Ishtar Hotel — Hotel in Baghdad

This once glorious hotel –evident from every corner there, have now turned into less than habitable place to stay for more than few days! Even with the great site and hotel layout and with utmost dedication of hotel management at front disk, the signs of war and conflict are reflected with high security and the desperate need for renovation of the hotel at all levels!||The view to the river side is magnificent but to the other side is grim and dull! Dirt and sand on balconies is building up to extremes and there is little attention for cleaning to cope with the effect of wear and tear! They first gave me a room that upon entrance witnessed horrible signs of poor cleaning with blood spots on the bathroom floor and horrible bathroom tiles and equipments! Then they graciously offered me an alternative room up on the 11th floor, a suite that was better kept with new bathroom seat and showers and some better cleaned carpets.||The food was very good for the good points, and this is a major point as you would better eat inside the hotel! Room service was equally good and delicious. The front disk staff and night shift manager were very gracious and professional and offered me help beyond expectations. The supermarket within the hotel also provide a much needed help offering a range of supplies that you may need.||Overall, the hotel is in desperate need for renovation at all levels! The limited nature of my business stay could tolerate the hotel in its current state, but for longer stays it would be very...

I travel extensively in my work and spend a whole lot of time in hotels. Crystal Grand Ishtar Hotel may well be the worst hotel I have ever stayed at. ||Nothing functioned as promised. No TV available at all, no internet. The AC was out of order, the rooms were dark and dirty. The staff hardly speaks any English at all. They promise they’ll come to your room and fix what’s broken, but never show up even though you call them over and over again. And the last thing you’ll ever get is an apology. ||Not surprisingly, we checked out earlier than planned. The room was 166 USD per night (which seems like a joke now that we know what kind of hotel this is) but the front desk manager charged us an additional fee of 4% because we paid with a credit card (sic!). When I protested, the front desk person got very hostile and rude. ||The best thing to do is to stay away from this hotel. And don’t get blinded by the glittering lobby or the name. Behind the facade this one is absolutely...

Not clean at all and old. There is no maintenance for the hotel. Elevators are dangerous, sometimes works and sometimes no. In the room the safe is not working, the tv is not working and from my window i have a disgusting view where the window is like a trap for the birds where they fall and die. Moreover, the room is not soundproof and you can feel the air from outside even if the windows are closed. Also, poor breakfast and there is always a smoking smell in the elevators. The only positive thing is that the staff are friendly and very sad for the...