It's clearly a long-established hotel, renovated and fully equipped. Located in the city center, it's easy to find. All the necessary amenities are there, even two ATMs. Even the single rooms are spacious, with great heating and views.
I didn't understand why it had such low ratings before, but after staying there, I understand. First, even at reception, very few staff speak English. The female staff member mentioned in the comments was a rare exception—she spoke English and was kind and proactive. Almost everyone else was indifferent.
This hotel has the attitude of a state-owned enterprise from the last century—indifferent and unresponsive. I saw a family of tourists from other countries greet the staff in the hallway, but they ignored them as they walked by (this is the first time I've seen such poor service; it's practically rude). Logically, hotel staff should be welcoming and at least say hi to guests, but none of that happened during my stay. Even hotel staff in Moscow, if they don't speak, at least smile. Once, I helped a female staff member press the elevator button, and she didn't even say thank you, acting as if it was her duty. Perhaps this job has nothing to do with KPIs; it's a take-it-or-leave-it situation. What's even more ridiculous is that they have a display of photos of outstanding employees on the first floor, and all the staff in the photos are smiling (how ironic). Whether this involves racial discrimination is hard to confirm, as I've also seen them ignore other English-speaking tourists. The only time they seem enthusiastic is when tourists meet each other.
As some people downstairs have mentioned, water and toiletries are only provided on the first day of check-in. Regardless of the length of stay, there are no further updates (based on my experience). From what I've observed, the hotel primarily caters to local tour groups, senior citizen groups, and some independent travelers from Southeast Asia. If you have a choice, choose the one with the higher rating. If you're in a rush, the facilities are still quite good, but please significantly lower your expectations for the hotel's service; treat it as a self-service experience.
- Anonymous User
1. Take bus 106 from the airport and get off at the second-to-last stop (show the driver; they'll indicate the next stop is right). After getting off, you'll see the intersection with the giant green advertisement. Turn left and walk 400 meters uphill 😂. We didn't expect it to be uphill, and dragging our luggage through the snow and mud, the wheels kept getting stuck. There were stairs next to the uphill path, but we still couldn't move our luggage; it was a bit of a disaster.
2. Regarding the 106 bus fare: 785 rubles for 3 people + 1 backpack per person + 1 each of 24-inch, 26-inch, and 28-inch suitcases. The driver gave us change.
3. The hotel room was clean, and you could see the thermometer and shower. The room was warm (I didn't turn on the heating, and I was sweating in just a sweater and down pants).
4. The bathroom didn't have a separate shower area (only a curtain), but the shower water didn't splash onto the sink area.
The shower drains super fast, which is great.
The toilet water pressure is sufficient, but it has a backflow odor; you can't smell it once the bathroom door is closed.
The bathroom also has a hand dryer; I washed a very thick hat and it dried completely in the dryer over two nights.
5. The room is cleaned daily: taking out the trash, changing towels (including foot mats), making the bed, and refilling a bottle of mineral water. However, they don't refill tissues (but this is generally the case in China now; even if there are only a few sheets left in the tissue box, they won't proactively refill it), but if you ask the staff for new tissues, they will provide them immediately. Also, there are disposable slippers, but they are not replenished daily.
6. Breakfast was good, according to my friend; there was actually quite a lot of selection, including basic dairy products, eggs, drinks, and fruit.
7. It's about a 10-15 minute walk to Murmansk Mall.
- QuintinaH