My First Regus

the wifi at the airbnb that i’m staying at here in Riga has been flaky (to be generous) so i’ve had to explore other options to stay connected to work on this workation. thanks to foursquare, i found a great cafe a couple blocks away but i feel a bit weird staying there for more than a couple hours at a time. i spent two evenings there this week when it seems like the apartment’s internet connection is at its worst (and when it’s prime working hours on the US East Coast, of course…). the other option i’ve been meaning to try is Regus, but they are only open until 5:30, which doesn’t help me when i need it most, although i had to work all day (and will work my normal nighttime workation hours as well) today so it gave me the perfect excuse to check it out. the Riga Regus (ha) is conveniently located a short walk from the Old City and a handful of blocks from the airbnb.

i don’t remember how i got my Regus Businessworld membership, but as i recall it was a free perk related to a loyalty program or a credit card. i signed up nearly a year ago and was sold on the fact that it gives you “Unlimited, walk-in access to any of our 1200 global business lounges and cafés, with complimentary internet and refreshments.” i figured i’d never know when i would need such a temporary working space so i joined, though i never carried my card around until this trip.

so, i walked on in. couldn’t have been any easier. like an airport lounge, you show them your card, they swipe it (in my case, several times, then key the number in; probably because my card has been sitting in the “i’ll never use this” stack at home for a while), and let you in. i got a tour of the place because it was my first time (other than what’s shown below, it’s pretty much mostly closed doors leading to what i assume are private workspaces, office equipment, and several very clean bathrooms). the facility seemed new, or at least newly renovated and everything was in great shape. it didn’t seem that busy, maybe two or three other users besides me, and they were in other parts of the floor, so i felt like i had the whole place to myself.

Regus Gold Card

From the sign it looks like these companies use Regus as their office space provider (since I didn’t see any other offices on the floor, but I didn’t really look). You have to get buzzed in using the keypad to the left of the door.

Reception (they were out doing something when I took this picture, waiting to return my key)

Coffee and tea at your disposal (there is also a vending machine for sodas)

To access restricted areas of the floor (pretty much everywhere), this is the key they give you. I’ve never seen anything like it — you hold this small puck near a door lock, press the button, and voilà, you hear a click and it’s unlocked.

This particular Regus doesn’t have a business lounge (which I assume is sort of like an airport lounge), which is what Gold members have access to, so they put me into a meeting room. All to myself. The blue bottles of water expired last year — they were supposed to be sparkling but were flat. Blech. (The red bottles of still water were fine.)

Meeting room. Wifi was, for the most part, pretty good. Great speeds as long as it held up. There was also a ceiling-mounted projector and a Polycom videoconferencing system that I wanted to play with, but I probably would have gotten trouble if i touched it — not like I have anyone to talk to anyways.