The 1970's decor at Albergaria Insulana is not "tired" but very unfashionable. Give it another 10 years and the place will have "period charm". For €59 per night you get a small but very clean room with ensuite bathroom in the absolute centre of Lisbon.. The surrounding streets are pedestrianised so are reasonably quiet once the restaurants close after 10. Breakfasts are the same ones they were serving in the 1970's too, but if you get fed up with plain bread and stewed coffee you can always pop into one of the many pastelarias in the neighbourhood.

Of the four hotels we stayed at while in Portugal, Albergaria Insulana was our least favorite. I will lay it out in terms of pro's and con's.
PROS
location, convenient to Baixa Chiado station, Rossio square, shopping, dining, etc.
price was very affordable
room with a small balcony

CONS
Reception is on the second floor so the initial feel you get when you come in off the street is that the hotel is abandoned
The elevator(lift) fits only one person at a time if you have any baggage at all
Every part of the interior of this hotel needs a facelift, carpet is worn and patched, furniture needs refinishing, green felt wallpaper needs to go - they could easily keep the character and nostalgia of this hotel with some simple sprucing up.
One plug in - obviously built well before the days of iPods, droids, netbooks and curling irons and that one plug in is for the TV, none available in the bathroom - I'd suggest they install an outlet strip
You have to leave the key at the front desk whenever you leave the hotel and despite my request of NO MAID SERVICE, I discovered our trash cans were empty when we returned - creepy, why were they in our room? Snoops!
If your room is close enough to reception, you can get wi-fi in your room but if you are Skyping, do it quietly. Luis heard my travelmate talking to her kids and unplugged the router on her. Nice!
The breakfast included consists of coffee, hot milk, sugar packets, hamburger buns, butter and jam. A little fruit might have been nice since my travelmate can't eat gluten and I am lo-carb.

Now I didn't expect 4 star accommodations for 59euros per night but we had just stayed at a fabulous older hotel in Porto for 58euros that offered all the charm and character we desired. Everything in it was old but everything was very well maintained and clean.

Was there for two nights. 20 minutes by Taxi from airport, depending on traffic. Did not know what to expect after all the mixed reviews but I was pleasantly surprised. Maybe because I went with the mentality that I will not find anything special.

Room was adequate. Not to small and not to big. Toilet was a bit awkward as it was in a seperate room from shower and sink. Toilet room was so small that my feet couldnt fit in the room between the facing wall and the toilet when I sat down on it. Strong water pressure and towels are changed daily. TIP: take shower gel as its not offered. Only those small useless soaps on the sink.

Air conditioning was great and bed was really comfortable. Big wardrobe and alot of shelves. Furniture was old style and I particularly liked that. Small TV but I didnt put it on once for the simple reason that when I was in the room I unplugged the TV to charge my electronics. Only that plug waa available in the room.

Wi-fi was available. And it connected properly - maybe because I was one floor up from reception. Others have had problems.

Breakfast was, as mentioned in a previous review, a bit lacking but I didnt mind it. Two bread rolls, one jam, one butter and a pot of tea (no milk) all served in the bar area which is a bit uncomfortable.

Cannot get better than this on location. In the centre of shops and restaurants and close by the train station.

Above all, for the price, I'd stay again and I recommend if you are not the fussy type. Staff was friendly.

I had a pleasant stay in the hotel. It was adequate but not much more than that to be honest. I don't mind old fashioned style, in fact I quite like it which is why I booked. However, I think there are certainly some aspects of this hotel that need updating. Breakfast is one of them. It is very basic and I think just a little more choice would be welcome by most guests. My room was ok, had a big patio style window that overlooked the street. Lucky for me I got a twin room even though I was travelling alone. The TV was old - very old, not a problem either but the problem was that of the channels you could get, the picture quality was rubbish due to a bad signal(?). Room was clean enough though, towels changed every day. Location was of course very good and there are some excellent restaurants near by and a Pingo Doce (supermarket) close by too, should you need it. I would go back though but I would look very hard to find something else first. As a regular traveller to Lisbon I know there are plenty of hotels I could have got for a similair price. One thing I would say without a doubt is that the reception staff are FANTASTIC. If they can help, they do!