Maison Borella is a standout boutique hotel located directly on the banks of the Naviglio Grande in Milan. Set within a beautifully restored 18th-century “balcony house”—a traditional Milanese architectural style featuring an internal courtyard—the hotel serves as a peaceful, character-filled retreat. It is the only hotel in the city that directly overlooks the historic Navigli canal system.
The property’s history is rooted in its past as the ancient country home of the Borella family. Today, it cleverly balances its historic heritage with contemporary design, featuring exposed-beam ceilings, parquet floors, and sophisticated boiserie. The hotel’s onsite restaurant, Bugandè, pays homage to the local history of the area, taking its name from the traditional washerwomen who once worked along the canal banks.
For those looking to explore, the hotel is perfectly positioned in the lively Navigli district, famous for its artistic spirit, bustling nightlife, and creative shops. You are within easy reach of local gems like the Vicolo dei Lavandai, an ancient alleyway reflecting the area’s industrial roots.
While the hotel offers a quiet sanctuary, you are only a short tram or metro ride away from Milan’s major icons. Famous landmarks such as the magnificent Duomo, the historic Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, and the Basilica of Sant’Ambrogio are all easily accessible, making it an ideal spot for balancing authentic local life with classic sightseeing.
Expert reviews
“With geranium-clad balconies overhanging the Naviglio Grande and striking period decor, this canalside hotel offers a touch of class in a dedicated bohemian neighbourhood.”
What guests liked
- Lovely rooms
- Boutique style
- Friendly staff
- Excellent Wifi
- Great location
- Comfortable beds
Location
Recent guest reviews
24 February 2026
Great location, excellent staff
Very nice staff, excellent location
Breakfast could be better, but it was free at least.
22 February 2026
a beautiful part of Milan with lots of action
Fantastic location to experience the sights & sounds of an interesting area of Milan. Also a beautiful old building to stay in.
The breakfast had lots of lovely homemade cakes, but nothing freshly baked that was gluten free. The hotel isn't the place to stay if you want peace & quiet at night.
6 February 2026
Come for the neighbourhood/location, stay for the room and food
Lovely quaint rooms in a refurbished European courtyard. Stunning location right on the canal in Navigli. Nice breakfast and restaurant on site too! The staff are very very warm and welcoming. Rooms have great climate control and are very very spacious
Parking service/nearby availability is not great
24 January 2026
Very pleasant stay!
Nice breakfast, enjoyed dinner at Bugande, nice wine list.
Na
14 January 2026
Loved our stay - would highly recommend
Location as amazing, room was lovely and great food too.
Nothing
8 January 2026
Good location, but expensive
Close to restaurants and the Centro.
Too expensive for the property,
6 January 2026
Cosy hotel room with attention to detail design, decoration, great location and friendly staff
Very unique design and decorated. Great location and easy access to many landmarks via transportation or simply walking.
5 January 2026
Noisy but nice
The staff were very kind and helpful....the hotel decoración was lovely.
The terrible noise on our first night was unbelievable...absolutely terrible noise from the bars on the canal...no sleep at all!!! But we moved thank god!!!!!
29 December 2025
Recommended if this area is where you would like to stay in Milan.
Location is excellent, and breakfast is great as well. The room size is fantastic. We would stay here again when we travel next to Milan.
Nothing we don't like about this hotel.
16 December 2025
Excellent staff and support from them, breakfast options were nice, spacious rooms
Great specious room, shower and toilet are clean and room was attended every day, relatively worn in winter
A bit old furniture, even though it makes atmosphere, some of it was too unattended, dishes were a bit old
2 December 2025
Would easily book again.
Staff were fantastic and genuinely really helpful, especially making sure I got to room as you pass through restaurant - this adds to it…
Hotel is beautiful inside, comfortable and my room on top floor was class!
Central location for my business meeting and plenty of good places to eat.
Main door to bedroom let in quite a bit of light and disrupted my sleep a little…minor.
9 November 2025
Perfect location, very good hotel with some nice touches.
The hotel is situated on the canal and its a very lively frontage with lots of restaurants and cafes. If you do not like noise ask for a room at the rear not facing the canal.
The rooms are a good size, the beds are comfy, robe and slippers are provided. The rooms have a hair dryer, safe and a mini bar - no tea/coffee making facilities.
The staff were all friendly.
The hotel is on a pedestrian area but you can take your car in to unload and load with permission from the hotel. There is a garage not far from the hotel 5 minutes walk at 40 Euros a day which is a 24 hour manned car park.
The restaurant. The food was very nice and would have been excellent but was served luke warm. We did notify the waitress but she asked if we wanted it taken away and put in the microwave which as I had fish I said no as I felt that would dry it out. The response from the staff after being told that 4 starters and 4 main courses were all served warm rather than hot was disappointing.
They also took away food plates from 2 people as they had finished whilst 2 others were still eating which was a bit awkward.
It put us off eating there the second night and we eat out.
31 October 2025
A lovely hotel, in a great location and perfect for a short stay
Great location.
N/A
30 October 2025
We enjoyed our stay at Msison Borells because of the location and the visit we had to Milan was very enjoyable.
