Hotel berhampiran Torrione dell'Inferno, Brindisi

I'm perhaps being a little mean in giving this place four and not five stars; in all but one aspect it was great. Firstly, the location couldn't be better, being just a few steps from the main thoroughfare and a short walk from the harbour along both of which we found a good selection of cafes and restaurants. The hotel itself is very modern, well decorated and spotlessly clean and our room was nicely furnished, well equipped and very comfortable. The air conditioning was a little tricky to adjust but we did sleep well and woke up refreshed on each of the two mornings we stayed, The reception staff were pleasant and welcoming and answered any queries we had with a smile. We stayed at the beginning of our holiday in Puglia before going back to the airport to collect our hire car and reception ordered us a taxi for that purpose. Brindisi, by the way, is an attractive port and well worth a day of anybody's time; we were glad to have stayed there for the two nights. The only disappointing aspect, particularly on the first of our two mornings, was the breakfast. We arrived towards the end of the breakfast period (but not immediately before it ended) to find the coffee pot empty, the cold milk for cereal almost empty and the hot food all but exhausted. I settled for a small portion of scrambled eggs and three paltry pieces of sausage - the lady after me didn't even get that! There was a good selection of other foods however, although no orange juice, just pineapple, peach and pear juice which seemed a little bizarre. Frankly, the staff that morning seemed uninterested - although they were polite, calling us Sir and Madam, I'd rather have had a smile and a full coffee pot without having to ask. When we did ask, they made us individual coffees which meant we had to go and look for them to ask again when we wanted a refill. Things were much better the next morning, although smiles and orange juice were still absent. It's a shame that the breakfast experience was so out of step with the rest of our stay because, overall, we liked the Hotel and will certainly consider it again if and when we return to Brindisi.

Location is excellent, right on the waterfront of the old city. The hotel itself is very grand so to speak, spacious rooms and large public areas. It is becoming a bit old: Not necessarily run down, but dated. There's a bar area behind reception which looks like it's never seen customers for ages, the breakfast is a bit meager for a hotel of this size but then again Italians don't do big breakfasts. Staff were very friendly and attentive.

Located on a main road, but a 20 minute walk from the center, Ibis offers clean, spacious rooms and well appointed bathrooms, at reasonable rates. Two things do much to recommend this place: first, the front desk is always staffed by knowledgeable, multilingual staff who are happy to help you make all sorts of arrangements. Second, the breakfast here is free and quite substantial, for a continental spread, with the lavish hours of 6:30 to 10. Check out is at the late hour of noon.