Novotel Milano Est Aeroporto - Milano, Italy 

I stayed in this hotel for one night in January 2007. It is a hugely uninspiring place, the decor is somewhat tired, and there is no character whatsoever. But then what do you expect from a hotel geared towards people who are only looking for a convenient sleep near the airport? Given the extortionate price I (well, my company!) paid (€238 for 1 night) my room was extremely bland and basic. The decoration and furniture, whilst in good order, were clearly about 10 years old, and the bed was pretty hard. That said, the room and bathroom were nice and clean, and I heard no noise from either the airport or the motorway. Eating a late dinner at 10pm in the restaurant was a pretty soul destroying experience. My plate of Risotto alla Milanese was unimaginatively served (round serving of rice, small limp piece of lettuce + 1/4 of an old tomato by the side) but at least it did taste pretty nice, and was served quickly. Cost €11. Beer is expensive though at €7 for 33cl. The wait staff were ok but hardly dynamic. Oh, and the bread was totally inedible, clearly left out all day since breakfast. It is the first time I have managed to spread near frozen butter without tearing the bread, it was that hard! Breakfast was an improvement, with a large selection of hot and cold items, and the quality was fairly good too. On the plus side, this hotel is extremely conveniently located for the city centre (7km) and Linate airport (3km) and the motorway network (outside the front door!), the front of house staff are friendly and helpful, and the free shuttle to and from Linate is very useful. However, I certainly won't be rushing back here very soon if I can help it!!

Clean neutral room, close to airport. good location, but a very hard bed. No outstanding features