During our trip on the Silk Road in Azerbaijan this August, we made reservations at three different four-star hotels in three different cities. Even though they were all listed as four-star accommodation, they all differed significantly from one another. Today I want to share with you our experience with River Side Hotel in the city Mingachevir. We spent a really great and fun time there, so that’s why I decided to start with that one.
River Side Hotel in Mingachevir has a very good location – right along the river Kura, and offers magnifiscent views towards the waters and the numerous little ships and boats sailing on the river. This was the view from our window:
Beautiful, huh? 🙂
Choosing a room
When choosing a room in the River Side Hotel in Mingachevir, be mindful of one very important thing (at least in my opinion). The rooms on the 4th floor differ from the rooms in the rest of the hotel. They are still very nice and they offer a magnifiscent view, but… they don’t have a balcony and they get very hot in the summer, because this is the last floor of the hotel and the sun heats it thoroughly. Of course, there’s an air-condition in every room, but if you’re traveling with kids you probably won’t want it to be working all the time and definitely not at night.
Accommodation
The accommodation itself was fine. A bit less than what we expected, but still OK. It has everything you need for a relaxing stay. You can check out the Photo Gallery in the website of the hotel to get a better idea of what to expect.
Breakfast was also good. Nothing over the top, but it had fruits, veggies, a couple of hot dishes, cornflakes, milk, ham, cheese, and coffee. And when there’s coffee, everything is good. 🙂
Restaurant
The summer restaurant of the hotel is veeeeeery nice! We absolutely loved it! It is located right along the river and offers a friendly and relaxing atmosphere. Prices are very cheap (at least compared to Baku), and the food is delicious. We ate there 3 or 4 times and it was perfection. There’s enough space, so even with our stroller for the baby we didn’t feel being in the way of the waiters (as is often the case).
Again – delicious food and great prices! I totally recommend it! Even if you’re not staying in the hotel, you can still visit the restaurant.
Leisure Time
If we visit Mingachevir again some day, we would probably go with River Side for accommodation again, because of the beautiful and well-designed leisure space in front of the hotel. There were nice slides and swings for the kids and cosy arbours for the adults.
The swimming pool is small, but enough. We had a lot of fun there. I didn’t like that I had to get out of the hotel and along the parking lot to get to the swimming pool (and back), but they were doing some renovation, so hopefully, that will be fixed as well.
I saw on their website that they also have fitness, sauna, and billiard room, but we haven’t checked those out. I saw the billiard room along the pool, but it was dark and seemed like it was being renovated as well.
There’s a refreshing fountain in the garden of the hotel and stage, on which different events are held.
It’s nice and calm. Perfect for a relaxing vacation!
The Staff
The staff seemed very nice. They spoke only Azerbaijani, so our communication was very limited, but they do try their best to make you feel welcome and comfortable.
Conclusion
In conclusion, I can say that River Side Hotel in Mingachevir is a nice accommodation option for families with kids. It has a good location, offers activities for children, and its prices are affordable. My advice is to ask for a room with a balcony and avoid the fourth floor during the summer season.
Feel free to share your thoughts and impressions in the comments below.
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