Huge hotels in huge cities are the norm. Sometimes, though, in a city with a million inhabitants, several million tourists, and even more stray dogs and cats, you really need somewhere small and cosy to disappear to.
Madrid is one of those places. Hotels are generally either 400-room monstrosities for which you pay through the nose, or tiny 10th-floor bunk-bed dormitories with leaky showerheads, whirring fan heaters and noisy drunks outside.
We heard about the Hotel Abalu in Madrid from a groovy Madrileño friend and it sounds just blimmin' perfect.
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