The Mirentxu was a bit like a funeral home; the lights were dim and
the place was creepy.
This is a hostal not an hotel, but there are good bright happy hostals to be found.
Their website pictures are beautiful, stylish, modern.
Based on my experience, the truth is the complete opposite.
What photoshop and airbrushing can do is just pretty much amazing.
The building is divided into three hostals, the Mirentxu was on an upper floor.
From the street you arrive at a pair of enormous wooden doors that have seen better days.
You will probably trip into the courtyard like I did.
There is a watchman on the right hand side of the courtyard in a scruffy
looking office.
I thought this cannot be the right place, looks like a dive.
He pointed to the correct floor up wooden steps; we avoided the old lift.
Our room was bright and clean and that is the best thing I can say
But very disorganised with cables from the digital TV hanging around and the picture breaking up.
The building was surrounded by scaffolding around the back and looking out the scaffolding, the boards were right up outside our dusty window.
There was no air conditioning, so we would have
had to keep the windows shut at night and during the day when we were not there, for security reasons.
I did not fancy being robbed in the middle of the night.
Without open windows, we would have ended up a pair of baked Spanish pies.
The friendly receptionist, working for the owner, poor lad said that noisy work would commence at 8am the next morning when the workmen would start.
But I had requested a quiet room and obviously a safe room would be part of the normal requirements.
The Hostal had debited the price of one day’s lodging one month earlier.
Bells had started to ring then.
“What’s the rush“ I thought then.
I now know.
I explained that we had not received what we had asked and requested for a full refund.
Only gave refund for the day after.
We stayed a couple of hours, long enough to find a nicer, safer, air conditioned hotel round the corner, and paying just a little extra.
If you want a dreary thirty years behind the times hostal, choose this one if not choose another.
The modern traveller wants a hostal that is cheerful, pleasant, air conditioned, safe from being robbed accommodation.
This was not it.
Sadly it was a very disappointing experience.
Get a grip Mirentxu and make this place a happy stay for everyone’s sake.
- Hostal Mirentxu Madrid
- Hostal Mirentxu Hotel Madrid
