Kizhi Hotel

The location is very convenient, and there’s a quiet courtyard and security. The place feels cheap in every way, though: dated decor, poor internet, barely adequate air conditioning, and nowhere to store things. Even the fridge is hardly cooler than the room.

In two days and three nights, we had a string of bad experiences at Kizhi. I wouldn’t stay there again. For the same price in Kharkiv, I’d book an apartment. There was little service, and plenty of rudeness and hassle. The biggest problem involved a group arriving the second morning, including infants and elderly people. Two different people had handled the train and hotel bookings, and the group arrived at 5:00 am on the day their reservation began. We didn’t realize they could only check in at midday, which was our mistake. But when we asked reception to meet them at 5:00 am and help with luggage, nobody mentioned the check-in issue. At 11:40 pm, I was told they couldn’t be received because the previous night wasn’t booked. I stayed up until 3:00 am trying to arrange somewhere for them during the seven-hour gap, then we had to go out with them until midday. The hotel also asked us to pay an early check-in fee we had requested but never received. After many calls, they stopped asking for it. Other things added to the trouble. We arrived at night and spent about 15 minutes outside, unsure how to enter the building, even though there was a surveillance camera pointed at the gate. We only got into the hotel yard after calling their number. No one helped with our bags, so we carried them up two floors of stairs, the only way in, with no elevator. Breakfast wasn’t included, water bottles weren’t refilled and had to be bought, and the Wi-Fi password wasn’t posted anywhere. We had to ask for it. The staff were often confused and gave us wrong information about our booking. The manager or owner insulted staff in front of customers, which felt awkward. Room service only came when we asked, though to be fair the room was clean when we arrived and was cleaned well afterward. I asked reception whether there were slippers in the room and was told yes, but there weren’t any, so I had to go back and ask for them. The receptionist said they spoke English, but some of our group didn’t speak Russian or Ukrainian, and I ended up translating whenever they needed something.

The rooms are very small, and there was no running water while I was there. I regret booking this uncomfortable place. The service was bad too. Even though I’d only landed a few hours earlier, they left me to haul my bag up a very steep flight of stairs by myself. It wasn’t worth the price at all.

Fair price and a good location.