Rabat Hotel

Kazakhstan

People were coming and going through the hallway and entering from the street all night, but the receptionist told me the doors don't lock and no one comes in. I tried closing my room door before going out, but the card keys didn't work, and she said hotel doors here don't lock at all. You can hear everything through the walls, too. I heard people having sex off and on in rooms, seemingly all through the hotel. I slept with one eye open, afraid a drunk person might break in, and when I went to the store I worried my things would be stolen.

The room was clean and fresh, and everything else was good, but the service needs work. There’s no phone in the room to call reception, and when I wanted some hot tea, they wouldn’t give me any, even though tea is served at breakfast. I thought they could have offered me some. The water for that tea isn’t filtered, by the way, so it doesn’t taste very good. There’s no bar, either. The soundproofing is poor, and I could hear neighbors chatting and people walking in the hallway.

The beds and mattresses were good, and the location near the city center worked well. As an in-between option, it’s okay. At night it could be noisy, and someone was breaking into the room next door in the hallway, so I struggled to sleep for two nights. The building across the street has potholes under the windows that face the courtyard.