"The Gran Vía location has charm, and the price looks appealing. Unfortunately, that’s where the positives end.
We weren’t told at or before check-in about a €10 cash-only deposit for the fan remote — no air conditioning, just a fan. Arriving late with no cash meant a sweaty first night and an ATM hunt the next morning.
Three bathrooms on our floor: one had no toilet, one had an unusable shower, and the third had a broken shower. None had hooks or shelves. The building has a single lift, which was in use by housekeeping for much of our stay — we were on the eighth floor.
The room has frosted glass doors onto the hallway, so light and noise pour in constantly. On our last night, a neighbour’s room light was left on until 3AM. The windows onto Gran Vía look great but offer no sound insulation, and with no AC, sleeping through a warm Madrid night is genuinely difficult.
Cheap, yes. Worth it? Not for us."