Kherson's last working hotel has become a refuge on the frontline
In Kherson, less than a kilometre from the Dnipro bank held by Russian forces, the Richelievsky hotel serves as a free shelter for 41 displaced people. The city is under constant drone and artillery attack.
In the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, where the Dnipro river forms the frontline and Russian troops hold the opposite bank, the Richelievsky remains the last functioning hotel. The river lies less than a kilometre away, so the hotel enforces one key rule: curtains must be drawn before dusk, because even a sliver of light could reveal a person's location to Russian drone operators. The British newspaper The Guardian reports on how the remaining residents live there.
From tourist hotel to refuge
The three-star hotel once hosted tourists and business travellers attending conferences. In March 2022, as Russian forces closed in, manager Yevhen Emtsov began taking in people fleeing heavily shelled communities along the Dnipro, without waiting for the owners' approval. In the months after the invasion, between 200 and 300 people stayed there, well above the intended maximum of 120. During the occupation, Russian patrols entered the building, questioned residents and took their fingerprints.
Today the hotel houses 41 displaced people, who get rooms and three meals a day free of charge. According to official figures, more than 2,000 Russian drones are detected over Kherson in an average week. Just over 60,000 people remain in the city, about a fifth of its prewar population.
Daily life under fire
The power often cuts out at night, and drones and artillery can be heard until morning. Tatyana Nesterchuk, who has lived at the hotel since March 2022, works at a laundry and travels to her shift through some of the city's most dangerous streets. Her bedridden mother died at the hotel in May, aged 81. Iryna, mother of 11-year-old Alisia, the only child living there, says there is no feeling of safety anywhere.
On the day of the reporter's visit, a Russian FPV drone struck the van carrying the manager and several helpers back from buying groceries. They got out and took cover in time. Emtsov says the place will not be able to operate as a hotel, but will continue as a hub for as long as they have the strength. He is trying to find a way for Iryna and Alisia to leave the city, and charities are seeking a place for them in Odesa.
