Rija Domus Hotel

“Good budget hotel, definitely give it a try!”

I stayed at this hotel when on private business in Riga. I am a very fussy traveller, by this I mean: I study descriptions of the hotels and the facilities, and I always keep in mind that photos do not reflect the reality. The hotel is good value for money, nice breakfast, very welcoming and frien… more

I stayed at this hotel when on private business in Riga. I am a very fussy traveller, by this I mean: I study descriptions of the hotels and the facilities, and I always keep in mind that photos do not reflect the reality. The hotel is good value for money, nice breakfast, very welcoming and friendly staff, and now comes the unpleasant: as it usually is, the owners ( this is my guess) are not willing to invest in improvement. Even a lick of paint would make the rooms and bathrooms look a bit happier. The right size mattress protector, a bit of work on the bathroom etc. Great thanks to the Reception and restaurant staff who were brilliant! “Hello” to the management/ owners: take better care of the property and value your staff, they are your absolute treasure!

less

“Good value and location”

Great location in the middle of old Town and a nice view over the rooftops. Earplugs provided. Everything clean and basic. Adequate buffet breakfast. On arriving we had a very nice and informative welcome from Cynthia in the reception. There is an elevator.

“Interesting reminiscence of days gone by...”

The Berlin wall came down 35 years ago. And with that the Soviet sphere of occupied countries - the Baltic countries included. Rijas Domus may, or may have not, existed as a hotel in those pre-1989-days, but an aura of the old east is still noticeably present today. Hotels nowadays are almost alwa… more

The Berlin wall came down 35 years ago. And with that the Soviet sphere of occupied countries - the Baltic countries included. Rijas Domus may, or may have not, existed as a hotel in those pre-1989-days, but an aura of the old east is still noticeably present today. Hotels nowadays are almost always "upgraded/updated" with furnishings in complete gray scale, steel, glass, extravagant furniture and so on... Domus is how far you can get from a pumped up boutique hotel. First must be said that the location is perfect! Smack in the middle of the old town and everything is within reach. That is a premier advantage. Sure, there are other hotels nearby, but not in this price category. Rija Domus retains a brownish and grey genuine atmosphere of days gone by. With noticeable neglections of "fixing" things to look new (or to, in fact, work..). This is not really a disappointment or a criticism. In fact, for a traveller from the west who have possibly have had first hand experience of the old soviet era (like we have), it's a sort of tender-hearted appreciation of that not everything, always, has to be top notch slick and modern. That aside, this is not a place for having a "nice stay" in the respect of having a hotel experience. It is merely for getting a fairly descent place to sleep. Rooms are spacious and (at least ours) was big. Beds are on the firm side, but worked fine for us. Pillows "bumpy" and hard to tame though. Everything is simple in the furnishing, but it works. No AC (of course) or fridge. Bathroom is ok with a flower sprinkle shower and soap... Thats just about it. Beware that you are in the very heart of Riga old town and there is a lot of noise from the various establishments all around. There's no coincidence that you find ear-plugs provided on the bedside table (nice gesture, but for many a problem for a good nights sleep). Also, there is a TV in the room. Period. In fact it was a flat screen of moderate size. Elsewhere in the hotel there is still "thick TV:s", for example in the lobby. Fine, but a screen will be useful if there is something to watch. We couldn't find any channel properly working. All channels was snowing (se pictures) and none really worked. Well, Domus... wouldn't it be better to just skip the TV:s all toghether when you not are interested in providing something that can be seen? Probably you're not going to Riga to watch TV, but if is present it should work. The rather gloomy and peeled off breakfast room contained a basic buffet. Not many choices, but still basically OK. Suspicious kind of "scrambled" eggs in little cubes, mini sausages, one cheese and some vegetables. Bread and sweets. One coffee machine that can cause quite a que if the hour is busy. Perhaps an investment in a second machine could be something to consider..? Reception staff quite nice, but a bit reserved. Cleanliness is fine and we met a wonderful cleaning lady each morning on our floor. Considerate and professional lady. For us this was a transport back in time. And no problem for a night or two (we had three, but survived). Don't expect anything fancy and if you need total silence in the night - look elsewhere. Affordable though and a good choice - if standard and silence doesn't matter - for the premium location.

less