I've spent many nights in various Novotels and was quite disappointed by this one, especially by the tiny room and the way I was greeted.

At Novotel, I usually feel like a valued customer - the front desk is usually cheerful and friendly. Not this time.

When I saw the room, I called back to confirm that this was indeed a "superior room" as booked as I had never been in such a tiny hotel room before. It was "superior" because it a garden view and air-conditioning - quite useless in December.

I asked to change rooms, but was told it was not possible as they were full. My feeling was that the receptionist could not be bothered.

Only one thin pillow in the room, no additional blankets, no mini-bar, Pay-Wifi didn’t work well, I am writing using my UMTS card instead.

On a positive note, the room and the hotel are clean and modern.

Needless to say, I have cancelled next week’s reservation and will be looking for another place to stay in the Basel area.

Having read the reviews of various hotels in Basel - and having got a great deal at this hotel - I chose the Novotel for a weekend stay.

Overall - the hotel is very clean, neat, decent breakfast, modern bathroom & room fittings, fairly friendly & efficient and we had a good enough short stay.

The location is very convenient if you are going to the conference centre, but there are other hotels more central if you are simply in Basel for a tourist stay. However, the tram service is efficient, and the No. 14 tram stops close by, so transport to & from the centre of Basel is not really a problem - just be aware that the hotel is not central. The hotel is down a rather dingy looking side road from the tram stop.

The hotel is certainly clean & smart, but I could not rave about it, as it is basically a business hotel, so again, if you are looking for a romantic stay, or a real tourist hotel, or one with character, then others in the centre are probably more suitable.

One real downer was the appalling pillows - one each and as flat as a pancake, probably the worst I have ever encountered in any hotel. However, I see on another review that someone else had great pillows! So, check this when you go into your room - so you don't find it at midnight when you get into bed & its too late to do anything about it!

WONDERFUL NOVOTEL............i would recommend anyone wanting a stay in Basel to select this hotel. everything was perfect from the staff to the room. we had a suite which was huge,even a little kitchen area! bathroom and bedroom were spotlessly clean and new. very comfortable beds. would definately stay here again.10/10 thankyou

The Basel Dorint is now a Novotel. I've stayed there very regularly since it opened and find the staff both friendly and helpful.

Single rooms are very small (a feature of Basel hotels in general including the nearby Europe and Ramada). There are some family rooms on the top floor.

The hotel is next to the Messe and around the corner from the Syngenta/ Ciba/ Johnson Controls building. It is a tram ride away from the centre and SBB rail station but close to the German railway station.

As with all Basel hotels, when you check in you get a travel card that gives free tram and bus rides in the city for the length of your stay.

Be aware that flicking channels on the TV takes you straight to some hard core porn channels unless you get them turned off at reception.

Eating is Basel is generally expensive, but the hotel has started to do bargain pizzas at the bar!