The location was great lots of restaurants to choose from nearby. Lovely area to be in.
For a 4 star hotel it seemed poor that to get a decent cup of coffee in the morning they wanted to charge extra. Without the extra charge it was coffee and hot water from thermos flasks. Which were never really hot enough. It could also be noisy as the sound carried up through the courtyard. Earplugs were provided though.
21 October 2025
You must stay here. It’s really great.
What a great spot. Amazing views of the river. The breakfast was very nice. The accessibility to town was easy, the staff were very helpful and the bed so comfy. 24 hour check in is very helpful - my partner and I arrived at 1am from a late flight.
The bathroom had a funny smell.. that was all. We thought the noise outside would irritate us but the windows are thick and it actually didn’t bother us at all.
20 October 2025
Beautiful hotel in a fabulous location with amazing staff.
The building is beautiful and in a great location.
Our room was at the front so quite noisy but it didn’t spoil our stay.
16 October 2025
Lively location, excellent service, superb restaurant and very clean.
Room was large, bed very comfortable. Hanging space in wardrobe was not great as it also housed the kettle etc. Bathroom was huge and great walk in shower. Cleanliness was excellent. Breakfast was good, slightly hectic, but plenty of choice. Restaurant was excellent.
Breakfast service was a bit frantic, understaffed for the number of guests. Hanging wardrobe space was not adequate as it also housed kettle etc and safe, so longer items were compromised
14 October 2025
An amazing birthday week in Milan
I took my mom on her dream European trip, for her birthday. She arrived at the accommodation first and messaged me upon your arrival, "You're going to be very happy with your selection!" and she was right. The accommodation was beautiful and was in the perfect location. At night, because of the location, it does get a little noisy as night but we listened to peaceful meditation music at night to help combat the noise. The staff were extremely accommodating and everyone was VERY nice! Thank you for an amazing week in Milan. Ciao
One issue we had was the body wash in the shower wasn't replaced/refilled but other than that we were extremely happy with our stay. It wasn't an issue as we just used the bar of soap provided near the sink.
12 October 2025
We will be back!
The location is perfect. Especially for women travelling alone. At night there is always lots of people out. And everything in Milano is easily reachable either by tram of Metro.
7 October 2025
Lovely hotel in a vibrant part of the city
Breakfast very good
Nothing we didn’t like
30 September 2025
I will be back!!
The location was perfect and the hotel was very quaint.
23 September 2025
A great location in the canal precinct.
Room was clean, spacious and comfortable. Great location on the canal.
The narrow stair access to the room on the second floor in this older building was not easy. Also noise from the restaurant late at night
20 September 2025
property was clean and staff was friendly! Lovely restaurant on site and great breakfast spread in morning
property was clean and staff was friendly! Lovely restaurant on site and great breakfast spread in morning
18 September 2025
Perfect beautiful hotel, highly recommend 🥰
This was a fabulous boutique hotel, perfect location, the staff couldn’t do enough for you.
Food very good, breakfast had great choses and dinner was exceptionally.
Room very Italian, everything you needed plus a few extras beautiful view from the window (we had a canal view), I can not recommend this hotel enough.
Nothing.
17 September 2025
Excellent, well appointed boutique hotel, near fine dining, and with excellent customer service and breakfast.
Well appointed, great service, terrific breakfast.
There are many restaurants with outdoor seating on either side of the canal and I could hear loud groups past midnight.
16 September 2025
Canal side elegance
The location was superb.
Located on the ‘nicer’ side of the canal.
Inside the hotel we loved the original features..
14 September 2025
Great traditional hotel, fantastic location.easy access to trams and metro
Great location. Friendly staff.
No bar facility on the night
Hotel facilities
Food & Drink
- - Restaurant
- - Bar
- - Breakfast in the room
General
- - Room service
- - Non-smoking rooms
- - Facilities for disabled guests
- - Lift
- - Safety deposit box
- - Soundproof rooms
- - Heating
- - Air conditioning
- - Airport shuttle (additional charge)
- - Shared lounge/TV area
Business facilities
- - Meeting/banquet facilities (additional charge)
- - Fax/photocopying (additional charge)
Reception services
- - 24-hour front desk
- - Currency exchange
- - Luggage storage
- - Invoice provided
Outdoors
- - Garden
- - Outdoor furniture
Cleaning services
- - Laundry (additional charge)
- - Dry cleaning (additional charge)
- - Ironing service (additional charge)
Accessibility
- - Wheelchair accessible
- - Toilet with grab rails
- - Raised toilet
- - Lower bathroom sink
- - Emergency cord in bathroom
Transport
- - Airport pick up (additional charge)
- - Airport drop off (additional charge)
Miscellaneous
- - 24-hour security
- - Smoke alarms
- - CCTV in common areas
- - CCTV outside property
- - Fire extinguishers
- - Access to health care professionals
- - Thermometers for guests provided by property
- - Face masks for guests available

More photos

6 March 2026
Great spot super clean very nice staff but I with the bed was a little more comfortable and I was told the canal facing