54 Best Hotels in Madrid, Spain

Background Illustration for Hotels

Spain overtook the United States as the world's second-most-visited country in 2018, so it's no surprise that Madrid is in the throes of a hotel construction boom, the first the city has seen since the economic crisis hit in 2008. The Old Guard of hotels is shaking in its boots as newcomers offer modern-day amenities (Bluetooth speakers, international power outlets, bedside thermostats, etc.) at affordable prices: the Westin Palace is in the midst of a seemingly never-ending remodel, while the Ritz Madrid will remain closed for massive renovations until late 2019. The last couple of years have also ushered in several cutting-edge boutique and designer properties, the likes of which the city has never seen, such as Barceló Torre de Madrid, Tótem, and Only You Atocha. And Madrid can finally lay claim to a chic, immaculately clean hostel in The Hat.

Artrip

$$ | Calle de Valencia 11, Madrid, 28012, Spain

A stone's throw from Madrid's "Golden Triangle" of museums, Artrip is a little-known gem of a hotel ideally suited to art-loving travelers. There's usually a small art or photography exhibit on the premises; other perks include a well-stocked breakfast buffet and updated bathrooms.

Pros

  • Non-touristy area
  • Independently owned
  • Youthful design touches

Cons

  • Street noise
  • Small showers
  • No parking
Calle de Valencia 11, Madrid, 28012, Spain
91-539–3282
hotel Details
17 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

  • $$

Ateneo Hotel

$$ | Calle de Montera 22, 28013, Spain

This economical and somewhat dated property is set in an 18th-century building that once housed the Ateneo, a club founded in 1835 to promote freedom of thought. Rooms are basic but well-lit, and some have sloped ceilings and skylights. Small groups can spread out in the triple and family rooms. At these prices, it's a privilege to be minutes from the historical sights and throbbing discotecas (even if the latter may keep sensitive sleepers awake).

Pros

  • Sizable rooms
  • Triples and quadruples available
  • Some rooms have skylights and balconies

Cons

  • Major pedestrian artery
  • Noisy area
  • Uninspired decor
Calle de Montera 22, 28013, Spain
91-521–2012
hotel Details
44 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

  • $$

Barceló Emperatriz

$$$ | Calle de López de Hoyos 4, Madrid, 28006, Spain

Worthy of an empress as its name implies, this sumptuous property tucked behind Paseo de la Castellana offers knowledgeable concierge services, health-conscious breakfast options, an updated gym, and a pillow menu. Even entry-level Deluxe rooms feature king beds. Hardwoods, oversize mirrors, and comfy divans add to the opulence, as do private terraces—a perk you’ll find in the suites and Premium Empress categories.

Pros

  • Good value for luxury
  • Jacuzzi tubs in some suites
  • Proximity to Serrano shopping street

Cons

  • Occasional street and hall noise
  • 10-minute taxi from center of town
  • Small pool and gym
Calle de López de Hoyos 4, Madrid, 28006, Spain
91-342–2490
hotel Details
146 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

Recommended Fodor's Video

Barceló Torre de Madrid

$$$ | Pl. de España 18, 28008, Spain

A jewel box of glowing lights, harlequin furniture, and gilded mirrors, the soaring Barceló Torre de Madrid opened in 2017 and remains one of the trendiest hotels in town. Jaime Hayón, the Madrid-born designer behind the property’s idiosyncratic interiors, strikes a balance between playfulness (zebra-striped bear sculptures) and drama (photos of flamenco bailaoras with piercing eyes). Guest rooms are as striking as the public areas, and many feature views over the newly renovated Plaza de España. 

Pros

  • Cutting-edge design by local artists
  • Sleek pool and spa area
  • Excellent Somos restaurant

Cons

  • Feels understaffed
  • Limited pool hours
  • Confusing elevators
Pl. de España 18, 28008, Spain
91-524–2339
hotel Details
256 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

Bastardo Hostel

$$ | Calle de San Mateo 3, Spain Fodor's Choice

Whether you're a solo traveler looking to make friends or a cash-strapped couple (or group of friends) trying to do Madrid on a budget, consider holing up at Bastardo, a designer hostel with communal and private rooms that doubles as a cool-kid hangout. Steps from all the action in Chueca and Malasaña, it has industrial-chic rooms with funky backlighting and exposed brick; upgraded digs add wrap-around balconies. 

