Rafaelhoteles Atocha

The location is the one good thing. The rooms have irons but no kettle or drinking water. There are shaving kits in the bathroom, though the razor might be your last shave, and the toothbrushes are apparently good for combing your hair. Rooms are small, with just a desk and chair. There are cabinets, plus a piece of equipment called a Bar, though I couldn’t figure out how it works. The locker has one of those dial regulators like the fan knobs from the 50s. Breakfast is a squeeze too, with small tables, three coffee machines and little dishes of food that are always outnumbered by guests. Getting a boiled egg feels like winning the lottery, the odds seem one in a million. One of the worst travel experiences I’ve had. If you picked this for a long stay, may God bless you.

This is my go-to in Madrid after three trips here, mostly because it's so close to the train station. I always book the junior suite. It’s roomy and comfortable, especially the bathroom, and I really like the big hot tub. The staff are consistently friendly, and the AC works great, unlike at some hotels in Malaga where it's a joke.

The staff were polite and well behaved, which is the only thing keeping my rating from being lower. The rest felt well below what I expect from a four-star hotel. The room was average, and the bathroom had only generic shower gel, with no hand soap or lotion. The shower is in a very narrow bathtub space, and I nearly tripped using it. Breakfast was disappointing and short on variety. Our tour operator arranged this hotel. Of all the four and five-star places we stayed at on our Spain trip, this was easily the worst. I’ve stayed in hotels across 24 countries, and this ranks among my least satisfactory experiences.

We accidentally booked twice for the same dates and were charged for both. They refused to refund one booking, saying it went against their policy. Thieves!