we are staying 2 days/3 nights (one day trip to toledo) in madrid and are looking for a hotel in a central area with a b&b type feel -- good recs, warm and inviting, etc.

were looking at hotel el prado and hotel preciados but neither really fit the bill. not sure if madrid is too big of a city for those type of places to be centrally located, and hotel preciados seems nice, but whn i see they have conference rooms and entertain business travelers i'm not sure if we should look for a smaller more personalized place.

we have a very short time in madrid and are not renting a car, so don't want to be too out of the way.

rec's for madrid? we speak limited spanish (high scores on spanish exams in high school but that was nearly 10 years ago -- we are not fluent)/ we live in NYC and would prefer a place that would NOT make us feel like we are in a businessy hotel back in the US

budget is $200/night but flexible, because we came in way under in the other cities we are visiting

well, I'm not going to be much help....but I was just looking at Hotel Preciados for a possible return trip to Madrid next March! it looks like a nice place but, you're right, maybe too big for what you'd like. I do believe there are smaller hotels where you could stay, I just don't know what those are. I bet someone here will tho. good luck and I hope you enjoy your trip!!

look at these

http://www.epoquehotels.com/city.php...madrid/lang/en

Maybe Hostal Perla Asturiana might be something for you? Just off Plaza Mayor and as central as it gets.
http://www.perlaasturiana.com/indexperla.htm

Simple, but with character. My brother stayed here in May and was very happy. Excellent and small breakfast café at the ground floor with a terrace, and another one, larger and even more typical, 50 metres down the Esparteros street towards Puerta del Sol. Breakfast in Spain should never be had on hotels, the atmosphere in the cafés in the morning is unbeatable!

Close by Hotel Plaza Mayor is a bit more upscale; I stayed here last time in Madrid and thought it was great:
http://www.booking.com/hotel/es/madr...-mayor.en.html

thanks for the recs, will check them out! we arent breakfast people and would actually prefer a place where breakfast is NOT included. we just want to feel like we are out of our comfort zone and aren't in a blah budget hotel in the US

Sorry can't help you but wanted to confirm your impression about Hotel El Prado. I have stayed there twice and like it a lot. Great value/ excellent location but definitively, not a cozy B&B.

A cute little place is Hostal Gran Duque. There aren't many hostals (which just means pension-type accommadation, more or less like a 2* hotel, and not a hostel) which feature artwork which focuses on bare-bottomed women (done in an artistic 19th-century style). The room and bathroom were nice enough, the location is fine, but I doubt they have air conditioning.

Breakfast in Spain should then be as made for you, would often be just a cup of coffee or a fresh orange juice or a tiny bite. You should anyhow experience it; lots of regular coustomers, the smell of coffee, fresh pastry and newspapers and an excellent way to tune in on local life.

Update: We ended up booking a superior room at the Hotel Plaza Mayor. A little more of a b&b feel than the others we had been looking at, and reminds me a lot of the hotel we stayed in last summer in Rome. Plus, comes out to $50/night cheaper than Preciados! Thank you for your help

(fwiw, breakfast is reasonably priced but optional and as of right now we opted against it. would rather go to cafes in the area for coffee and a snack than eat 99% of hotel-provided breakfasts)

thanks for the help! I think we are finally set on our accomodations and ended up coming in significantly under what I had budgeted for lodging