Hotel Braganca - Coimbra, Portugal 

By no means this hotel deserves three stars. My minimal expectations from a three star hotel is that it can give me a good sleep at night. Braganca fails miserably at this test. Firstly, it is located at the noisiest spot in the (otherwise quiet) city. Traffic flows around the building and does not stop all night. This traffic is directly under your windows (3-4 feet from the walls). There is no soundproofing and you can hear the street with windows shut and shades closed (don't even think of opening a window). Secondly, beds are old and extremely squeaky. A shame on the owners. Thirdly, pillows are a joke - they are so thin and small I can only compare them to ones you get on the airplane. And there is only one per person - don't search for additional pillows in the closet! What else? Rooms are small, furniture is old, walls have cracks. Breakfast included in the price (67.5 euro for double room) was only so-so (worse than in four other 2-3 stars hotels we stayed in Portugal). A waiter told us to go to a different table in the middle of our meal because our table was reserved, although there was no sign on it. Morning receptionist did not speak any English. Hotel does not have any maps of the city. (To be fair, the last two aspects are quite common in Portugal). So why does it claim 3 stars? The only explanation I can think of is marble stairs... Think twice before making reservation there.