Express hotel

In my view the best of Express is it's value for money. It is slightly off piste, very functional and the service is adequate but so long as you realise you will get nothing exceptional, it is fine. Position wise Express is excellent for the station - 10 minutes walk manageable with all bar the heaviest case. It is less good for the sights - Kreshatyk is a good 15 minutes walk uphill and Pechersk some way away (we took a taxi for about £8 for three) - but we could see only expensive hotels with easy access to main sights. The Metro is only 5 minutes and part of a sightseeing trip on its own - very retro. The rooms are small - the bathroom so small you have to post yourself onto the loo seat with legs under the wash basin - but ours was clean and comfortable and afforded a good view over the city. The view from the cafe at the top is a sight in itself. Free wifi was excellent speed. The breakfast was Ukrainian, i.e. beetroot, beans and raw cabbage with a mixture of savouries mainly. There was some limited fruit and cereal available. But you could have as much as you want and it was reasonable standard. The evening meal was the same. There is a bar and restaurant downstairs not used by us. The front desk service was OK, none of your "have a nice day" or whatever but how often do you need them in practice? We would recommend to all bar the fussiest. It works and compared to what we could have paid for higher standard, good VFM.

Well positioned clean, basic hotel. Reception staff couldn't have been more helpful. the Ukranian breakfast was very good. This isn't the Hilton, but you don't pay Hilton prices.

Express Hotel’s main draw is that it is located near the center of the city and across from the University metro stop (a 5 minute walk). Most moderately-priced hotels are located on the other side of the river or away from town. The hotel has reasonably spacious rooms with a desk, a small television, a small porch and reliable Internet service (for about $1.5 per day). The corridor was lightly dim and had strange odor. The lounge area downstairs was very basic. The staff was courteous, but (in the East European spirit) not over-zealous to provide service. In short, the hotel did not provide many extras except for bottle water, which was left in the room. However, the hotel did provide an excellent, all-you-can-eat breakfast at their restaurant, which is located on the 16th floor and has a nice view of the city. In summary, you will get a moderately nice hotel for a moderate price.

My daughter and I arrived in the middle of the night. The hotel lobby was pitch black. The hotel was not paid yet, and the unhappy receptionist wanted to increase the agreed price. I also found out that "bathroom" in the room did not imply that the room would have a shower. The receptionist did not care even after I showed him my confirmation from Expedia showing the number of people and the amenities in the room. He kept insisting that I only booked for 1 person, and he kept adding the price I had to pay in order to get the reservation that was written on my confirmation from Expedia. His attitude clearly showed that we were not welcomed there, and he had no interest in carrying out what was promised in our reservation. He further pointed out that whatever in my confirmation had nothing to do with the hotel. We left the hotel in the middle of the night without staying there. I rather stay in a more expensive and reliable hotel than paying a penny more to a "robber."

Express Hotel is well located a 15 minute walk from the train station and close to the Metro. Hotel staff was very helpful. Wireless internet was good but is only available in lobby. Renovated room was very clean.