Pros

  • Tours, activities, concerts, and more
  • Pulsing rooftop bar
  • Buzzy young vibe

Cons

  • Rooms near the rooftop are noisy at night
  • Not always squeaky clean
  • Windows don't open (and the AC is weak in some rooms)
Calle de San Mateo 3, Spain
68-251–9535
hotel Details
57 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

  • $$

Catalonia Puerta del Sol

$$$ | Calle de Atocha 23, Madrid, 28012, Spain

The regal cobblestone corridor leading to the reception desk, the atrium with granite ashlar walls, and the magnificent wooden staircase (presided over by a lion statue) reveal this building's 18th-century origins. Other common areas, including the restaurant and a reading room with a small library, have less character. Dark wood paneling, parquet floors, and charcoal pillows and throws lend hotel rooms an air of corporate blandness, though you can overlook a little blah for spaciousness (rooms start at 225 square feet) and value.

Pros

  • Grand quiet building
  • Offers family rooms
  • Generous breakfast bar (fee)

Cons

  • Rather uncharming street
  • Rooms are slightly dated
  • Smoking permitted in the courtyard
Calle de Atocha 23, Madrid, 28012, Spain
91-369–7171
hotel Details
63 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

CoolRooms Palacio de Atocha

$$$$ | Calle de Atocha 34, Madrid, 28012, Spain

The splashiest hotel in this part of town, CoolRooms is situated five minutes on foot from both Sol and Antón Martín market. Occupying a 19th-century palace—private courtyards, grand wooden staircase, baroque crown molding, and all—the hotel also boasts extremely here-and-now perks like proprietary electric scooters (driver's license required) and white-tablecloth breakfasts (served until a cool 1 pm) by the courtyard pool.

Pros

  • Neon signs and clubby young atmosphere
  • Spacious rooms
  • Fresh flowers and plants galore

Cons

  • Unheated shallow pool
  • No gym
  • Overeager and occasionally harried staff
Calle de Atocha 34, Madrid, 28012, Spain
91-088–7780
hotel Details
35 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

Dear Hotel

$$$ | Calle Gran Vía 80, Madrid, 28013, Spain

Catty-corner to Plaza de España, Dear Hotel is a sleek urban property with an exclusive feel. All of its homey, minimalist rooms—think blond woods, blindingly white sheets, and square wall molding—look out onto Gran Vía and flood with natural light; some boast street-facing patios with lounge chairs. Fun fact: The hotel was the backdrop for C. Tangana's award-winning music video for the song "Tú me dejaste de querer."

Pros

  • All rooms face out
  • Swanky rooftop bar with 360-degree views
  • Scandi-chic furnishings

Cons

  • Tiny pool
  • No gym or spa
  • Cramped lobby
Calle Gran Vía 80, Madrid, 28013, Spain
91-412–3200
hotel Details
162 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

DoubleTree by Hilton Madrid-Prado

$$$ | Calle de San Agustín 3, Madrid, 28014, Spain

This DoubleTree is a corporate outpost, sure, but any stuffiness is mitigated by a warm staff eager to help with every need. Rooms are minimally decorated with flinty blue headboards and marble-walled bathrooms, there's a state-of-the-art fitness center, and the property is ideally located two blocks from the Prado.

Pros

  • Relaxing earth-tone accents
  • Excellent in-room amenities
  • One of the city's best Japanese restaurants on-site

Cons

  • No valet parking
  • Dull bar
  • No sense of place
Calle de San Agustín 3, Madrid, 28014, Spain
91-360–0820
hotel Details
61 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

Four Seasons Hotel Madrid

$$$$ | Calle de Sevilla 3, Madrid, 28014, Spain

Everybody feels like a VIP stepping into the grand lobby—with its gilt-topped columns, enormous central skylight, and sleek spiral staircase—at this Four Seasons, which opened in 2020. The bright high-ceilinged rooms and suites—the most luxurious of which cost five figures a night—are decorated in muted creams, whites, and beiges. Celebrity chef Dani García is behind the rooftop haute-Andalusian restaurant, Dani Brasserie, which has swiftly become a power lunch spot; Isa is its Asian-inflected loungier counterpart. The hotel is part of the Canalejas complex, renovated to the tune of €600 million including 40 stores and 15 restaurants spread among seven historical buildings.

