Really good hotel, located in center of Riga. Nice restoran, lovely lobby bar with amazing view on Riga (located on last floor of hotel). Really frendly staff and low price.

We stayed here early December 2007, we booked this hotel because of the reviews on this website. Although this hotel is already very good value we got a lot better deal by trawling the Internet than we would have got from the links on here or from the hotel direct (Always shop around!) The hotel lived up to its reputation in every way. It is in a good location about 10 mins walk from the old town. Hotel and rooms are spotless. we asked for non-smoking room and this is what we got (no smell of smoke). We didn't dine at the hotel apart from breakfast so can't comment on the food. Breakfast was standard hotel fare but a good selection and was nice. Reception staff were very helpful and polite but the bar staff on the top floor were less welcoming and even a little rude. I thought the drinks sky bar were a little expensive compared with the bars in town, and the food was VERY expensive. This didn't bother us too much as we only went in there once. The Skyline Bar in the Reval Hotel is twice as high with fantastic views over the city centre. It also has great cocktails that are cheaper than at the Albert, and a glass fronted lift to whizz you up and down! The bar across the road try to charge you 5 lats to get in (reason why no one was in there) and claim it is for the entertainment (non playing). Lots of nice bars in town with lots of different beers from different breweries if you are into this kind of thing (I am!) Dined the 1st night at the Uzbekistan restaurant a couple of streets away. Restaurant Kokanda 12 Bruninieku iela Very good value and fantastic Uzbeki food! It's not a glamorous restaurant, but is basic and cosy. 2nd night we took a tram out to the LIDO complex. Out of this world. Really good value "all you can eat buffet". Great entertainment and good beer brewed on the premises. You could easily spend the whole night here so be prepared! Very enjoyable weekend in Riga and only saw one stag party. These people were very well behaved but told us that if you are English and are in a group of more than 3 you will not be welcome in Riga. They had problems with not getting served in some of the pubs and the locals were quite hostile towards them. We as an English couple had no problems at all and all the local people that we had contact with were very friendly.

I would recommend the Albert to all ages, the location is excellent, an easy walk to the Old Town and virtually next to the Art nouveau district which is a must see if you are into architecture. The rooms are not the biggest but there is everything you need as well as free wifi throughout the hotel. I agree with the view that the waiting on staff in the Skyline bar are not the happiest of workers, a smile once in a while would'nt hurt anyone. The breakfast is excellent with a variety to suit all. If I was to go back to Riga in the near future I would consider staying at the Albert again.

This review is mostly on Riga itself, I am just back, and am trying everything I can to stop any british person going there again, never been treated so bad in my life. The actual hotel is really nice, but the staff have a terrible attitude, total contempt for you. If you are thinking of going to riga for a stag weekend, DO NOT do it, if you have already booked, do EVERYTHING you can to change it, no matter the cost, trust me. The hotel try to fine you for absolutely anything, and our group was made up of really good guys who were good mates, people who dont cause trouble. In case anyone reading this is wondering how serious i am, i haeve taken this to the british embassy, and also if anyone has any ideas on other things i can do to make this known to all british citizens please let me know. I have just returned home from Riga, and was horrified at the treatment we received while on holiday. We were treated with nothing but hostility from start to finish, and this was the case with every person we came in contact with on holiday. My biggest concern with this, is the fact that it is not common knowledge that we would be expecting such treatment. My only guess with this is that everyone comes back with the attitude of "what can I do about it", I am not prepared to except that this kind of thing can continue to happen. Without going into every detail of what happened to our group when we were there, here are the main points. Shouted at in the street to "go home" Police are out to make as much money off us as possible, and attempt to frighten you with the thought of jail. Basically, it doesn't matter what you do, there will be a fine, and you pay it, or go to jail. People walking through you, no attempt to hide how much they hate you. If you were hoping for anyone you were dealing with to smile/say please/thank you, forget it, and i am not talking about all 3 happening, and as British citizens who are used to common courtesy, we found this impossible to take. Riga is summed up best, by one of our group, who asked the joke "what currency do they use in latvia?" with the answer of "yours!" Scott Paton