Travel With Us - Apartments Rent

With the development of market relations and entrepreneurship, a number of real estate owners have opened apartment renting business, especially in resort areas and in large cities. Apartments intended for rent are usually nicely renewed, furnished and kept clean, because the money made by rent is often the main income for the whole owner's family. Today, more and more apartments are renewed and furnished to match modern western standards, and have air-conditioning, all necessary electrical appliances, a telephone, Internet access and comfortable furniture.

What's available in rented apartments

Most of the nicely renewed apartments are located in central cities, and are rented to foreign visitors. The cost of a good, furnished apartment with 2 rooms (a living room and a bedroom), a kitchen and a bathroom is comparable to the cost of a 3-stars-hotel room. An apartment of the similar quality having 3 or 4 rooms would be close in price to a 4-stars hotel room. For a couple or a family visiting Ukraine, it certainly makes perfect sense to rent an apartment rather than a hotel room, for the payment is requested per whole apartment, no matter how many people are going to stay in it. Prices may change seasonally or at the eve of big holidays, especially in large cities and in famous resort areas. Quite often, a deposit or prepayment is requested by owner to make sure that the tenant does arrive on the previously agreed day and time.

Unlike hotels, apartment-renting companies do not provide additional services to tenants. Only few private owners would offer a transfer from airport, breakfast foods, daily cleaning or laundry; and that would be offered at an extra cost. Some private tourist companies offer these services to foreign visitors, along with providing of an interpreter or a sightseeing guide. Following old traditions, Ukrainian visitors tend not to go into extra expense of ordering additional services, so these services are not in high demand.

Making payment for rented apartment

The owner or the renting company may request a deposit payment for at least one day of stay, ahead. Then, at the moment of signing in, the tenant is supposed to take a look at the apartment and, once he/she is satisfied, to make the rest of the payment for full term of stay. The owners usually accept payment in both, local currency (ghryvna) or in dollars/Euros. From this moment, the apartment owner will disappear to turn up again only on the last day, to take the apartment keys from the tenant.

Warning: try not to send payment for full term of stay to the owners via Internet. Making a one-day deposit payment is OK, but paying for the whole stay is risky. You may not be satisfied with something in the apartment, so you can find another place to stay during your first day in a city, and your money will be saved. Having a local person who you can trust with you at the moment of signing into the apartment, would be a very good idea. This person can negotiate a discount or ask the owner for additional items or services.

Warning 2: please, never give your passport or documents to the apartment owners! In some resort cities like Odessa or Sevastopol, you may face a situation when the owner will ask you to leave your passport with him/her during the time of your stay, as a guarantee that their property will be safe. Never agree to this, for no one has the right to take and keep your personal documents.

Prices for per-day rent are higher than prices for apartments rented to long-stay tenants. Once you are renting an apartment for long stay, you will be requested to make payment ahead for two months or more. It is always good to develop and sign a renting agreement with the owner, where the terms and conditions of stay, as well as apartment maintenance, utilities payment, cleaning and other important details will be described.

Renting apartments vs hotel rooms

Some visitors to Ukraine think that renting an apartment has a number of advantages versus living in a hotel room. Apartments are usually cheaper; there is more privacy in an apartment, there is a fully equipped kitchen, and all the facilities and appliances are available to make you feel at home. At the same time, renting an apartment online is associated with some degree of risk when apartments are offered by middle people or unreliable companies via Internet. It is always good to rely on a company or a person who you can trust, if you are trying to rent an apartment in Ukraine online.

Read about staying in hotels in Ukraine at the page Hotel Reservation