Pros

  • Above-and-beyond service touches
  • Original artwork by emerging Spanish artists
  • Celebrity-chef restaurant and outstanding breakfast

Cons

  • Lacks sense of place
  • Too expensive for most travelers
  • Situated above chain restaurants and boutiques
Calle de Sevilla 3, Madrid, 28014, Spain
91-088–3333
hotel Details
200 rooms
Rate Includes: Free Breakfast

Quick Facts

Generator Madrid

$$ | Calle de Silva 1, 28013, Spain

Generator Madrid might be a budget hotel with shared (up to eight-person) rooms, but it runs circles around most of the city's big-name hotels in the design department, and guests can't get enough of the rooftop bar, plush towels, and Instagram-ready interiors.

Pros

  • Bubbly staff and fellow guests
  • PlayStation in the lobby
  • Buzzy rooftop bar

Cons

  • Towels (€5 rental) not included in the rate
  • Storing luggage in lockers costs €2 per hour
  • No laundry facilities or kitchen
Calle de Silva 1, 28013, Spain
91-047–9800
hotel Details
129 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

  • $$

Gran Hotel Inglés

$$$$ | Calle Echegaray 8, Madrid, 28014, Spain

This legendary hotel, inaugurated in 1853, is the oldest in Madrid—and after a long, painstaking renovation by Rockwell Group, it reopened in 2018 to great fanfare. The soaring lobby and cocktail bar are now suffused with plush fabrics and calming earth tones; other new perks include private dining rooms, a literary salon (with hand-picked titles by renowned publisher Zenda), and a fitness center decked out with all the latest Technogym equipment.

Pros

  • One of the city's most iconic hotels
  • Magazine-cover-worthy design
  • Made-to-order breakfasts featuring artisanal Spanish products

Cons

  • Disappointing Casa Lobo restaurant
  • Phenomenally expensive
  • Occasional street noise
Calle Echegaray 8, Madrid, 28014, Spain
91-360--0001
hotel Details
48 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

Heritage Madrid Hotel

$$$$ | Calle de Diego de León 43, Madrid, 28006, Spain

The Relais & Château–approved Heritage lies north of Salamanca's commercial hubbub in a stately residential area. It's housed in a Belle Époque mansion that embodies the kind of quiet luxury favored by celebrities and high-society types with its low-profile location and tranquil atmosphere. Balconies (in upgraded rooms), spacious showers, and wallpaper with plant motifs make you want to stay awhile. 

Pros

  • Old-meets-new furnishings
  • "secret" rooftop bar and terrace
  • Plush towels and robes

Cons

  • A taxi or metro ride from most sights
  • No gym, pool, or sauna
  • Unpolished staff
Calle de Diego de León 43, Madrid, 28006, Spain
91-088–7070
hotel Details
46 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

Hotel Catalonia Las Cortes

$$$ | Calle del Prado 6, Madrid, 28014, Spain

In a late-18th-century palace formerly owned by the Duke of Noblejas, this hotel, a few yards from Plaza de Santa Ana, still bears traces of opulence and grandeur. It has a gorgeous winder staircase, painted Ionic columns, ethereal frescoes, and stained-glass windows, but the classic feel is neither ostentatious nor overwhelming. Rooms are cozy and classic with taupe walls, white wainscoting, and sturdy hardwood furniture. There's nothing trendy about these digs, which ooze self-assured old-world elegance.

Pros

  • Blissfully underpriced
  • Big walk-in showers
  • Gorgeous architectural details

Cons

  • Common areas are rather dull
  • No gym, pool, or spa
  • No bar
Calle del Prado 6, Madrid, 28014, Spain
91-389–6051
hotel Details
74 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

Hotel Fénix Gran Meliá

$$$$ | Calle de Hermosilla 2, 28001, Spain
Shutterstock

A Madrid institution that has played host to the likes of the Beatles, Cary Grant, and Rita Hayworth, this hotel has an impressive lobby with marble floors, antique furniture, and a stained-glass dome ceiling. Spacious rooms, decorated in reds and golds, evoke a bygone era with satin wallpaper, stately bergères, and polished wood desks. Also on-site is a happening indoor-outdoor cocktail bar overlooking Plaza de Colón and a renowned Latin-fusion fine-dining restaurant in Hortensio, which relocated here from its Chamberí location in 2021.

