Hotel of the Week: Radisson Blu, Astana

Astana, a city of 700,000 that will grow to 1.5 million by 2030, was once a sleepy Russian provincial town before replacing Almaty as Kazakhstan’s capital in 1997.

Over the years, this former Soviet Union state has endured a turbulent time. Genghis Khan plundered these parts, the Russians came and conquered, and the notorious Stalin-era Gulags saw thousands of political prisoners confined to the icy wastes of the steppe.

Today former political leaders (Tony Blair comes and goes), royalty (Britain’s Prince Andrew has been a regular visitor) and international business czars drop by to curry favour with the country’s rulers, writes Ian Jarrett.

Climatically, Astana is the second coldest capital in the world after Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. Winter temperatures, driven down by the searing winds from the steppe, can reach minus 35 degrees Celsius. It’s at times like these that you need the warmth and comfort of a good hotel.

Astana has few internationally branded hotels but in the Radisson Blu it has a property that lives up to the city’s ambition to become the economic powerhouse of Central Asia.

You mostly know whether you are going to like a hotel within minutes of checking in. Efficiency and friendliness of the front desk staff need to be backed up by the hardware – good sized rooms where the amenities are well thought out.

Too often hotels rooms appear to be designed by people who don’t stay in hotel rooms. Bruised shins from a sharp bed edge are testimony to badly designed rooms.

The 181-room Radisson Blu, close to the banks of the Ishim River, has done its homework. The rooms work, although staying in them comes at a hefty price.

Make no mistake, Radisson Blu is an expensive hotel by international standards, but in a city where you are not spoiled for choice, the rates are market-driven. And for those with smaller budgets there is a Park Inn by Radisson next door.

While the hotel is a favourite for the corporate types flying in to do their oil and gas deals, the hotel has not ignored its leisure visitors. Rooms are to a high standard, spacious and well appointed.

My room faced the road and although traffic was quite heavy for most of the night, noise was not a problem because of the effective double-glazing

The Internet is free and logging on is fast. There are also computers in the lobby that allow guests free access to the Internet. Some 20 TV channels are in English.

For female guests, there is a make-up mirror and hair dryer handily placed in the bathroom and a full-length mirror for last minute adjustments before leaving the room for a dinner date.

There is a very good gym attached with a pool and a Turkish steam bath. Guests can use these facilities with a day pass.

A combined trouser press and ironing board has been discreetly tucked away. There is under floor heating in the bathroom and heated towel rails, much needed when the temperatures start to plunge at the end of November.

In the Cigar Bar, the largest in the city, smokers can choose between a Cuban Cohiba Robustos Barnizado or, for those on a budget, a Romeo et Juliet Short Churchill.

Breakfast in the Capri restaurant ticked all the boxes for choice and quality. The restaurant offers Italian dining at other times. And, unlike many restaurants in Kazakhstan, horse meat was not a feature of the menu.

National airline, Air Astana, has just released stopover packages for Astana and the former capital Almaty. It is available for passengers travelling to and from London and connects with Air Astana’s destinations in Asia and beyond.