My husband and I travel in various parts of Spain every year, and usually fly in to Madrid. We always stay at the Hotel Plaza Mayor for a few nights on our way in or out. It is a very pleasant, friendly smaller historic hotel in a great location, just steps from the Plaza Mayor in the centre of Madrid. It is easy to get to by taxi from Atocha, the main train station, with a vast number of cafes, restaurants, and tapas bars close by. You can walk to the main shopping streets and many of the attractions in Madrid (the Prado, the Retiro, the Royal Palace) from there. The hotel is a real bargain for Madrid, whjch can be an expensive city. We also enjoy their personal touch, which is lacking in the larger "chain" hotels.

The hotel interior is nicely designed to retain the architectural features of the building, which is over 200 years old. The rooms are clean, nicely furnished, with comfortable large beds and spotless bathrooms. The hotel staff are very welcoming, friendly and helpful (they recognize us now) and speak several languages well, not just English. They will provide advice, call you a taxi, print your boarding passes etc. The breakfast is good quality; a variety of the usual European breakfast food (excellent tortilla!), nice coffee, and is convenient. It's busy in the Plaza Santa Cruz outside the hotel during the day, but quiet at night. We always ask for the second floor room that occupies the front corner of the hotel. It has lovely big windows that look out over the street and the plaza beyond.

Overall, this charming hotel is a very good value for anyone who wants to enjoy the "ambiente" right in the centre of old Madrid.

Hotel Plaza Mayor is a very nice, clean place with good service and friendly, helpful front desk staff. The location is excellent, a short walk from Plaza Mayor and close to most of the sights. My only complaint is that we could hear everything in the room next door although they may have been a particularly loud group of 3. I would definitely stay here again.

Nice budget hotel in a great location. No frills in the rooms, but basic needs are covered. Neither my husband nor I have anything bad to say about this place, but we don't have any glowing accolades about it either.

We didn't love the breakfast, and since it wasn't included in the room rate, we'd recommend that others strike out and find breakfast elsewhere. The location is pretty good, and finding a basic b'fast wouldn't be hard.

We spent 6 days at the Plaza Mayor after attending a conference in Valladolid. We had a great room (#104), called a superior non-smoking room with a huge bed (king sized) plenty of room, large spotless bathroom, excellent shower. At 100 euros, we thought it was a great bargain. The small buffet breakfast was very nice, with a good variety of items to choose from (not included in the room price). The hotel staff, especially the charming Guatemalan lady, were extremely helpful with suggestions for restaurants and places to go. The location is outstanding - about 5 minutes from Plaza Mayor, with its large tourist information office, very close to Plaza del Sol and Plaza de Expana and other attractions in old Madrid. We also loved the Mercado San Miguel with its great variety of foods of all kinds, both oooked and fresh. We were also about 20 minutes by walking from the Prado museum, 25 from the Reina Sophia and Thyssen museums. And several tour companies offered day trips leaving from locations very close to the hotel. The area was full of theaters (flamenco, symphony, plays, etc.) and restaurants of all kinds and prices. In short, we were extremely happy with the Hotel Plaza Mayor and its staff and environs.