Agrousadba Khutor Komarishki

The gazebo dinner after the sauna was apparently what cost us extra: Alexander said we owed $15 each because we sat with the group that evening. We’d arrived Friday, spent Saturday at the lakes, and got back to the farm at 5 PM. Our family of two adults and a young child left at 10 PM, then at checkout the next day Alexander demanded another $15 from my husband and me for supposedly checking out late on Saturday. He didn’t discuss it, just waived the charge. We’d already paid $25 per adult for one night, plus the extra $10 he asked for because the one-night rate was higher. In the end, it came to $50 each for one night, about what two nights would have cost. The group of 13 had paid $50 per person for two nights. I did call Alexander. He argued that even if we’d stayed on the estate past noon Saturday, we could still use extra services, like the sauna, for a fee. That didn’t convince me. Leaving a hotel room after checkout doesn’t mean you can’t sit in its lobby or pay to use the restaurant and spa. The estate itself is magnificent. Alexander says Komarishki isn’t a business, but a joy he shares with people, though our group kept joking, “How much will it cost?” because every request seemed to come with a price. He quotes prices in dollars, except for the sauna and homemade rides, which are priced in rubles. Even toilet paper had to be requested more than once or twice, as if he was rationing it. The bungee jump also seemed quite unsafe. A girl in our group hit a tree on the way down, hurt her leg, and spent the whole weekend at the estate. Alexander talks about doing everything for his guests and making them happy, but it felt like he was trying to make money at every turn. Quite a mismatch. :)