Room Mate Alicia

Reviewed by Michael Soffe


“TALK TO HER” ..............

The Room Mate Chain of Hotels uses the name of an imaginary person for each of the Hotels. The “Alicia” you meet here is a chic designer and from the moment you walk into the lobby from the Plaza de Santa Ana, “design” shouts at you from all corners. A stunning animated nude walks towards you from an electric blue screen, clay sculptures and a wonderful art nouveau-style stainless steel staircase complete the “wow factor”. Not surprising to learn then, that one of Spain’s foremost interior designers, Pascua Ortega, was given a free hand in the design of the Hotel. The building has a history too – a former woollen factory once the only industrial building in the centre of the city, and whilst derelict, it was used by Pedro Almodóvar as the dance studio in his film “Talk to Her”.

Now metapmohosed into a “Room Mate”, the company’s policy is to produce excellent, clean and comfortable accommodation at a budget price and to include breakfast. It is certainly a policy that works well and an occupancy level of over 90% throughout the year means that early booking is essential. The location in the “Barrio Latino” on one of the liveliest squares in Madrid is excellent, with hip restaurants and tapas bars in all the surrounding streets, and a ten minute walk to the golden triangle of museums: The Prado, Reina Sofia and Thyssen-Bornemisza.

As with all the Room Mate hotels, the young and trendy staff will go out of their way to make sure you have all the details of local events, museums, restaurants, etc, to enjoy your time in this exciting city to the full.

The 34 bedrooms, or “sleeping places”, as Ortega prefers to call them, are decorated in differing shades of pastel. Some of the doubles are quite small, but he has managed to create a felling of space with his ingenious use of light, mirrors and colour. About half of the rooms are exterior with windows overlooking the square, and although lively outside, the double-glazing seems to keep most of the noise to a minimum. Repros of pop art classics by the likes of Warhol abound and contrast provocatively with black and white photos of 19th century Madrid. Pastel fabrics on the chairs and electronic blinds complete the full picture. Bathrooms (many of which have separate showers as well as the bathtub) are state of the art with gleaming stainless steel taps and hi-tech fittings which are offset by the dark, slate floors. Many of the bathrooms have glass doors so be warned if you are not happy with room companion seeing you as nature intended! All bedrooms come equipped with heating and aircon, wi-fi, flat-screen satellite TV, minibar and safe.

If you want more space an upgrade to one of the two Executive Rooms with small private terraces overlooking the square, or one of the three Junior Suites with separate lounge areas off the bedrooms is recommended. These also have “Plaza” views. For total luxury (and ideal for a honeymoon couple) are the two Duplex Suites, both of which have private sun terraces and a corner plunge pool on each terrace – not bad for downtown central Madrid!

Breakfasts are served at your leisure in the adjoining “Paradis” tapas bar and restaurant which serves good food throughout the day.


An ideal Hotel for those who want a funky Hotel on an intimate scale. A fantastic location for visiting the fabulous art galleries and at a great price for a Madrid.