes walk from the hotel, while the main touristy areas of Bryggen and the fish market can be reached on foot in under 10 minutes. The main pedestrianised shopping street of Torgalmenningen is just a couple of minutes walk from the hotel.

If you are arriving at the hotel on the bus from the airport, alight at the "Hotel Norge" stop and you will find Crowded House just a 3 minutes walk away.

Hotel

The hotel offers 33 budget rooms (15 singles, 14 doubles and 4 family rooms) as well as common bathroom, kitchen, living room and laundry room areas. The rooms are housed on 5 floors....but the lift only goes as far as the 4th floor. Typically, my loft room (#501) was located on the 5th floor!

The hotel's reception area opens from early morning until 11pm. However, you can check in after 11pm if you call ahead to arrange your booking. It was the late check-in option that attracted me to this hotel - my flight arrived at Bergen just before midnight and I arrived at the hotel a little after 1am. Upon arrival I was a little disheartened to see a "fully booked" sign on the door.....I was praying that my booking had been confirmed. I phoned the night receptionist to gain entry to the hotel and was checked in promptly and efficiently.

Check out is at noon, but late check outs are available at a cost of 200 NOK.

Unique Quality: .

Bedroom

My small single room was located in the hotel's loft on the 5th floor. I caught a lift as far as the 4th floor, then dragged my bag up the final flight of steps.

Unfortunately, somebody had left the loft window open during the day (it had been hot for a few days prior to my arrival) and, since the rain had started to fall in the evening, there was a puddle on my bedroom floor when I arrived.

The room consisted of a single bed (very comfortable), a desk and chair, a radiator (certainly not needed at the time of my visit), a wardrobe, a telephone, a washbasin and a mirror.

The room was in a fairly poor state of disrepair: one of the electrical sockets hung off the wall, the paintwork was flaking and the floorboards were loose. However, for the relatively low price, the room was no worse than I expected it to be.

The common shower room for the 5th floor (shared between a handful of rooms) was located right opposite my room. It was spotlessly clean and was vacant in the morning when I needed to use it. Clean towels are included in the price of the room.

Crowded House is a perfectly acceptable budget option in the centre of Bergen. It makes no secret of its concept: "a good bed in a clean and decent room at a fair price". The maintenance could be a little better, but my room was fine for a short stay.

• Opinion of Price: less expensive than average

Crowded House Travel Lodge Photo: Crowded House, Bergen

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