Writers Hotel

The location is close to the center and its restaurants and shops, but the hotel sits a little higher on a quiet hillside. After a big dinner, the walk back up gives you a bit of exercise :). Each floor has its own detailed decor, which keeps the place interesting. It was probably built and decorated in Soviet times and may have been outright luxurious then. These days it isn't luxurious, but it still feels stylish and classy. The staff are very friendly and always try to help however they can. It's a special hotel in Tsaghkadzor.

The staff were polite and kind, and they replaced the broken toilet lamp in the second room. I was moved from one room to another for no reason, though. Both rooms were spacious and renovated, more like studios than hotel rooms. The hotel itself was good, but a couple of things bothered me: there was noise overnight every single night, like it was coming from a gym, and there was no lunch at the hotel or microwave in the apartment.

There were mosaics all through the public areas, and corridors seemed to go on forever, opening onto fascinating rooms with plants, taxidermy, and exercise equipment. The whole hotel feels like it’s been left in another time. I loved every minute there. The staff were friendly and accommodating: they arranged a meal when I arrived long after the kitchen had closed and helped me sort out taxis. My one criticism is the cigarette smoke, which was impossible to get away from, though that’s true virtually everywhere in Armenia.

Being close to the forest, with so many birds around, made the day unforgettable. The staff's direct manner made you feel closer to them. At the House of Writers, you can feel like the hero of your own story, traveling through time and returning to the past. The aesthetic paintings and Soviet touches offer a magical glimpse of earlier times.