Hotel Emma West Craiova

I only stayed one night, and slept really well in the comfortable bed. It was a very quiet hotel, with plenty of free parking. The receptionist was friendly, polite, and spoke good English. The restaurant had a big menu. I asked for a Romanian dish, chicken breast with ham, cheese, and herbs, served with a pickled pepper salad. It was unusual, but tasty.

UPDATE: I’m adding a star because the hotel staff were all very kind, including the receptionist and the cleaning ladies. The room was clean despite the old smell from the furniture, and we found robes and slippers in the closet. On Monday, before we checked out, they served a very good breakfast. They don’t serve it on weekends because they’re short staffed. The location is easy to get to, close to the new mall, and there’s parking. That’s about the only positive I can think of. Parking is available at most hotels and private apartments around here, too. The place feels like it’s from 1999, and I don’t understand how it gets called a four star hotel. I’ve travelled around Romania and across Europe, America, and Asia, and this is maybe two stars at most, if that. It’s very outdated, with old furniture, cracks in the walls and ceiling, and bathroom plumbing that looks unprofessional and smells awful. The room smelled old as soon as we walked in, with a sewage smell from the bathroom pipes. There are no amenities. No coffee maker or complimentary water in the room, and the bathroom soap is very basic. The WiFi didn’t work, the old AC barely blew any air, and the two TVs in the suite share one remote that only works from less than a metre away. There wasn’t a blanket on the bed, just a thin sheet. The old blanket in the closet smelled dusty and probably hadn’t been washed. The online listing showed breakfast, but when I called to ask what time it was, they said they’d decided not to serve it that weekend. We asked to cancel one of our two nights and pay for only the first, but they refused. There are much cheaper, more modern apartments nearby. Charging these prices for this hotel is outrageous. I strongly don’t recommend it unless you’re nostalgic for 1999 and like outdated hotels. 100% do not recommend.

The staff were really nice and helpful, and the rooms are big, clean, and have lots of toiletries. It’s an older hotel, but the location is great. The old town is a bit far, though you can walk there in a straight line in about 25 minutes. The tram stop is right out front, with a 24-hour shop next door, plus an ATM and plenty of places to eat. Not bad.

The only good thing was the location. We stayed last week to visit the Christmas market, and it was an awful experience. At check-in, the older person at reception shouted at us. It seemed like we weren’t paying customers, and they were irritated at having to repeat the breakfast hours and WiFi password. Very rude. The rooms were extremely dated, and the carpet was disgusting. The AC units didn’t work and blew cold air in winter. Three housekeepers, who were also very rude, came into my room with a card key without knocking, then pulled out the sheets and pillows to check whether we really didn’t have enough duvets. They couldn’t fix the AC. The beds were ridiculously small, with old mattresses, and there weren’t enough covers for everyone in our group. We were told the duvets were “sold out,” whatever that means at a hotel. Some people had to sleep under towels. In the triple room, the third bed was a travel cot with no mattress, as if grown adults could sleep on it. They also threw away food we’d bought at the Christmas market and left on the table in the room. When I called reception, they said there was nothing they could do. I didn’t expect them to fish it out of the trash, but a simple apology would have been appropriate. I don’t recommend this hotel. Craiova is a tourist town, so find somewhere else to stay.