Kongressikoti Hotel

The curtains were so poor that sleeping in the morning was out of the question. There was just one bathroom and two toilets for the whole floor of 10 rooms, which is completely unacceptable for the price. They also charged 5€ to store our luggage. Reception was a joke: it was never open, and I couldn’t reach them by phone or email. There was no courtesy either, they wouldn’t even hold the door for a woman carrying luggage. The worst experience I’ve ever had. Everything went wrong.

The room was very basic, and mine didn’t have a single power outlet beside the bed. The bathrooms were dirty and the staff were rude. It was an unpleasant stay, especially when the name makes you expect a hotel and it turns out to be a very mediocre homestay.

The shower has no window, so it fills with steam, and I wouldn’t call the rooms clean. At least the WiFi works. There’s also at least one “security camera” in the lobby. I wouldn’t object to a camera by itself, but there are no signs saying you’re being filmed, the owner doesn’t tell you, and it isn’t obvious it’s there. It records the hallways by the bathrooms and toilets, so be aware. The place looks like a run-down army barracks, or like your grandparents’ house untouched since the 50s. It’s not a hotel, and I wouldn’t call it an Airbnb either. The owner was very rude, including during check-in, which was unpleasant to say the least. He was clearly Russian, so we got a very concentrated dose of the famous Russian hospitality. I’d never return, no matter what, and wouldn’t recommend it even to my enemies.

I spent the next few days trying to reach Kongressikoti, but nobody answered my calls. I’ve since emailed in Finnish and English to ask for a refund and compensation for the other hotel I had to book. I have their promise in writing, yet they left me with nowhere to stay. Shocking and irresponsible, avoid at all costs. Before my stay, I emailed to ask if I could get in outside check-in hours. They said yes and sent clear instructions. First I used a code they texted me to enter the building, then took the lift to the 5th floor. The instructions said the hotel door wouldn’t be locked. But it was locked. I called the hotel repeatedly and got no answer. At 1am I was alone in the city with nowhere to go, and felt unsafe. I called around, but the only hotel I could reach then was very expensive. Distressed and with no real choice, I booked it.