Traveled here with a large group of friends so got to see a lot of this hotel's rooms. On the good side - hotel's location - truly fantastic plus pleasant decoration. Down side - 3rd floor walk up with no elevator. Not very comfortable beds, some rooms are small and the biggest challenge - most rooms do not have airconditioning. On top of it all if you have any problem with any of that or anything else the staff is not going to care one bit about any of that. Zero assistance. Could recomend this place only with serious reservations and only if better hotels are not available.

This hotel was perfectly located, about 1 long block off Nevsky Prospekt near the Kazan cathedral - as other reviews mention, it is a kind of B & B in a older converted apartment building. Staff is young, gracious, and informative - breakfast is ample, served buffet style. Do not expect cooked to order food, but a generous continental breakfast. Plan to stay here again on my next trip to St. Petersburg. For good food, try the Zhaba Bar on the corner of Kazanskaya and Gorokhovaya down the street from the hotel.

First of all, this is not a real hotel, but what's called in St.Pete a mini-hotel, that is a converted old large apartment which shares staircase and entrance with other apartments, some inhabited, others used by offices etc. A sort of oversized B&B in a flat rather than a house - St.Pete centre is full of them now. That's precisely what this hotel is.

Location is very good, behind the Kazansky cathedral, close to everything, including metro station (5 min) on the line towards the airport. Practically on Nevsky, but still on a back street which is rather quiet.

You have to climb up to the 4th floor of a residential building's staircase, no elevator. The staff are very welcoming. Some rooms are on the same floor as the entry, for others you have to pass the reception and then go down an internal staircase, which is a bit odd. My first room was 'downstairs', next to this staircase, which made for a horrible night, as it was shaking whenever there were people on the staircase. When I complained, the receptionist first tried to sell me an upgrade to a suite, but seeing I was not ready to pay more, quickly found another room, which was indeed a lot quieter.

The rooms are very modestly decorated and very small, just enough space for a double bed and a wardrobe. Both rooms I stayed in faced the courtyard, very bleak and shabby, typical St.Petersburg 'well-yard'; at least it was quiet.

The hotel is still new, but there are already signs of wear, tv remotes falling apart, shower pieces not holding properly in place; shower cubicle in my first room had a crack just taped over. Small things like this.

In contrast, the common room where the breakfast was served (small but adequate selection of cold things) and where you could also spend time/work/meet during the day is very nicely decorated using period furniture etc and is certainly a pleasant place to be in.

Free wifi is certainly a plus, but the reception in the rooms can be patchy; nearer to reception and in the lounge it was good. There was also a public PC for general use, connected to the internet.

After a less than pleasant experience at at supposed much better hotel, it was a relief to check into Rachmaninov, where a highly competent, helpful and friendly staff made us feel very welcome. Location is perfect, breakfast was great, and I'm spreading the word around!