IT'S like visiting the dentist without painkillers. Uncomfortable, painful and dull. Have your say!

Yes, it's another airport stopover. Gritty-eyed and groggy, your head and body are operating in two different time zones courtesy of jet lag and interrupted in-flight sleep patterns. You're ready to keel over but sleeping in the terminal isn't that simple.

Airports can be noisy, airport chairs are uncomfortable and security guards are growing ever-more suspicious.

So do you travel to the nearest city hotel or try an airport hotel?

Airport hotels located at or near the airport are more popular for short-term stopovers, according to Anthony Smith, the Holiday Inn's Sydney Central marketing manager.

Smith says guests save time by not going all the way to the city and it means they don't have to fight traffic. He says a good airport hotel should have a "great gym, great food, regular shuttle buses and flight times shown in the foyer".

THAILAND

Novotel Suvarnabhumi Airport, Bangkok

A Two-minute shuttle bus ride from Bangkok's new Suvarnabhumi International Airport, the Novotel is well placed for travellers on a short stopover in the Thai capital.

You could walk to the hotel from the new airport but in Bangkok's humidity, who's going to bother when there's a 24-hour shuttle?

Airport hotels can be soul-less structures but the Novotel Suvarnabhumi, in common with the recently opened Novotel at Hong Kong International Airport, stands apart with its modern, fresh styling and high-quality ambience.

Both properties are marketed as four-star hotels but could justifiably claim five-star status.

The Suvarnabhumi Novotel possesses a huge marbled foyer with a high ceiling, mezzanine level, glass walls and a feeling of spaciousness.

It has four restaurants catering for Japanese, Chinese, European and Thai tastes as well as a cocktail bar and a lobby lounge, an outdoor pool with swim-up bar, 2300 sq m convention centre, fitness centre and large spa offering a variety of massage and beauty treatments.

Bangkok's old international airport, Don Muang, had the Amari Hotel adjacent to it which was also an oasis of friendliness for travellers stranded between flights and the Novotel continues this tradition.

All rooms are furnished with king-sized beds with soft down bedding and the best pillows you will find in any hotel.

The bathrooms are marble and have baths and showers. There's a fully equipped gym with sauna and jacuzzi spa.

Staff members are smiling, friendly and extremely helpful.

You know they have been well trained when every time you attempt to summons a lift, someone magically appears and does it for you.

The hotel is about 35 minutes by cab from downtown Bangkok and plans call for a direct rail link between the airport and the city to be completed by next year.

Its location also means that it is only about a 30-minute drive to the seaside resort town of Pattaya.

Each room has wireless internet, mini-bar and safe and large flat-screen television and Thai International Airways has an office in the foyer which can take care of any ticketing needs.

General manager Tristan Beau De Lomenie said the hotel had been designed to "reduce the encompassing airport environment to a distant hum creating a calm and tranquil place to experience a sense of well being and to find serenity".

The design team has succeeded, as apart from the odd groups of uniformed aircrew drifting through the foyer, there is nothing to indicate that an airport capable of handling 45 million people per year is a few minutes distant.

AUSTRALIA

Hotel Ibis, Sydney Airport

Loated only 1km from the Sydney domestic airport, and 3km from the international, this modern – opened in 2003 – hotel is hard to beat for travellers wanting a bed close to the airport.

There are 194 rooms on six floors, and if you want to see more of Sydney than the dreary industrial suburb of Mascot, it's a 20-minute cab ride into Sydney Central, and the Mascot railway station is only a five-minute walk away.

But you don't need to leave the airconditioned hotel for refreshments or more substantial dining.

Off the ground floor reception area is an 80-seat restaurant (where friendly staff serve light or full meals from 5.30am to 10.30pm daily) and a pleasantly furnished cocktail bar (lots of deep, comfy leather chairs).

There's a garden terrace area with tables and chairs for smokers who can also opt for outdoor dining.

Don't want to mingle with other guests? Vending machines supplying snacks operate near the lifts on all floors.

The accommodation isn't spacious but facilities are more than adequate inside the airconditioned rooms, with well stocked mini-bar, tea and coffee, a wall-mounted flat screen TV, in-house pay movies and internet access among the features.

