We only stayed overnight to be able to get to airport by 5 am however we were thrilled when we arrived late night to find this lovely hotel with a REALLY nice bathroom and shower/tub fresh with robes and slippers and towels! The bed was very comfy although it was one of those "joined" king beds. The room was just right and we slept great. The night desk staff was helpful at 4:30Am in helping us with a cab and promptly checking us out.

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.