Hotel Admiral - Geneva, Switzerland 

We have just returned from a 4 day break in Geneva and stayed at the 3 * Admiral Hotel, (July 2008). The reviews we had read were generally positive but the odd one or two had made us slightly anxious. However, we were not disappointed at all. The hotel is well placed and is within easy walking distance of the main station. It's also within 5 minutes walking distance of the lake. The area is lively and bustling with lots of restaurants and although the red light district is next door (literally), it's hardly a problem and no one bothers you at all. The reception area is manned 24/7 and the room we got was a good size. It was number 24, facing the street, and was a twin. I'm not sure if a double is the same size but we always ask for a twin room as they are often larger than doubles. Some of the negative reviews had led us to believe that the rooms in this hotel are quite small. Well, number 24 is just fine. The wardrobe is a good size with enough hangers and you also get a mini kettle and a supply of tea (no milk though). The TV has BBC Prime and CNN so you can get an English speaking channel if you want. One odd thing though is that one receptionist told us that we couldn't get extra pillows as the hotel didn't have any. However the next morning we asked a different receptionist and got the extra pillows straight away! Breakfast is really good and there is a wide range to cater for all tastes. You can also get free internet access in the lobby from 2 computers. If you want a cheap but good lunch in Geneva, try the restaurant at the top of CO-OP City on the left bank. It's self service; there's a huge choice and it's great value for money. If you want to go further afield but are on a budget, get the train to Lausanne. It's a really interesting place, about 45 minutes and 42 CHF return. You can go from there to Montreux by boat, about 1.5 hours and 22 CHF single; you can save money and get the train back to Lausanne, about 25 minutes and 10 CHF single, and then back to Geneva. A good place to eat in Montreux is The Paradise Pub in the main street (Grand Rue). Again it's self service and your food is weighed. They have a huge salad section (your choice is weighed) and your main course is cooked to order. Compared with other more expensive places, it's good value. Geneva operates a free local bus and tram service for holiday makers and you get your pass from reception. It's well worth it and your pass lets you get back to the airport as well. You can also get free train or bus travel from the airport to the city. You have to look for the ticket machine inside the baggage reclaim hall. It's not really signposted and if we hadn't read about it we wouldn't have known. Finally take some wet weather gear with you. Throughout the whole of one of our days, the heavens opened; I suppose the lake has to get its water from somewhere. The rest of the time the weather was great.

Cosy, clean, excellent breakfast, free wifi Internet, 2-3 blocks from Cornavin train station south to the lake, and 1 min-walk from a simple yet very delicious kebab shop -- one of the best I've tried, and I've been to all continents. They also have 2 PC desktops running Linux and Firefox web browser: i.e. all legal and perfect!! The owner, C?dric Noujaim, is a very nice person, and does his best. I strongly recommend for the ones that don't want to spend too much.