Pros

  • Celebrity hangout Hortensio restaurant
  • Great breakfast buffet
  • Above-and-beyond service

Cons

  • Small bathrooms
  • Guest rooms show some wear
  • VIP policy excludes standard-room guests from certain areas
Calle de Hermosilla 2, 28001, Spain
91-431–6700
hotel Details
225 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

Hotel Freedom

$$ | Calle de Santa Isabel 4, Madrid, 28012, Spain

Rooms in this inexpensive and cheerful hotel overlooking Plaza de Antón Martín have turquoise walls, crimson sofas, and multicolor headboards. Some have skylights and wrought-iron street-facing balconies.

Pros

  • Independently owned
  • Trendy location
  • Immaculately clean

Cons

  • Lobby-adjacent room is noisy
  • No restaurant, bar, gym, or room service
  • No breakfast
Calle de Santa Isabel 4, Madrid, 28012, Spain
91-073–6271
hotel Details
21 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

  • $$

Hotel NH Collection Madrid Eurobuilding

$$$ | Calle de Padre Damián 23, Madrid, 28036, Spain Fodor's Choice

This towering hotel, located blocks from Real Madrid's home stadium, is a state-of-the-art luxury skyscraper with large, airy rooms and an enormous pool and gym complex. Though staff and housekeeping could be less robotic and more attuned to guests’ needs, overall this hotel is a dependable and affordable bet that stands out for its varied breakfasts.

Pros

  • 180-degree views from some rooms
  • Excellent gym and spa
  • Bargain rates

Cons

  • Inconsistent service
  • Surcharge for spa
  • Quiet area at night
Calle de Padre Damián 23, Madrid, 28036, Spain
91-353–7300
hotel Details
440 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

Hotel Orfila

$$$$ | Calle de Orfila 6, Madrid, 28010, Spain

On a leafy residential street, this 1886 town house bearing the Relais & Château fleur-de-lis feels more like a country estate than a city-center hotel. It was originally the residence of a well-to-do family, and the current owners continue their legacy in touches like pretty flower arrangements, silver platters, and period furniture purchased from French and English castles. Keys come on tasseled keychains, and fine-threaded pillowcases are embossed with Orfila's logo. Upgraded rooms feature balconies (garlanded with tinsel come holiday season) as well as whirlpool tubs and sound systems.

Pros

  • Tranquil year-round dining terrace
  • Old-world comfort
  • Historical art and furniture

Cons

  • Food is not up to standard
  • No gym
  • Expensive room service via poorly designed app
Calle de Orfila 6, Madrid, 28010, Spain
91-702–7770
hotel Details
32 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

Hotel Palacio del Retiro, Autograph Collection

$$$$ | Calle de Alfonso XII 14, Madrid, 28014, Spain

An early-20th-century palace built for a noble family with extravagant habits (the elevator carried their horses up and down from the rooftop exercise ring), this Marriott mixes old-world elegance with modern bells and whistles. Relics of a grand past include baseboards and fountains covered with ceramics from Talavera, Parisian stained-glass windows, and full-size Lichtenstein silkscreen prints. Most accommodations feature king-size beds, and some upgraded digs have original parquet floors and intricate fretwork. All rooms have superb views of the nearby El Retiro Park.

Pros

  • Spacious elegant rooms
  • Walking distance from the Prado
  • Bathrooms stocked with all sorts of complimentary products

Cons

  • Pricey breakfast
  • Lower rooms facing the park can get noisy
  • Scant natural light in some rooms
Calle de Alfonso XII 14, Madrid, 28014, Spain
91-523–7460
hotel Details
50 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

Hotel Preciados

$$ | Calle de Preciados 37, 28013, Spain
shutterstock

In a 19th-century building on the quieter edge of one of Madrid's main shopping districts, Preciados is a charming midrange hotel ideal for travelers who value space and comfort. Though the rooms skew more modern than traditional, the purple backlighting and opaque glass make certain rooms feel dated. A number of (slightly more expensive) rooms have skylights and wrought-iron balconies.

Pros

  • Conveniently located
  • Complimentary minibar (you read that correctly!)
  • Helpful front desk staff

Cons

  • Expensive breakfast
  • Chaotic and noisy street
  • Dated decor
Calle de Preciados 37, 28013, Spain
91-454–4400
hotel Details
101 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

  • $$

Hotel Puerta América Madrid

$$ | Av. de América 41, Madrid, 28002, Spain

Inspired by Paul Eluard's La Liberté, whose verses are written across the facade, the owners of this hotel granted an unlimited budget to 19 of the world's top architects and designers. The result is 12 hotels in one, with floors by the late Zaha Hadid, Norman Foster, Jean Nouvel, David Chipperfield, and others. Most popular are the futuristic all-white layouts by Hadid, the elegant black wood and white leather proposal by Foster, and the imaginative re-creation of space by Ron Arad. There's also a well-regarded restaurant and two bars (one on the rooftop), which are all just as impressive in design. The only snag: you'll need a taxi or the metro to get to the city center.

