Intercontinental Kiev (Kyiv), Ukraine Hotel Review

Introduction

For my trip to Kiev I had to decide between 3 different major chain hotels that all came with good reviews - the Hyatt, the Fairmont and the Intercontinental.

The Intercontinental had especially glowing reviews - so I made this my first choice.

Location (Sightseeing, Airport, Business)

The hotel is situated right next to St. Michaels cathedral ins Kiev's city center. Probably the best neighborhood to be in. The building is very new but fits in nicely with the existing buildings. It's a very well down piece of architecture.

Cabs from the airport cost about $30. There are also minibuses and the option to reach the hotel via metro though that is a bit inconvenient.

Check-In (Friendliness, Efficiency)

Very friendly check-in in fluent English.

It's also fast and I was escorted to my room.

I received an upgrade because of my Platinum status from a Standard Room to a Deluxe Room.

All of the staff made a very well organized and trained impression on me. Great English and knowledge about the city.

May only pet peeve were the rather mediocre food recommendations I received.

It's not easy to find good food in Kiev but the places I was sent to were either more expensive than what I wished for (Spotikaz) or truly bad (O'Brains pub).

Common Areas (Lobby, Restaurants, Pool, Gym)

The lobby is very well appointed though a bit dark and cold. The pool is in the basement and looks gorgeous. The gym s small though even has ketlleballs - something that is amiss in most other gyms.

I only tried the breakfast at the hotel (more below) and it was served in the breakfast hall. It's not especially pretty but it's nice enough.


















Rooms (Cleanliness, Space provided)

I messed up - I did accidentally delete the room pictures - below are photos from Tripadvisor :(

I really liked the room. If you have been to one of the newer Intercontinentals (i.e the IC Boston) you'll know how it looks. It just gives away a very comfortable feel. I like the dark colors, mixed with lighter tones.

The minibar is complimentary here but before you celebrate it contains no alcoholic drinks just soda and water. But still that's pretty nice.

I also received a small bottle of (excellent) red wine and cookies. fruit as a welcome present.

The bathroom works excellent - a strong shower and a drainage that actually works and was well designed.

The Wifi was a bit on the slow side at times but generally worked very stable. I really liked that the hotel uses a simple Wifi authorization just with a password. Compare this to the Sheraton Frankfurt airport where you need to enter 4 random numbers each time you want to use the internet.

There was good attention to detail - really liked how quietly the doors close for instance.





Sleeping (Mattress, Comfort level, Noise)

I really love the Intercontinental mattresses - great sleeping comfort. The duvet was just right and while it was summerly hot the AC cooled down the room to a great 18 degrees Celsius. Can't really think of a better sleep comfort.

Food (Breakfast, Executive Lounge, other food & drinks)

I did not have access to the lounge.

However breakfast was included in my reservation and it was really good. The hotel as a wide variety on offer including sushi(!) - great cheese and sweet options.

The coffee was excellent and so were the juices incl. freshly pressed orange juices. I was really surprised about the quality of the food items.


































As mentioned earlier great food is not commonplace in Kiev but the hotel breakfast were clearly the best meal I had in Kiev.

Overall

Kiev is not cheap and regular rates were around EUR 250 per night. However this is a great hotel by all means. Great location, outstanding friendly service, great hardware and the food is equally good.

I'd be very happy to come back to the hotel anytime.