Uzbekistan Hotel is ideally located in the heart of the Tashkent city just 100 metres from famous Amir Temur Square

Uzbekistan Hotel is ideally located in the heart of the Tashkent city just 100 metres from famous Amir Temur Square.  This is the huge hotel built in the classic Soviet style in the form of open book and comprises 17 floors. The Location of Uzbekistan hotel is great indeed - from here you can explore many Tashkent's landmarks including the Independence Square, Broadway, galleries and museums. It is the perfect location for foreign visitors. The park which is in front of the hotel is a nice place to walk and relax oneself.  Amir Temur Metro Station is just 100 metres away, and is on 2 different metro lines. Taxi's are plentiful and easy to flag in front of the hotel. The park in front is a really nice place to hang out around sunset and people watch or chat with the locals.

Part of the hotel was recently refurbished to meet the 4 star hotel requirements. Hotel Uzbekistan received its first guests in 1974 and until recently it was the only large hotel capable to cater for large tourist groups visiting Tashkent. And not accidentally it is called "Uzbekistan". Once this must have been a grand hotel but those days are long gone. Hotel is still mainly caters for groups and the hotel is literally very heavily used.  The outside and lobby of this hotel is bright and inviting, but the hallways and rooms are a bit dark and gloomy, with filthy, torn carpets.

Rooms

Hotel "Uzbekistan" offers 254 rooms, 126 rooms on the backside are with balconies. All rooms are subdivided into the following categories: Single room, Standard Single room, Superior Single, Superior Twin, Suite room. The rooms are large but could do with refurbishing. Make sure to avoid standard rooms and ask to be allocated a room at a renovated floor as they are much better. Most rooms would have a decent view of the city. The higher floor the better not just because of the views but to avoid loud music from weddings held nearly every evening on the ground floor. Superior room option might be a better choice as the price difference compared to regular room is not that big but contrast is obvious. If you happen to be in non-refurbished room then expect power points not working, cracked bathroom tiles, toilet paper holder broken, curtains and bed-sheets torn, ancient air-conditioning units, exposed wires in some places, etc.

Refurbished rooms are remarkably better with decent beds, functioning TVs and modern bathrooms with walk-in shower. Minibar, TV and hairdryer are available, everything is clean.

Services

The buffet breakfast is great and is served in a huge ballroom where at the dinner time they usually held weddings. They do cook eggs to order and have an omelette chef. There is a big choice with heavy emphasis on 'less healthy food', i.e. there's tons of meat, but fruit less so.

There is a bar and restaurant on the top floor (one floor ABOVE the top 16th floor on the lift), more economical than the main dining room.  They work very slowly though and expect to wait for any food for quite a long time. Top floor bar have the prices twice less than the Vienna bar in the ground floor, and the views are obviously much better! There are not a lot of eateries in close vicinity apart from next door 'Gamburger' (behind the hotel), where you can have a nice fast food style meal (kebab, rice, bread, salad. They have outside tables and a few inside. You can buy cold beer here to take to your room.

Internet access is free but Wi-Fi speed very variable depending of the distance to the nearest router. TV channels are limited to just few Russian and Uzbek channels. Currency exchange is available in the lobby but to get a good black market rate ask for porter. There is also a convenience store and souvenir shop in the lobby with essentials, but pricey. One of the advantages of staying in a big tourist hotel is people watching opportunities. In the afternoon you can sit in the ground floor bar and watch a number of wedding groups having their photos taken under the huge chandelier and on the spiral staircase!

There is a gym in the 17th floor but it is very small, very basic, with 1 magnetic treadmill and looks uninviting. No swimming pool in the hotel.

The staff are very variable, generally helpful and attentive, but as it might happen in large hotels some of the staff are more friendly, chatty and helpful whilst others are not customer focused at all.  Rates at reception start from $200 so book online only.