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Strangely, Madrid has few hotels which are truly charming. At the top end, there are some beautiful, luxurious palaces which have become the favoured retreats of film stars and celebrities, but there are many more bland international chain hotels offering excellent amenities but little in the way of character. Most budget hotel rooms are uniform browns with nylon bedding and battered furniture, but the Spanish are fanatic housekeepers and they are usually spotless. There are a few enterprising places with bright, modern decor and internet access. You will be usually be offered an interior or an exterior room – exterior rooms have balconies but are noisy and interior rooms are often dark. Balcony or not, bring some industrial strength ear plugs; Madrid is a very noisy city. Finding accommodation in Madrid is no longer as easy as it once was; book as far in advance as possible. The Brújula booking agency, Calle Princesa 1, T 91 559 9705, takes advance bookings for Madrid and surrounding towns. They charge a fee of about e2.
In general, most moderate to inexpensive accommodation is clustered in nightlife areas around the Plaza Santa Ana or north of the Gran Vía in Chueca and Malasaña. Smart Salamanca has the upmarket business hotels and a few chi-chi boutique hotels, while around the Plaza Mayor and the Palacio Real are traditional hotels in the moderate to expensive price range. La Latina and Lavapiés have little in the way of accommodation as yet, but now that gentri- fication has well and truly set in it can only be a matter of time.
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