Hostal Rivera

In Madrid I’m hardly ever in the hotel, so this simple place suited me well. It was clean, the air conditioning worked, and I had a comfortable bed, a desk for getting some work done, and my own bathroom. All of that for a good price. I’d recommend it.

They were helpful whenever we had a problem. The location is excellent, the room was clean, and the bed was comfortable.

The pastry shop next door is worth trying. As for the stay, the room was plain and old-fashioned, but clean and warm, with towels and soap provided and changed during our visit. The window faced an inner courtyard, so it was quiet. There were quite a few stairs to climb, though. We got an early start: at 8 in the morning, well before the 3 p.m. check-in, the owner let us in and we left our bags in the clean, tidy lobby. That foyer is probably his living room. Before that, the first look was a bit of a shock, with scaffolding and construction going on and rubbish bags piled by the main door. It’s nothing fancy, but it did the job, and the city center location was handy. The train station is two minutes away, and the airport is about 40 minutes by train for a 6 euro ticket. Despite those first impressions, I’d stay again and would suggest giving it a chance.

The room had its own sink, and all the heavy doors and locks around the hostel made it feel fairly safe. It was clean, though there was a faint musty smell. The location is excellent for exploring the city, right by the main train station. There are small alimentacion shops nearby, and the places below have good food at reasonable prices. Our room was adequate for a cheap stay in the center, no more and no less. The sockets by the bed didn’t work, and the lady pointed out that at least the one near the ceiling did. We ended up buying 3m cables. The door onto the pretty little balcony wouldn’t shut fully, so we heard traffic all night. It was fine, truly fine.