Bologna - old fashioned hotel in Italian university city

Sheer class really. 

Situated at the top of an old townhouse in the centre of Bologna the view of the city is spectacular. Sunshine washes over a terracotta patio dotted with palm trees. Bright orange walls lead up to shuttered medieval houses roofed with chimneys and red tiles. And a church belfry overlooks the whole scene with a towering spire.

The rooms across the corridor have an even better view - across the red-roofed Bologna cityscape to the mountains beyond. But there are only nine rooms at the Albergo Panorama in this real find of a hotel. Each one is scrupulously clean and for 85,000 lira (£28/$40) you get a nice bed, television, writing desk, lace curtains and pictures of Bologna on the walls. The place is kept sparkingly clean by a mother and daughter partnership who man the reception and see that the guests enjoy themselves.

My favourite part was gaining access. The Albergo is situated at the top of a townhouse and only reached through a birdcage lift. This was a taste of old Europe as you close the doors and it clanks past lawyers offices and apartments of the wealthy. The hotel, like the city itself, is an undiscovered gem.