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New York Times

No Tapas, No Problem in Madrid

May 21, 2007 at 9:03 AM | 0 Comments

The New York Times actually does us a favor this week with a helpful review of a stylish hotel--with rooms under $600 a night. It's the Hotel Alicia, which is part of the Room Mate Hotel chainlet, a minimal-service, stylish hotel group for the done-staying-in-hostels set.

Reviewer Andrew Ferren gives his room high marks, as does his friend:

We've often paid three times as much for rooms in which we constantly bump into each other, dodging faux wenge-wood consoles and manqué Mies Barcelona chairs. The place is comfortable and functional with a loft aesthetic of open, flexible space, with pictures propped on broad shelves rather than hanging in gilded frames.

Though the bathroom suffers from that boutique hotel affliction of being smack in the middle of the room, it isn't a deal-breaker, as the toilet's enclosed in its own room. Just don't hold your breath for room service--there isn't any. Then again, that gives you an excuse to binge on churros.

[Photo: Matias Costa for the NY Times]

Related Stories:
· Check In, Check Out [NYT]
· Hotel Alicia reviews [TripAdvisor]