Catalonia Las Cortes - Madrid, Spain 

Nice hotel with good breakfast!
Posted: Sun, Jul 13 2008
We wanted to treat ourselves to a nice and reasonably priced hotel at the end of our two weeks travel from France to Spain and decided to settle at Catalonia Las Cortes. The hotel is very short distance from the train station and it's a 15 minutes walk. However, if you have luggages, highly suggest you take the cab BUT have the hotel arrange it for you. We got out of the station and took a cab in a nearby stand and when we told the cab driver where we were going, he started mumbling and looked sort of pissed off . Since the hotel is not located on one of the main street, it was hard to park and he almost kicked us out of the cab demanding the fare on the meter PLUS surcharge saying something like "too short of a trip and need to charge us more". He never got out of the car to help us with our luggage and we took our time but he started to swear (we knew since it's usually the first thing you learn in a foreign language) at us. Being we are New Yorkers, we could easily fight back without much fear, however, we let it go since we ARE in a foreign country. We decided to hold our tongue and told him to stop swearing. We told the concierge and she told us they could easily arrange a cab for us with more friendlier driver which they did for our trip to the airport. The hotel room is very spacious and clean with very comfortable bed. The breakfast is really the highlight of our days since it has a huge selection with great coffee to go with it. Just make sure you check the time since it's different between weekdays and weekends. The hotel is walking distance to a lot of places but you can take the Metro to a lot of places and it's very convenient. Madrid is really a city much like any other big city and has a huge nightlife. It's just so happened that we were there during the weekend of Blanco Noche when many of the museums in the city are opened 24 hours with free admissions and there were street performances until well into night. The local food scene is definitely one of the best in the world with many selections to chose from. We also took day trips outside of Madrid to Toledo, Saville and El Escorial which we thought were more charming than Madrid. Overall, the experience at Madrid was okay since it was just too much of a metropolis for us and missing the charm we were looking for.

Great Service/Best Shower
Posted: Sun, Jul 06 2008
This was my second stay at Catalonia Las Cortes in Madrid. The staff are very friendly. My only complaint is they were not able to help me when I had trouble accessing their wireless internet service. The room was nice and was equipped with every amenity. The shower was fabulous -- had a huge shower head with amazing water pressure. Quite a treat. I did not have time for breakfast this time but recall that last time (a few months ago) the food was good and service was outstanding.

Location and personal service
Posted: Tue, Jun 24 2008
Hotel my company was going to book was full so I chose this hotel based on location and value Its got an excellent location, close to a nice square, with live music and good restuarants (it is about 100 metres from the square, but far enough to not have any noise issues) Excellent service from the guy on reception and the waitress, who patiently listened to any request I had Dont get me wrong, this is not a five star hotel. I asked for a quiet room and got a standard room overlooking the central stairwell. Rooms acceptable, nothing more, bed not hugely comfortable, but hey I was staying for 1 night and overall room was fine for my needs. I would probably look for a room upgrade, but on this occassion the hotels bosses were in town and must have booked the better rooms, which was a real shame...... Good Ham, nice cheap wine, friendly service thoughout, excellent check in, check out, easy to get a cab It is a small hotel, with no gym and small lobby/bar/restaurant area..... You do however have to see the main staircase - this has a huge charm in itself - like your walking into a different century - you'll know what I mean when you see it So much better than the likes of the inpersonal Melia chain of hotels, those huge monstrosities totally impersonal, overpriced, badly located, poor service and too big to care - so this hotel made a nice refreshing change from the norm

Great 3 Star not a 4 Star Hotel
Posted: Mon, May 12 2008
This is a great 3 star hotel. It can not be a 4 star because if you walk down the hill to the Westin Palace that is a 5 star just one better and thus this is not a 4. It is a good three star and if you get the price of a 3 you have a great find. The issues are the total package. There is no lobby. The restaurant is an after thought in a town known for great food. A $20+ breakfast is basically a standard bacon sausage and amenitites buffet kept warm too long. The diunners are basic. The room choices vary from the magnificent 202 to a literal dungeon 03. I am not kidding a dungeon is a room with no real windows and it is dark all the time and it at the lowest point in the hotel thus room 03. So the ability to predict a great experience is based on what is available. If you are flying here from the USA you had better insist on a certain type of room as all of the good ones are gone by 1800. What makes it a great 3 star is the cleanliness, the location, walk to the Thyssen, the Prado the Archeologie Museos, the Botanical Gardens or the park. A quick tube stop to almost anywhere else. The bathrooms are all in marble and the floors are wood which is nice unless the person above you walks around in heals which then drives you crazy. The people are nice and helpful and the internet is free. So it is a great 3 star. There are no amenities other than the internet, so if you need a place to sleep and get a good rate and a nice choice of rooms you will feel like you are in heaven. If anyone of those does not happen you will feel sort of put off and if two do not happen you will wonder who those people are that wrote those glowing reviews. Jim

Nice hotel
Posted: Wed, Apr 30 2008
Overall, it was a fine hotel. We didn't find the Madrilenos particularly warm, but when we disliked the first room they gave us (first floor with tow single beds out together) they were very accommodating and immediately gave us a nicer room on the 3rd floor. There was no noise from our room, and the room was impeccibly clean. The halls and the downstairs of the hotel have absolutely beautiful architecture. We were also very impressed with the bathroom--double showers and a tub. The TV had cable, but the English speaking CNN channel did not work as well. We never quite adjusted to Madrid time, and as a result only went to breakfast one day. It was delicious and te coffee was great. We are a married couple traveling without our children, and it was definitely worth the trip. Loved the neighborhood, too. Right around the corner from the Plaza Santa Ana, the Thyssen and the Prado and Retiro Park.