Pros

  • Gym equipped with Technogym equipment
  • Top-notch restaurant and bars
  • Candlelit pool and steam room area

Cons

  • Miles from the center
  • Frayed at the edges
  • Design impractical in places
Av. de América 41, Madrid, 28002, Spain
91-744–5410
hotel Details
315 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

  • $$

Hotel Sardinero

$$ | Pl. de Alonso Martínez 3, Madrid, 28004, Spain

Steps from the trendy Malasaña and gay-friendly Chueca districts and slightly off the tourist track, Hotel Sardinero is a good mid-range value hotel in a turn-of-the-century palace. Rooms are handsome and minimal with dark wood floors, white linens, and vaulted ceilings. The free (nonalcoholic) minibar is a welcome perk.

Pros

  • Good deals on rates
  • Two rooftop terraces
  • Gorgeous neoclassical facade

Cons

  • Some guests report plumbing issues
  • No restaurant
  • Kettles and coffeemakers only available on request
Pl. de Alonso Martínez 3, Madrid, 28004, Spain
91-206–2160
hotel Details
63 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

  • $$

Hotel Urban

$$$$ | Carrera de San Jerónimo 34, Madrid, 28014, Spain

A five-minute walk from Puerta del Sol and Parque del Buen Retiro (El Retiro Park), Hotel Urban blends buttoned-up business aesthetics with tropical accents in the form of Papua New Guinean artifacts and other rare museum-grade works. Public areas are distinguished by alabaster pillars, tile-and-gold-inlaid walls, and Art Deco banisters. The newly renovated rooftop pool (summer only) and cocktail lounge are decorated with palms and banana trees and make for chic sunbathing and photos. Rooms are decidedly more dated and less polished than public spaces, with green-marble bathrooms, dark-wood floors, and wispy charcoal curtains. Note to sybarites: don't miss the hotel's Michelin-starred CEBO restaurant serving exquisite regional Spanish cuisine.

Pros

  • Stellar à la carte breakfasts
  • Roof deck that's a destination in itself
  • Celebrity chef restaurant

Cons

  • Smallish rooms with so-so soundproofing
  • Tiny gym with no treadmill
  • Early-aughts interiors in desperate need of renovation
Carrera de San Jerónimo 34, Madrid, 28014, Spain
91-787–7770
hotel Details
103 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

Iberostar Las Letras Gran Vía

$$$ | Calle Gran Vía 11, Madrid, 28013, Spain

A modern, clubby hotel on the stately avenue of Gran Vía, Iberostar Las Letras is a welcoming oasis from the area’s constant hubbub of tourists and shoppers. Many of the rooms have street-facing balconies. You'll find uncommon luxuries like a rooftop bar, 24-hour state-of-the-art gym, and some rooms with outdoor Jacuzzis. The bottom floor houses a high-ceilinged bar called Gran Clavel, where you can order tapas and flights of small-batch vermouths.

Pros

  • Warm and friendly hotel staff
  • Many rooms have balconies
  • Happening rooftop bar

Cons

  • Lackluster service and food in Gran Clavel
  • No spa
  • Awkward bathroom design
Calle Gran Vía 11, Madrid, 28013, Spain
91-523–7980
hotel Details
110 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

ICON Embassy

$$$ | Calle de Serrano 46, 28001, Spain

This airy, playfully decorated hotel with larger-than-average rooms occupies a converted palace on Calle de Serrano, Salamanca's main shopping corridor. Tarruella Trenchs Studio is behind the 2018 renovation, which blends marbles, woods, and colorful dividers in the lobby and more sedate velvets, leathers, and white linens in guest rooms.

