Our group was booked into the WIP months in advance for a three-night stay, prepaid. On our arrival, we were told the hotel was overbooked and we were re-directed to the Hotel Ambassador where, we were told, rooms were waiting for us.

En route to the Ambassador, we were stopped and returned to the WIP with the explanation that it was not our group, but another that was to be sent to the Hotel Ambassador. Apologies were made and we were finally checked into our rooms. Little did we know that we would have been better off at the Ambassador!

Around 2:00 in the morning our first night, we were roused from our beds by a woman from our group whose room was on fire, ignited by flames coming out of the air-conditioner in her room. Smoke from the electrical fire quickly filled the hotel. There were no smoke alarms, no fire alarms, no fire extinguishers, and the management did not immediately call the fire department.

Half our group was trapped in their rooms above the fire. There were no lights. The choking smoke was thick and blinding. Guests were breaking out their windows to vent the smoke and several even jumped to safety. 30 to 40 minutes later, the fire department -- which, we learned, was only 5 minutes away -- finally showed up to put out the fire.

For a very tense hour-and-a-half, it was unknown to us how many of our group had survived the fire and smoke. Thank God, all came out alive. Four of us were ambulanced to hospitals to be treated for smoke inhalation, one to an intensive care facility. The rest of us were relocated to the Hotel Bellevue -- a beautiful, modern hotel about 10 kilometers outside the city.

An interesting footnote: We all noticed -- and read -- a posting in our rooms of prohibitions that, in hindisght, indicated management's full awareness of faulty electrical wiring.

The WIP describes itself as a "brand new hotel." It is not "brand new" and hasn't the most basic safety equipment, such as smoke and fire alarms, or sprinklers, much less fire extinguishers.

Had our lives not been jeopardized, I would likely have rated our overall experience as "okay, but some problems," and "probably not' recommended the WIP to my best friend.

Anyone considering a stay in Skopje should go to the Hotel Bellevue instead. The Bellevue really is "brand new," and even though it is some distance from central Skopje, taxi fares are quite reasonable.