Ramada Hotels in Almaty

On a holiday in Kazakhstan for 15 days, my wife and I stayed at this hotel on 3 different occasions and have returned with mixed reactions - 1) 2 Nights on the first leg of our trip - Though the hotel and room looked a little rundown requiring refurbishment, it was a comfortable stay and service though, very stiff and formal, was acceptable. Breakfast - Very good; Communication - Poor due to most staff members being unable to communicate in English. 2) 1 Night on the second leg - Room very good. Service - Stiff but again acceptable. Breakfast again very good and communication poor. BUT the worst part was that the integrity of house keeping and reception staff was suspicious. While checking out after our first stay, my wife had left behind a set of clothes in the wardrobe. This came to realization, after reaching our next destination and I immediately called up the hotel and informed them. The lady assured that she would check and ring back, which she never did. When we checked-in around 5 days later, I was told that house-keeping had reported that nothing was left behind. My wife was firm and we asked to speak to a senior manager or the GM. It was then that we were asked to please wait for a recheck once again. One hour later, I received a call in my room, requesting me to collect the dress from the reception, without the courtesy of having it sent up to our room. 3) 1 Night on the last leg, before taking our flight back home. Room - Small and in very poor condition with walls having peeling wall paper and stains, Shower room, very small restricting mobility for me at 184cms height. I requested if the room could be changed but was answered with a curt - SORRY. OVERALL - This hotel definitely needs to upgrade it's service which is the FIRST ESSENTIAL in the hospitality business. A mechanical smile and words of welcome are not enough to convince a traveller to come back. If my bookings were not pre-confirmed, I would certainly not re-visit after our experience on the second time.