HotelChatter

Because everything is easier to digest in list form and because that's how we keep track of our own on-the-scene impression, we've got all the pros and cons of the property below, as we experienced them:

The Pros:
· Service was excellent; the staff was very genial and they even showed a range of their other rooms just at our request.
· It's a very quiet hotel, from the rooms to the lobby. There isn't even music in the lobby.
· The design is very clean and obviously upscale as the Moschino brand goes. It may be whimsical, but the design is also not oppressive.
· Excellent, excellent hotel location within walking distance of the Porta Garibaldi railway station and subway, shopping on Corso Como, and sites like the Castello Sforzesco.
· Our lowest category room had a balcony, even if there was no view and it was off the bathroom.
· The fact that "everything is for sale." If you love your room's chairs or a lamp or the pillows; just ask how much.
· The private plaza out front looks like it would be a perfect area for having a morning cappuccino during warmer weather.
· You get to say that you are staying at the Maison Moschino.

Inside the restaurant "Clandestino.Milan."

The Cons:
· Small rooms and bathrooms, even for the suites.
· No peephole in the room door.
· Lack of outlets, especially near the bed.
· Most TV channels didn't work, even the most universal like RAI Uno.
· Breakfast wasn't included, and started at 16 Euro.
· The mattress was still pretty hard.
· The internet costs 24 Euro per day, for one device at a time. And they don't tell you this when you ask how to access the internet; the feeling is that it's free, but it's totally not.
· There's not much action going on at the hotel; it seemed empty.
· The majority of the rooms do not have desks or even tables large enough for working or eating in your room or anything like that. Oddly it's the darkest room—"Blue"—that has the best desk surface.
· The lowest category rooms have very small, cube glass showers with a door that doesn't seal all the way so keep a towel on the floor.
· Their usual room rates of 300 Euro or more for even the most basic rooms are simply not worth what you get. Book early for discounts on designhotels.com.
· It would be difficult to stay in any of these rooms for more than 2-3 nights unless you spend all day, everyday outside your room.

As you can see, the cons list outweighs the pros. From this you may think that we hated our stay. In fact, we liked it for what it was. Happily we were only there for 24 hours, because we had real work to do and were already feeling bitter about paying 24 Euro for a day of internet. And although the staff didn't know that we were anything other than a regular paying guest (at 202 Euro per night, Advance Purchase rate), they granted us the request to peek into a few of the other rooms. We loved the design of the "Luxurious Attic" room the most, which you can see in our photo gallery above, because it was so light and airy and drew your attention away from the small size of the room. Even the suite we saw—"The Forest"—was little more than a regular room with a fancy bedframe.

Perhaps one day we will return during the hotter high season and see what's changed, even though we doubt anything will. It has the Moschino brand to consider, and that is one which isn't always the most practical or comfortable, and definitely not affordable.

[All photos: Cynthia Drescher for HotelChatter]