My review was 4 stars until the morning of check out…read more
:: Transportation ::
The hotel is not centrally located, but it is easily accessible by bus and trolley (metro is definitely not on this list). In terms of airport access, I took the train to Cardona to the 1 trolley/cable car, which stops front-right of the station's main entrance. The hotel is only a block away once you disembark. This method is effective but a bit time-consuming. For my return, I figured out that the express buses make not-well-advertised stops near an expo site (Fiera Milano City) on Viale Teodorico. It's about a simple 10 minute walk from the hotel to the bus stops, so I found this far more convenient than trekking south to the train stations just to go back north to the Malpensa airport.
:: Area Amenities ::
Not much in this immediate area, which on Yelp is known as Monumentale. A restaurant that was recommended by the front desk even was a good 20 minute walk towards the Chinatown area past Via Losanna. You'll find most of the interesting food choices south of Piazza Firenze. Even finding a convenience store to pick up bottles of water was not so obviously convenient.
:: Hotel Amenities ::
Except for the atrium that takes you from street level to lobby level, there's a tiny 2-person elevator that can take you between all floors. We were located on the 1st floor (2nd story), so we didn't have to go far anyway. The stairwells are wide and have automatic lights. The lobby is spacious with sofas, a TV, two computers, and a printer if I recall. The breakfast room in the basement isn't huge, but it's enough. A very basic continental breakfast is offered, but beware in advance of pricing. As noted in my tip, I thought breakfast was complimentary, but it's only comp with a voucher sign-up online (something to which I received no instructions about how to access). Since there was no signage indicating prices for the service and no one who collected each morning, I assumed it was complimentary. (Insert idiom about assuming here.) Day of checkout, I find out that they were charging breakfast to the room bill for anyone who basically walked into the dining area (even if you didn't eat). I point this out because one morning I came down to collect my travel partner and did NOT fix a plate for myself to eat, but was still charged. Seeing as I think the breakfast offering is barely worth 5€, I nitpicked about that charge and got it removed from the final bill. I just don't like surprises though, and the Milan Expo City Tax was another one of those surprises that got added on at the end of my stay. I knew about it from advance research, but assumed (ha ha) it was included in my Priceline booking. Remind me to never make any assumptions again, nor skip interrogating the front desk upon arrival.
:: Room Amenities ::
On a more positive note, the room was basic, but sufficient. The entryway is a narrow and blocks simultaneous entrance to the bathroom, but once inside, there's definitely enough space for the frugal 2-person travel group. The bathroom was very clean with sufficient shelving space to store stuff. The shower stall is tight and has a funny plastic pull curtain/divider thing, but again, nothing you can't get over for the price. The beds were not squishy, but not too stiff either, and there was enough covers to stay warm. Mini-fridge and TV were a plus, even if the remote is impossible to figure out. Our particular room overlooked nothing but a wall and thus received no natural light, but again this is fine for travelers who should be outdoors exploring anyway. The last thing I can think of is that the walls are nowhere near soundproof, but our chatty neighbors were in bed before midnight anyway, so no problems there either.
:: Conclusion ::
Solid choice that at first I thought was a steal for the sub $100/night price. But had I factored in all the final bill costs, I might have elected a similar-range / star hotel closer to the historic center.
