Hotel Kievskaya   K   (No website.)  Email: info@kievsakaia.spb.ru    Phone: 7 (812) 166-0456    

Rates: Single with shower $30; double with shower $40; 2 room apartments $60 to $70; basic rooms: single $15, double $20, three people $21.

Location Rating: Fair. Close to the city center. Right next to the city's main bus terminal.

Proximity To Metro: Fair. About a 15 minute walk to Ligovsky Prospekt Metro Station.

Lobby Appearance: Old, but clean. The old front door slams shut behind you.

Room Appearance: Basic. Old. The bathroom struck me as unattractive and a little odd. There's a toilet, a sink, and a hose with a shower head on it. The drain is in the middle of the bathroom. So you can spray water all over the toilet and sink while you shower. This was a better room. Other rooms don't have showers. Instead you use a communal shower area that you share with other hotel guests.

Useful Nearby Businesses: The bus station.

Hotel Restaurants: They have one hotel restaurant that looked okay. It is a little old looking, but it doesn't look bad.

Other Amenities: Internet access.

Would I Stay Here? I would prefer a higher quality place. We saw the rooms with showers and the conditions weren't bad. It's basic. Nothing fancy. The rooms we saw were old, but clean. Tanya thinks for the price and proximity to the city center it is a good value. I think our customers would prefer accommodations that weren't so basic. I think the saying "you get what you pay for applies here." But it was of higher quality than some of the other lower-end places we visited.

Staff Speaks English? No.

Comments: Corridor carpets need replacement. The bus station next door is under renovation. The hotel was probably originally built for bus drivers and passengers. International buses and buses that take long trips within Russia stop at this terminal. The $30 and $40 rooms are basic. The cheaper rooms are probably very basic.

Kirovets Hotel   x Foreigners not accepted.   Phone: 7 (812) 158-0766

Front desk lady says "Our conditions are so bad, we don't work with foreigners." While standing there the phone rang. She told them the price per night for 3 people was 105 rubles (a little more than $3). Wow, it must be really bad!

Korona Guest Center   J&   Phone: 7 (812) 311-00-86   www.koronaspb.com

Rates: Standard room: $100 or for two people it is $130; Suite $130 for one person, $150 for two people. An extra bed for a child is $30. Five percent more if you pay by credit card.

Location Rating: Excellent. Truly excellent. Just steps away from Nevsky Prospekt in the most happening area of the city.

Proximity To Metro: Excellent. An easy walk to the metro.

Lobby Appearance: First of all, this is one of the most secret and private hotels in the city. It is difficult to find. On my first try with the help of our guide Elena, we just couldn't find it. There's no sign and everyone we asked never heard of it. We heard it was on this street, but we had no exact address or phone number and they weren't listed with the phone company. On our second try, still nobody we asked at the local businesses knew of this hotel, but Tanya and I were able to find it by just ringing intercom buttons. A guard releases the lock after you state your name and the purpose of your visit. Then you open the heavy metal door. The lobby is attractive but this is not the hotel lobby. The guard will call the hotel to inform them of your arrival. You walk up the stairwell. It is so so in appearance. Then you open the door with a "68" on it. Then one more door right behind it. And now you are inside one of the best hotels in the city. Only 8 rooms. The hotel lobby has a wall color that I don't like, but everything else about this little place is just terrific.

Room Appearance: Everything looks brand new. The hotel is just 6 months old as of March 2002. The rooms have a comfortable size, are tastefully decorated and have beautiful bathrooms. I like the views to the pedestrian street below. Each room has its own safe, its own air conditioner (very unusual), satellite TV, heated floors in the bathrooms (very unusual), and hair dryers.

Useful Nearby Businesses: Whatever you want, you can probably find it within minutes. This hotel is in the center of everything here. Tons of stores, restaurants, etc.

Hotel Restaurants: They have an arrangement with the cafe next door. And room service is provided.

Other Amenities: Complementary tea around the clock. Laundry service. Wake-up service. Telephone, fax, email communication, copying.

Would I Stay Here? Absolutely!

Staff Speaks English? Yes.

Comments: This is one of my favorite hotels because of the combination of price, location, comfort and privacy. Today is March 3rd, 2002 and already June is booked solid. That's the way it is with these places.

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