Hostal Fernandez

The owner was very nice, and we could leave our bags there on checkout day. We also appreciated the lift, so we didn't have to carry luggage up the stairs. For a simple place in a central location, it was good value for money. My friend and I stayed two nights, and the bed was comfortable with a firm mattress. The shower had great water pressure. There was soap but no shampoo, so bring your own. The walls are thin, as other people have said, but even as a very light sleeper I slept fine. The Wi-Fi didn't work for us, and a phone rang loudly early in the morning without anyone answering. Those things need improving.

The room was clean, but very small. The walls are paper thin: another room's TV woke us at 7am, and we could hear every word. Wi-Fi was badly signposted and slow, and the street stayed very noisy even with the windows closed, including garbage trucks at 3am. We had a terrible check-in. Don't stay here if you need to arrive late, because there definitely isn't 24-hour reception as listed. Our flight was delayed by five hours, so we reached the hostel at 12:45am. After we messaged on booking.com when we landed, we still spent 45 minutes outside trying to reach someone. We rang the buzzer 30 times and repeatedly called every number listed. Someone answered one call, hung up right away, then blocked my calls. After all that, the owner and his family strolled in from an outing. He wasn't apologetic, asked us to pay, handed over the key, and gave no explanation for not being there to check us in.

The room was clean, the bed decent, and the host really kind. For the price, the value was great, and the location in Madrid couldn't be better. I couldn't have asked for more.

There isn't much else going for this hostal beyond its great location. The walls are so thin that you can easily hear the neighbors, and my mattress was old and uncomfortable. There's no lift either.