Kyiv-Art Hostel — Hotel in Kyiv

(i) The owner, Igor, persistently made unwanted advances towards me. This frustrated my hope for a peaceful stay by paying double the going rate to stay in Kyiv (of the peaceful, private Hostel Podalsky for example) (ii) As others noted, there was an attempt to add charges; 250 added to the bill for some unspecified change in rate (i didn't pay it) and a (small) city tax un-advertised (I did pay it, but was not offered a receipt) (iii) The owner gets a little aggressive when you don't understand his English; he spouts Russian at you and then smiles as you say you don't speak it ('And no other Slavic languages? 'no') On the only very serious matter of harassment (i) it was clear from the moment I arrived that I wasn't open to the owner's advances - and frankly it is bizarre that a hotel owner would try, anyway. (It was obvious because check-out at the property is at an irritating 10.30; I arrived as promised at 16.00 and it took him 34 minutes to have the room available; annoying as he appeared to prioritise later guests, and because I had mentioned that I wanted to sleep, I did not mind if the room was spotless). His first approach was to enter my room, unasked, in his underpants. (He knocked, I said 'Hello?', he entered, I was stretching, touching my toes, and he stood in front of me, pretending to do some trance-like dance. After 30 seconds, I said 'Igor I am trying to exercise in that (very small) space' and he ran out of the room. I kept seeing him in his underwear in the lounge. The next day, I entered the flat, not seeing him but hearing him say 'Can you help me please'. I agreed. He was again almost naked. He said 'It is only you and I in the flat!' I replied ' yes, so what?' He said 'You can do whatever you want to'. I said 'Igor, I always do what I want to' and walked away. The next day, he once again came to my door in his underpants. Another pretext "if you don't have money, you don't have to pay'; I repeated that of course I have money and would pay, but that he had agreed I could do it at the end of my stay (so as not to change too much cash and carry unwanted Ukrainian currency out of Ukraine). I offered to increase the deposit I had offered, and said that either way, I would pay. He said 'I don't believe you'. I got annoyed at him, and told him that his behaviour was unprofessional, he should not be knocking on guests' doors in his underwear. 5 minutes later, I had a chat with him, telling him that for his own benefit he must stop his behaviour. He apologised and said 'I just want to be happy'. For me, I paid extra to relax, wasted money. This was the last hostel to sell out - a sign in itself - but I visited friends in plainer but more private, more peaceful hostels, and they paid half the prices. My trip was overshadowed by absolutely unnacceptable behaviour (imagine if a male owner had made such advances in his underwear to a female guest; he might go to jail) .. apart from that, on the positive side his art is good, the location is good, the place is tastefully furnished and kitchen facilities are good. On the superficial negative side, the shower pressure is low and erratic (might not be the fault of the property), the doors have no locks (rather important in these circumstances), there is clutter and personal possessions in the drawers, the room is small (if well-arranged). Most of all; please be very firm with Igor if he repeats this kind of behavior. I thought I had done enough by questioning his semi-naked posing in front of me, but he is persistent. Just say No. At once! And do...

With 3 years and multiple visits, it all ended with eviction and no follow-up apology||ADVANTAGES||- Near metro station & restaurants||- Decorated with oils done by staff and friends (photo)||- Appearance of friendly staff (Wolves in sheep's clothing) - watch out (more later)||DISADVANTAGES ( Caveat emptor )||- Prolific use of incense - fumes cause headaches and allergy reactions||- Noisy during awake and sleeping hours, including loud, repetitive drum beat music||- Guests forbidden use of kitchen stove - only microwave||- Dark art colors give somber ambiance||- Twin bed, double and mixed dorm room built out (Photo) as enclosed balconies, thus, added outside noise ( pigeons on tin roofs) and large, uncomfortable swings in winter - summer temperatures ||- Small toilet room includes a fickle hot water heater ( Sadly, I was falsely accused (but not told until July eviction ) of tamper in my May-June 2019 stay ) (photo)||- Toilet flushing causes long interruption of shower and tap water (woe to those caught naked and wet in unheated room)||- Tub and shower control is grossly unwieldy in terms of finding suitable temperature. This coupled with interruptions make showers a nightmare, including the often falling shower head holder. (photo)||- Toilet is given to breaking ( last straw causing my July 2019 eviction, even though I paid 50 euros for repair ) (photo)||- Toilet paper frequently exhausted & not replaced ( bring your own recommended )||- Heating and air conditioning for 1,100 Grivna, most expensive room stops for frequent voltage drops. Valentin the owner refuses to upgrade power source.||- Cockroaches in kitchen and bathrooms||- Age discrimination for those over 55 ( caveat emptor )||- The excessive pricing is comparatively excessive and hubris with the argument the establishment is less expensive than a hotel. ||- Guests often leave early for better accommodations (...

We really loved our stay with Igor and his truly inspiring hostel in Kiev! We spent two nights here during a recent trip to Kiev! The hostel is located in central Podil with nice access to the Kiev metro system - It's only about 2/3 minutes to the Kontraktova Metro entrance. It's about a 30 minute walk into the Euromaidan Square area of Kiev. The hostel itself is very small, but cozy and really personalized. We stayed in the dorm beds attached to the side of the building, but had access to free tea/ coffee, hot showers and luggage storage for free. The WiFi was also pretty good. Definitely the selling point of this hostel are the many beautiful oil and acrylic paintings dotting the walls. Igor, the host, is a talented and well recognized local artist and was super keen to show me his collection and share some insider artist tips. As a fellow painter, I found this to be a really cool and a nice way to converse and share experiences with our host! ||||The hostel itself is very small, but the beds are comfortable and we enjoyed the hostel during a quiet time, although I can imagine it can be really crowded at busy times. Igor was also very helpful to inform us on some of his personal favorite local sights and restaurants. He was very kind to direct us to the central train station when leaving. I can surely see why this hostel was one of the first to establish itself in Kiev, but also to excel at providing a comfortable place to stay with a great reputation....