We stayed at the Strofi Hotel in Tbilisi for three nights at the beginning of our tour of Georgia, and again for one night before flying home.
The boutique hotel opened in July 2022 and although some of the 28 rooms had balconies, ours was in a rather strange location with rooms 101 to 103 being on the ground floor next to reception, and as it faced the street, it was a little noisy. However, it was beautifully decorated in calming tones of pale grey. The bed was comfortable, with two bedside tables with reading lights and charging points. The wardrobe had a safe and plenty of hanging and shelf space and there was a desk and pouffe. Tea and coffee making facilities and bottled water were complimentary. Because it was a relatively small room the lights were simple to operate, and the AC and free Wi-Fi were effective. Initially we thought the hotel was so new they’d forgotten to put knobs on the cupboard door until we discovered it had to be pushed gently to open – for this reason we didn’t discover the mini bar (well stocked, but no price list) until the final night.
The bathroom was a good size with trendy coloured tiles and black plumbing fixtures. The walk-in shower was powerful with plenty of hot water and towels were dark grey, rather than the usual white. Complimentary toiletries were available in small plastic bottles.
On our second visit, we were allocated room 501 which had a good view of the derelict church next door, but nowhere to swing a cat. The bed took up most of the floor space and the two bedside tables with lights and charging points touched the walls. With all the features we’d experienced on our first visit, there was little space, not even on the floor to open our suitcases. The bathroom was equally small, but the shower was powerful and although it wasn’t enclosed, it didn’t flood the floor.
The reasonably priced, small bar had a terrace courtyard at the back with comfortable furniture: ideal for sitting out with a cold beer or coffee after a day of sightseeing.
Breakfast was served in the basement restaurant from 8am: not ideal if you had an early start. However it was a splendid affair with two juices and a compote (fruit infused water), cereal, two types of yoghurt, fresh fruit including lovely strawberries, cold meats and cheeses, wraps, daily changing hot dishes, salads, khachapuri (a Georgian cheesey bread) and a cake. Tea and filter coffee were self-service, but interestingly they served French bread rather than Georgian shoti bread. On our final day, when we had to leave early for the airport, a breakfast box was provided with a rather solid sandwich, a pastry, apricots and yoghurt.
Our main gripe was room service. Having been out all day we returned at 5pm to find the ‘make up my room’ sign still on the door. The receptionist shrugged and said rooms were cleaned between 9am and 6pm. As she said they always started at the top, we asked specifically for our room to be done early on future days.
The hotel was situated in the Tbilisi Historic District, which is on the UNESCO tentative list. Whilst some buildings, like the hotel, have been beautifully renovated, others are still derelict and in places, the area resembles a building site. Whilst there was no evening restaurant, it was only a 10 minute walk to Erekle Street, a pedestrianised area full of restaurants.
