Eric Vökel Boutique Apartments - Atocha Suites

Our suite had a well-equipped kitchen, and could have been a decent hotel if the basics had worked. The street was extremely loud overnight, and the building had no cold water one morning. We reported it around 9 am; when we left at 10:30, the water was only just getting to the point of not freezing. The man at reception said it was a bigger building issue. We had to heat water in kettles and pots to bathe our toddler. A quick shower before a flight or a long journey would've been impossible. We won't choose this Dutch boutique hotel chain again, and don't think it's right for families with children. We should have noticed the red flags in the name before booking, so that's on us. The check-in desk is open 9 to 5, and after that you have to use a machine to get your key. The online check-in was useless. For families, the machine apparently can't check in minors because of child protection rules, and directs you to an emergency phone on the wall. Ours didn't work properly and kept ending calls. We eventually got an emergency key from a regular keybox via the emergency line. Why not send people straight there instead of putting them through the machine? That key only lasts 24h, so you have to go...

The kitchen gear was pretty half-assed: no spatula, no knife, and the non-stick pan seemed to attract food. There were dishes and basic utensils, at least. One of the two showers couldn't be used because it had no door or curtain, just a tiny barrier that let water flood out. The door and walls showed damage from earlier leaks. The room doors and windows were thin, so noise came right in. Oddly, our previous apartment was on a busier street but noise was much less of an issue there. Wi-Fi here was spotty and slow compared with the other hotels and apartments on our trip. The location was OK, though I should've booked sooner for somewhere more touristy. Compared with a hotel room or suite, it was great value. Housekeeping isn't included, unless I believe you stay longer.

Andrei welcomed us and gave us helpful information about the hotel and its lovely, large spa, which is open 9 to 5pm. On a cold day, soaking in the warm water was delightful. Our room at the Eric Vokel Atocha Suites was lovely and clean, with everything we needed for the overnight stop before our train to southern Spain. We appreciated the breakfast basket with bread, meat and apples.

It was easy to walk to lots of Madrid sights from here, and we liked having a decent amount of space. The blackout curtains helped, but getting sleep was really hard. I'm sensitive to noise, and the garbage trucks started at midnight every night and seemed to go on forever, with traffic, sirens, horns and loud people outside until at least 3 am. That's the city, not the property, but it was rough. After six nights we also missed hotel housekeeping. We wanted a way to clean the floors and get fresh towels. The building door code felt secure. One evening a homeless lady somehow got inside, camped in the lobby, smoked until it smelled terrible, and relieved herself there. Staff handled it as soon as we told them, and I felt bad for them. Atocha check-in was pleasant and someone got us our keys without trouble. Our check-in at the Barcelona location had been awful, with a very rude man helping us by phone. At Atocha, we saw plenty of people arriving after hours struggling and getting frustrated, so it wasn't just us. Please fix the after-hours check-in system.