Universitetskaya Hotel

Located reasonably close to the magnificent central campus of Moscow State University, the Universitetskaya Hotel offers very low cost accommodation and basic services and facilities. The hotel is mainly used by guests visiting the university, and the lack of a metro station nearby is likely to deter first-time visitors to Moscow. The Universitetskaya can, however, offer very cheap accommodation if you need to be in this part of town.

Run by the Pilgrimage Centre of the Moscow Patriarchate, the Universitetskaya has nothing obviously religious about it except its gift shop and the occasional icon in rooms, but it does guarantee peace, quiet, and safety despite the hotel's very low rates. Otherwise, the hotel has something of the atmosphere of a student dorm. Housed in a 15-storey building dating from the late 1970s, the Universitetskaya has 264 guest rooms ranging from very low-cost Economy Rooms with extremely basic furnishings to fully renovated suites. A lack of Internet access in most rooms may deter some guests, but otherwise the hotel has a full compliment of amenities, including a restaurant, bar, and two cafes, and large venues for conferencing and meetings with a good range of modern technical equipment.

The Universitetskaya is situated in an attractive and leafy area of Moscow to the south-west of the city centre. From the higher floors of the hotel, there are spectacular views of the University and beyond to the Kremlin and the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour. The nearest metro station, Universitet, is over 20 minutes' walk away, but mastering the bus and trolleybus system to get there should not be difficult.