We stayed at the Bestern Western City Hotel on via Magenta in Bologna for four nights in March 2011. The location was about a 10 minute walk from the train station, which felt great after the long trans-atlantic flight and train from Milan. We loved that there were 2 grocery stores, each about a block from the hotel, for picking up a few snacks, supplies, wine, etc, to enjoy in the room during our stay.
The room itself was: very very clean, much smaller than US hotel rooms- but totally adequate, very warm in the room. In fact, the room had a window which you could open and we slept with it open every night even though it got to the low 30s every night. The fresh air was so nice, and it was so quiet outside.
We walked into Central Bologna in about 15 -20 minutes every time, but buses were readily available just a half block from the hotel. We enjoyed window shopping along the way, taking a new route each time. We never felt unsafe in any way.
The staff spoke limited English, and we didn't speak any Italian, but we did manage to communicate just fine.
The breakfast looked wonderful, but we got a great rate for the room only so didn't use the breakfast bar. It was 9 euros if purchased separately.
CNN international was the only english channel on the tv, and watching QVC in Italian was so much fun!
I would highly recommend this hotel -- just far enough outside of the city center to give you a taste of how the real people of Bologna live, but close enough to enjoy the action whenever you wanted.

The hotel is a good 30min walk from the centre of Bologna but is great value for money, clean, with friendly service and good facilities.

One of the cheaper hotels in Bologna, but very good value for money. I stayed with my husband for 6 nights, while attending a conference. I chose the hotel because of its location mid-way between the conference centre and town. It's a good 20-30 minutes walk to the centre of town, and just over 10 mins to the train station. Other reviewers had mentioned a bus, but we enjoyed walking. The room was reasonably generous in size, with a large bathroom. The wifi reception (free) was quite poor in the room at times, and we often checked emails in the reception area. The staff were friendly, and their English was good. The breakfast choice was amazing - pastries galore, cereal, yoghurts, fruit, scrambled eggs and bacon. The staff would make coffee as well. I would not hesitate to recommend this hotel, although if I was to stay in Bologna purely on holiday, I might try to be closer to town.

I booked my partner and myself into Best Western City Hotel Bologna
based on trip advisor reports which highly rated this hotel.

On arrival the hotel lounge was warm and inviting, with friendly staff, comfortable seating and a nice bar area. However when we went to our room it was smaller than we'd expect for a King size bed, which in fact was two beds pushed together, and it was cold. I asked reception if they could turn the heating on but they said there's an environmental initiative to reduce energy costs controlled by the local council. I wouldn't mind but I paid well over the going rate to stay here because the Trade Fair was in town, e.g. 167 euros for Tuesday night when the normal rate on average is around 80 euros. As for the breakfast, you're better off picking a place of your choice as it's very limited at the hotel and not worth the extra money.

I could not find any evidence that the local council controlled when hotels could turn their heating on.

The air conditioning unit only blew out cold air, so it's great if you're there in the height of summer, but you should be able to set the temperature to whatever you like within reason. We were offered a blanket but we were not cold in bed, the room was cold and you couldn't switch the fan off in the bathroom, which was a bit ironic as they want to save energy.

Considering the hotel is near the Trade Fair, Central Station and City Centre you would have thought it would be ideal for business people. However I wouldn't recommend it for that purpose as you can't get wifi in your room. Funny thing was I could see four other wifi signals (all secure) but not the hotels. Wifi in the lobby area is great but you wouldn't want to discuss your business in public.

In summary:

Positive;
Nice hotel with easy access to the City Centre, i.e. any 27 bus or 20 minute walk.

Negative;
Not suitable for business if you require wifi in your room. Breakfast is poor and very limited. Rooms are cold and smaller than you'd expect, especially if you book a King size.

Overall I would go again but avoid the Trade Fair period, which greatly over inflates the price, and book a double room.