Maria Elena Palace Hotel, Madrid

Advantages: Very close to city centre and transport, Cheap.
Disadvantages: Can be noisy

...Me and my girlfriend decided to visit Madrid last summer. So being the students that we are we booked cheap flights on easyjet. That was the easy bit. The hard part came later when we had to decide on a hotel to stay in. We wanted somewhere close to the city centre as we were only there for a few days but we had to do it on a budget but wanted to go slightly better than a hostel, it was after all our first holiday abroad together. ::: Why The Asturias?? ::: We eventually settled on the Hotel Asturias because it fitted what we wanted. It is extremely close to the city centre which is what we wanted as we were only there for 3 nights. It is only minutes away from the Calle Gran Via, one of the main shopping streets in Madrid. It is also minutes away from two metro stations (in opposite directions, either Sol or Sevilla which... Read review

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Advantages: An exciting city
Disadvantages: can get hot in the summer

...Madrid is a great place for couples or friends on a short city break. If you are looking at staying in Madrid you could do a lot worse than take a look at the Hotel Regina. The hotel is a 3 star establishment on Calle Alcala, which runs directly into the centre of the city at Puerto del Sol. In fact this hotel is little more than 300 yards from the centre of Madrid. I stayed in a single room (though it had two single beds!) for around £40 per night in March 2001. For that I got the room, ensuite bath with over the bath shower, toilet and sink, cable tv including pay per view movies, cnn, eurosport and sky news, a radio, and an alarm clock. A buffet breakfast was also included. I was able to choose from cereals, coffee and tea, orange juice, doughnuts, croissants, rolls with jams and butter, and a selection of meats. When... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful

Advantages: Very close to the Puerta Del Sol and Gran Via.
Disadvantages: None

...I booked our short break through Expedia, who are always good at finding the best deals. Neither myself nor my husband had been to Madrid before, so we had no knowledge of the city at all. I researched the layout mapwise, to find out where the centre was regarding shopping, bars etc. The Puerta del Sol seemed as central as we could get. The hotel was on the Via Arenal, just off the square. On arrival we were greeted in good English by a very friendly receptionist and the check-in was smooth. The hotel was bright and modern. Not huge, but for a city centre it was big enough. There was a lift to all floors luckily, as we were on the 5th. Our room was large and airy. Satellite TV, air conditioning (a blessing in July), large double bed, plenty of storage and a wall safe. The bathroom was clean and roomy with one of those... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful