Khujakent Vacations from $1,471

Check-in was fast and efficient; the desk staff were helpful with logistics.

Do not stay here if you have young children. There's a nightclub on the top floor that is open every night, and the music is very loud and echoes in the central courtyard. Thankfully it's only open until 11pm so it doesn't completely ruin your night's sleep, but clearly there is no soundproofing for the space. Also the hallways are all tiled so again there is no soundproofing for the noise of guests moving through the hotel early/late. We requested a packed breakfast on the morning we were checking out as we had an early train, but they never prepared it. We first asked reception about this on our first day, and they confirmed it would be possible but asked we remind them the day before check out. We reminded them the morning before check out and they confirmed it would be prepared. Unfortunately on the morning of check out they hadn't prepared it. I'm not sure why we had to request this repeatedly, with staff clearly understanding our request as we also explained dietary requirements and what would be suitable, only for the request to be completely ignored. They did allow us to go up to breakfast slightly early that morning at least so we had just enough time for a quick breakfast before departing, but it really wasn't acceptable to just not process this request. Overall while the room was spacious and the hotel was clean, it just wasn't the most comfortable stay for the price we paid, and having to make the same request repeatedly was unnecessarily frustrating.

Service can be a little inconsistent, but most staff are very polite. We booked an apartment. It was clean, but the unit itself has a little age to it, and could do with some refreshment. No ironing board in the room. No cleaning cloth or washing detergent so you can't really cook anyway. The outdoor pool needed maintenance. The gym is very basic if you are used to big commercial gyms. They made us pay for two cups we "broke", but it was the vibration of the kettle that broke the cups. So be a little mindful if you are boiling the kettle. If the cups are stacked onto each other like a pyramid, take note to place them away from the kettle, even though the cups and kettles are already in position in a pre-cut wooden holder. They will still break. It's just 50,000 uzs but it just feels odd to charge us for something we didn't purposely break, and it was already stacked like this by the housekeeper. The hotel is away from the city centre and our travel plans were a little derailed when we tried to take a taxi on one of the days where the Samarkand Challenge was going on. The roads were blocked and we couldn't get to the city at all. Otherwise, it's still not too shabby or expensive to take a taxi back and forth.