Hostel Name: Ost-Apotheke Hostel
Address: Wurzner Str 1, Leipzig, Germany
[Edit: This hostel ha now closed. The review remains for historical archive.]
I stayed at the Ost-Apotheke Hostel in Leipzig Germany. I was hosted by Hostels Club, who picked out the hostel for my stay. I was visiting Leipzip as part of a one-month train trip around Europe with a Eurail pass.
Leipzig is has had a bit of a renaissance over the last few years and has even been called the new Berlin. I have heard about the old neighbourhoods being hipsterfied so I wanted to see the city for myself.
The Ost-Apotheke Hostel is located about 30 minutes walk from the Hauptbahnhof (main train station) and about 20 minutes from the historic old town area. There is also a tram outside if that is too far.
The Ost-Apotheke is in a pre-communist era old apartment block. After recently staying in hostel chains it was nice to stay in an independent hostel again. It has a very homely feel, like a hostel that is taken over a giant apartment, and it has the independent vibe that I came looking for in Leipzig.
Rather than just getting some bunks and furniture from Ikea, most of the bedding and furnishings here appear to be recycled wood. This is most noticeable in the dorm room, which is not like anything I have seen before. There are a combination of dorm beds and private boxes within the room. They are not technically rooms, but they are definitely private.
The dorm beds have also been custom-made to provide more privacy than your average dorm room.
I stayed in one of the private rooms/boxes in this dorm area. This had a comfortable bed with a vintage table and a hipster light (an old glass flask converted into a lamp).
There is a kitchen with free tea and coffee, and free food from previous guests. I like how you can leave stuff here instead of it going to waste.
The common area has a big table with lots of maps and tourism brochures.
One of the showers, which is separate from the toilet.
The wifi was good in my room and elsewhere on the property.
Overall I enjoyed my stay at this hostel. The staff were friendly and helpful, and it was cool to see such a unique hostel.
