Campanile Restaurant & Hotel Leeuwarden

Although classified as a Leeuwarden hotel, the Campanile is actually in the district of Goutum, some 2 km south of central Leeuwarden. On foot it is a pleasant 25-30 minute walk into Leeuwarden, but buses are (I was told) few and far between. A taxi would cost 9 or 10 euros during the day. The hotel has a large free car park.

The hotel is more like a motel, with reception and a restaurant in a building quite separate from the accommodation block. Of course you have access to your room 24 hours a day, but you need to remember that there are no staff on site during the night. The service was at all times good, and the reception staff were exceptionally friendly and helpful, and of course had excellent English.

I used the restaurant three times - twice for breakfast and once for an omelette lunch. This was all perfectly acceptable, although I thought that 10.95 euros for a buffet-style breakfast was somewhat expensive. Fortunately, I had a deal which included breakfast in the room price.

The bedroom itself was excellent, and scrupulously clean, as was the bathroom. The bed was huge, and very comfortable. All the usual bits and pieces - tea, coffee, hairdryer and so forth - were provided, and the standard of daily servicing was very high. My only adverse comments are, firstly, that with a four-foot bath it was difficult to have a good soak, and secondly, that one evening there was no hot water. And a water curiosity: it always came out of the taps a light yellow-brown colour, so one rather felt as if one was washing and bathing in dilute pee.

Provided you don't mind being away from the centre of Leeuwarden, the Campanile offers clean, comfortable accommodation at a reasonable cost. It is worth trawling the internet to obtain the best deal, as the prices vary considerably between different websites.