12 Good Hostels for Big-City Stays Worldwide

Here are our picks for the top hostels in 12 frequently visited cities -- a list compiled with the help of the hostel booking and rating site Hostelworld.com, other backpackers' recommendations and our own satisfying stays.

· AMSTERDAM: Flying Pig Uptown/Downtown

With beach parties, roaring bars and laws of the land that permit almost anything, you might be kissing your American morals vaarwel as soon as you walk in the door. But when your head is ready to hit the pillow, you'll relish the clean rooms and free breakfast.

Uptown: Vossiusstraat 46, 011-31-20-400-4187. Downtown: Nieuwendijk 100, 011-31-20-420-6822, http://www.flyingpig.nl. Rates start at $17 a night.

· ATHENS: Athens Backpackers

Athens Backpackers provides laundry facilities, air conditioning, an elevator, free newspapers, film screenings and good company. And with the Acropolis just two minutes away, you don't have to make sightseeing an Olympic sport.

12 Makri St., Makryanni, 117-42, 011-30-210-922-4044, http://www.athensbackpackers.com. Rates start at $25.50 a night.

· BARCELONA: Centric Point Hostel

A five-minute ramble from Las Ramblas, Barcelona's Champs-Elysees, the Centric Point boasts modern amenities, spacious interiors and light-filled rooms on one of Barcelona's most famous avenues. You can go gaga for Gaudi right from your balcony.

Passeig de Gracia, 011-34-93-231-2045, http://www.centricpointhostel.com. Rates start at $22 a night.

· BERLIN: Jetpak City Hostel, Downtown-Berlin West

Burn your pictures onto a CD, upload them onto a computer, connect your iPod to a stereo, charge your phone or let your loved ones know you're still kicking through e-mail, all free at this tech-savvy hostel.