It was great to settle down for the night (wake-up call ordered) knowing that traffic snarls were unlikely to cause any delays en-route to the international airport next morning for an early check-in.

The Ibis offers a free pick-up service from the airport for guests, and there's a $5 charge to use the hotel shuttle to travel to the domestic or international terminals (booking at reception is required for these regular departures).

On the downside, the bathroom/toilet combination seems to be designed for smaller-than-average humans. I was glad I was a party of one. Check-in time is 2pm which might disadvantage some.

SINGAPORE

Ambassador Transit Hotel, Singapore International Airport

This hotel is the lazy traveller's friend. International travellers check-in without passing through Customs and Immigration.

The hotel offers hair, beauty and massage treatments in both its Terminal 1 and 2 locations.

Energetic passengers can book into Terminal 1 and use the gym and outdoor pool bar whereas Terminal 2 has an Indian vegetarian restaurant. The hotel rents standard and budget rooms for six hours and extra time is $A10.47 per additional hour when booking.

Budget rooms with communal bathrooms start at $30.54 for one person.

Standard rooms with TV, ensuite bathroom and tea/coffee-making facilities begin at $43.44 for one person.

The hotel's guests recommend its convenience but suggest keeping all necessities in hand luggage as you cannot access your baggage. The most common complaint is the recommended four-week advance booking does not guarantee a room.

CANADA

The Fairmont, Vancouver Airport

This hotel is inside the airport complex. It is a five-minute walk from the international arrivals area and a 10-minute walk to the domestic terminal. From the 165-seat signature restaurant Globe@YVR, you can watch the planes taxi out on to the runway and see the mountains in the background.

Thankfully, the hotel is fully soundproof so getting a good night's sleep in such a busy area is easy. And that, as any experienced traveller will say, is one of the most important requirements when you are travelling the world.

As you would expect, the hotel lives up to the Fairmont standard of high quality with 392 spacious guest rooms catering for travellers' needs with a range of facilities to ease weary bones and make even a brief stay enjoyable.

JAPAN

Hotel Nikko Narita, Narita International Airport, Narita

Hotel Nikko Narita is a free 10-minute bus ride to the airport for all guests and has an in-hotel flight check-in for Japan Airlines and Japan Asia Airways package customers.

The hotel offers guests relaxation, recreation or a chance to explore the local area with tourist amenities including a beauty shop, coffee shop, lounge, a range of Chinese and sushi restaurants, outdoor pool, tennis courts, bicycle hire and a nearby temple. Rooms start at $A201 for one person and have ensuite bathrooms. Standard features include toiletries, hair dryer, slippers and Japanese tea-making facilities. Suites have video players and kimonos and some rooms include mini-bars, coffee-making facilities or clothes lines.

Guests say the hotel is clean, quiet and well run with honest staff with a good level of English.


SWEDEN

Rest and Fly, Arlanda Airport, Stockholm

Rest and Fly is a minimalist onsite hotel with no TV. Guests have rooms with night lights and no windows and make their own beds or pay $A8.75 to have it done. Ten-hour night rooms start at $95.65 for one person with additional time at $2.65 per extra hour but stays are limited to 24 hours. One-hour day rooms start at $17.55 for one person with additional time at $8.75 per hour and can only be booked for 6am-8pm.

All rooms come with towels and share a gender-specific toilet and shower block. It can be a little dull after 9pm when airport shops and restaurants close.

BE WARNED

Here are some you should think twice about:

Manila Airport Hotel, Ninoy Aquino International Airport, Manila, Philippines: Recent guests have reported a cockroach infestation in the rooms.

Riande Aeropuerto Hotel and Resort, near Tocumen Airport, Panama City, Panama: Guests say it is noisy and dirty, with poor service and management.

Britannia Country House Hotel, near Manchester Airport, Manchester, England: Reviews from guests include complaints such as little parking room, rude staff, tatty rooms in need of renovation, bad beds and poor food. Britannia Country House Hotel also has the dubious honour of recently being at No. 10 in a list of Britain's worst hotels published by travelcounsellors.co.uk

YOUR SAY What's your best stopover hotel and why? Leave your comments below.