My wife and I have always stayed in large modern hotels,you know what you will get and you are rarely dissappointed however you could just as well be in Chicago or Cordoba.This time we took a chance on a stay in a medieval building and we were not sorry.Our room was number 12 reached by following several narrow corridors,going up a couple of steps and going down for no discernible reason.The room itself was large looking out onto a small inner courtyard, equipped with a massive four poster bed admittedly the bathroom did not match the large bedroom/ living area however there was soap provided.Also there were two pairs of complimentary travel slippers.Referencing other correspondents the room was clean,tidy and the rugs were not frayed or worn.(Some stair risers were ragged in other parts of the hotel).There was an expensive mini bar with wine at 20 euros and a small beer 3 euros however the fridge was large enough to take bottles of your own wine or beer purchased nearby.Note wine is dear in Tallin at at least 4 euros for the cheapest but they have several very palatable local beers for less than a euro a pint.It is true that there is only one TV channel but are we alone in not caring a jot, I do not go abroad to watch english tv, it is bad enough watching it here in England.

Breakfast was good though there was no menu to let you know what was on offer however the waitress was very helpful and my bacon and egg was good and my wife's omelette was huge.There was also a good selection of juicesw cold meats and fish to cater for the large number of Scandanavian visitors.

To be fair, there are some good qualities in this hotel: location and breakfast are very good. On the other hand, it apparently has a new management and all little details, that make a boutique hotel (or a decent hotel) are missing.
We stayed at Viru Inn for two nights in November and we had booked "the most spacious and elegant room"; eg Superior Deluxe Double room. In a way the room was elegant (nice antique-style furnishing) and to stretch a word a little, it was even a spacious, but: it was dirty (dust balls, cob webs, dirty rug), it did not have any bathroom amenities (we even had to ask for a hand soap), wi-fi did not work, tv had only one channel, our view was a wall of a next building and when we came back to hotel at 4.15pm, our hotel room was not tidied up.
I would have been content, if I had booked a basic room in a basic two star hotel, but after booking (and paying for) an upgraded room in a boutique hotel, I was not satisfied for what I got.

+ The staff (apparently a family) is cheerful and friendly, something that cannot be taken for granted in an ultra-stoic Finnic land like Estonia.

- Breakfast is okay, but disappointing against comparatively-priced hotels in the area.

- The vaunted "Satellite TV" amounts to three channels cycling over and over from 1 to 99: EuroSport in German, YLE 1 in Finnish and ETV 1 in Estonian. Even the other two basic Estonian antenna-receivable channels (the ones that show English-language programs and films with subtitles) are missing!

- Hotel advertises "air conditioning in common areas" without mentioning that they mean a single feeble blower behind the restaurant counter that doesn't even reach to the seating area. The person manning the till is the only one likely to feel its effect. This during a 30C (85F), 94% humidity August.

+/- Internet is free and a strong signal reaches even the most distant rooms. But the hotel uses a cheap, ageing wireless router that often loses sync and must be rebooted.

- The staff was friendly, but somewhat given to B.S. answers. The Internet not working was variously attributed to a) "It doesn't reach your room"; b) "Wireless is affected by the weather"; and c) "We can't control it." (I showed them how to turn a router off and on, which solved the problem.) The paucity of TV channels was attributed to "a broken cable" that "cannot be fixed anytime soon." Please. A faulty cable is the easiest thing in the world to isolate and replace. No repair could be easier or faster.

+ The hotel is extremely atmospheric, being located in parts of two old 16th-century houses knocked together. Alas, there is no lift, and finding your room can be an adventure through winding passages.

All the reviews are spot on, in my opinion. Yes, there are stairs and corridors which won't win any points from dicky knees or wonky hips, but think of what you get! Staying in a fabulous location, in an ancient building with buckets of character and charm, a laid-back atmosphere, a most delicious typical Estonian breakfast, and all for very reasonable rates! As for the service? Well I often find that if you give a smile and a friendly word, you are always given one, and more, back. We had no problems as the staff were always polite, friendly and helpful.
If you want elevators, no courtyards, tomb-quiet rooms, a seperate reception/office, then go look at a hotel chain - don't bother looking at boutique hotels because you obviously don't understand what the term means.
Oh, and please don't complain about dirty rugs. It shows your ignorance of aged and well-worn expensive carpets.