Pros

  • Sleek modern design
  • Steps from high-fashion boutiques
  • Health-focused dining at Florafina restaurant

Cons

  • So-so soundproofing
  • Inconsistent breakfast quality
  • Four-person room is cramped
Calle de Serrano 46, 28001, Spain
91-431–3060
hotel Details
75 rooms
Rate Includes: Free Breakfast

Quick Facts

ICON Wipton

$$$$ | Calle de Jorge Juan 17, Madrid, 28001, Spain

Whites, grays, and dark woods define this boutique hotel on Salamanca's most opulent street, Jorge Juan. The gentlemanly, austere British-esque design is a welcome reprieve from the ersatz Art Deco aesthetic that invaded the city's restaurants and hotels in the 2010s. A quiet and comfortable lobby and excellent breakfast add to the appeal.

Pros

  • Calming atmosphere
  • Location on main dining and nightlife street
  • Standout breakfasts

Cons

  • Entry-level rooms are a tight fit
  • Noise travels from ground-floor bar
  • Small desks in guest rooms
Calle de Jorge Juan 17, Madrid, 28001, Spain
91-435–5411
hotel Details
61 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

Intercontinental Madrid

$$$$ | Paseo de la Castellana 49, Madrid, 28046, Spain

Chauffeur-driven town cars snake around the block day and night at the Intercontinental Madrid, a classically decorated hotel frequented by dignitaries, diplomats, and other international bigwigs. Situated on the skyscraper-lined Castellana mall and removed from the tourist hubbub (you’ll need to take the metro to most attractions), the property is a dependable option for business travelers, families, and other visitors who favor comfort and service over centrality and trendiness. A fine-dining restaurant, sunny terrace, and an above-and-beyond concierge service round out the offerings.

Pros

  • Dependable if starchy elegance
  • 24-hour gym
  • Excellent business facilities

Cons

  • Cookie-cutter business hotel decor
  • Removed from the center
  • Street-facing rooms can be noisy
Paseo de la Castellana 49, Madrid, 28046, Spain
91-700–7300
hotel Details
302 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

Liabeny

$$ | Calle de la Salud 3, 28013, Spain
https://www.facebook.com/Liabeny/

This reliable hotel situated between Gran Vía and Puerta del Sol was renovated in 2021 and has comfortable, Scandi-minimalist rooms awash with whites and grays as well as spacious bathrooms with marble walls. Some areas, like the grand old lobby, retain their original opulence. 

Pros

  • Spacious bathrooms
  • Near Callao shopping area
  • Personable staff

Cons

  • Small rooms
  • Crowded noisy neighborhood
  • Stairs to access public areas
Calle de la Salud 3, 28013, Spain
91-531–9000
hotel Details
220 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

  • $$

Mandarin Oriental Ritz, Madrid

$$$$ | Pl. de la Lealtad 5, Madrid, 28014, Spain Fodor's Choice

A €99 million renovation in 2021 by Mandarin Oriental breathed new life to this grande dame overlooking the Prado, replacing mustard-colored drapes and faded carpets with bright whites, gold accents, and stunning contemporary art. The glass canopy ceiling crowning the Palm Court restaurant was restored after being hidden for 80 years. Alfonso XIII commissioned and supervised the construction of this hotel—then perhaps the most exclusive in Spain—ahead of his wedding, and it opened in 1910. More than a century later, it remains synonymous with the upper crust, thanks to suites that fetch top dollar and sought-out restaurants (including the two-Michelin-star Deesa) overseen by Quique Dacosta.

Pros

  • Five on-site restaurants including two alfresco options
  • Fitness center and chandelier-lit pool
  • The epitome of modern luxury

Cons

  • Entry-level rooms feel cramped at these prices
  • Inconsistent El Jardín restaurant
  • Inaccessible price point for most travelers
Pl. de la Lealtad 5, Madrid, 28014, Spain
91-701–6767
hotel Details
153 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

Mayerling Hotel

$$ | Calle del Conde de Romanones 6, Madrid, 28012, Spain

Minimalism at just the right value is the key at this former textile wholesaler's premises, now a 22-room boutique hotel a few blocks off Plaza Mayor and Plaza de Santa Ana. Serene (if slightly clinical) white rooms come in three sizes—standard, superior, and triple—and are decorated with colorful headboards, charcoal valances, and small open closets. Upgraded rooms add exterior-facing wrought-iron balconies.

Pros

  • Triples available
  • 24-hour complimentary coffee, snacks, and juices
  • Prime location

Cons

  • Rooms are small by U.S. standards
  • White walls show smudges
  • No restaurant or gym
Calle del Conde de Romanones 6, Madrid, 28012, Spain
91-420–1580
hotel Details
22 rooms
Rate Includes: No Meals

Quick Facts

  • $$