A 3* will be pretty basic and usually fairly small room.

To be honest I went to Milan with our friends from Easyjet the other week in a lot less time than it takes on KLM and for a fraction of the price.

They have a number of options out of Newcastle down to Stansted and then on to Linate. It was also useful as I had time to arrange a meeting in Stansted with someone.

The planes were better as well and on one of the flights it was 737 with the biggest leg room ever.

To make changes on any reweard ticket you are usually in the hands of the FD desk.

Yes you can both check in and use the lounges if you are PE. You should also be able to reserve your seats by calling the elite helpdesk.

Just one thing, as you arrive so late make sure you advise the hotel you are still coming as the Italians are often worse than KLM for overbooking, especially in Milan.

If you email me the address I will email you back in Italian exactly where you need to go from the Stazionne Centrale so the taxi driver will be clear as to just how far away the hotel is.

I have found the Holiday Inn always good for a deal by booking direct on line with them.

[This message has been edited by Steve Fenton (edited Jan 07, 2004).]