all the hostels posted are totally out of my price range. here, in north america, you can stay at a hostel for 12$ a nite, and in my travels through south america i've never paid more than that. so...where are all the hostels with nightly rates of under 20$CAN?

Hi sneak! Welcome to our ALL SPAIN Message Board!

I'm guessing you're making the very common mistake with the term "hostel".

The word "hostel", as you're using it here, is an abbreviation for the term "youth-hostel" which is "albergue juvenile" in Spanish. However, in Spain and Spanish-speaking countries they translate the Spanish word of "hostal" to the English word of "hostel". It's probably the single most confusing thing to non-Spanish speakers regarding cheap lodgings traveling to those Spanish-speaking countries.

All those hostels (again, called "hostales" in Spanish) we speak about in Spain are usually between $25 and $70/night for a double. Hostels in Spain are budget hotels with private rooms, usually family owned and operated establishments.

There's little discussion about youth-hostels ("albergues juveniles") here because there are very very few which are licensed to operate as such. We've done the math and those other so-called youth-hostels, after adding on the fees for towels, lockers, and whatever else, end up being about the same price as a private room (but probably without a private in-room bathroom) at a hostel ("hostal") where the towels and blankets and everything else is included in the price.

Madrid has only 3 official youth hostels and I haven't heard/read much discussion about them. You might find those which have already been posted by utilizing the SEARCH link above/right and typing as your keywords YOUTH HOSTEL MADRID.

The only official youth-hostel in Madrid which has a website is the Albergue Juvenil San Fermín and it's located outside of the city center and costs about 17 Euros after all add-ons are totalled. Just a bed for the night and the standard coffee/juice and toast with jam for breakfast is between 8-12 Euros. It's actually QUITE nice-looking too but not accessible by metro. You'd have to take a bus and buses don't run there after midnight (or before) so if you're returning late you'd have to take a taxi - and the cost of that taxi would bump you up to what it might cost to stay in a regular hostel with a private room in the city center.

And here are some informational pages (no prices/email listed) about the other two official youth-hostels in Madrid:

ALBERGUE JUVENIL SANTA CRUZ DE MARCENADO (closer to the old city center) @
http://www.reaj.com/fichas%20albergue/Em-MARCENADO.html

ALBERGUE JUVENIL RICHARD SCHIRRMANN (in the Casa de Campo - heard LOTS of horror stories about this one) @ http://www.reaj.com/fichas%20albergue/Em-RICHARD%20SCHIRRMANN.html

Oh, and one final note. You may sometimes see the curiously spelled (plural) word "HOSTALS". Be warned that this is spanglish and doesn't exist in any language but helps English-speakers to discern one from the other. The Spanish tourism bureau themselves translate the Spanish word of "hostal" to the English word of "hostel".

Good luck and have a wonderful time in Spain!

Saludos, MadridMan

I came back from Madrid yesterday, and stayed in Los amigos hostel . It costed 15 €/night. I can really recommend it, it was in the city center and I really enjoyed my stay in there.

thanks for all your suggestions.

i was wondering if los amigos hostal is located near the barajas airport. or if it is easy to access from the airport.
i will be arriving into madrid at 1130pm (their time), and am not sure how i will get aroudn at that time of nite. when booking my plane ticket, i assumed it wouldn't be a problem (since it is a saturday nte that i will be flying in).
does anyone have any suggestions??

thanx.

Hi Sneak,

If los amigos hostel is located in the city center, it can be reached by metro (subway). The metro now has a stop right at the airport. Hopefully you aren't travelling with too much luggage, that would be slightly difficult but not impossible to ride the metro with lots of luggage. By the way, buy a diez veces ticket. It's a bargain and you get to ride the metro 10 times.

Los Amigos is near a metro station called Opera, it takes about 30 minutes to get there from the airport.

I can recommend Hostal Mirentxu on Calle Zorrilla, 7 (3rd floor). Near Metro Sevilla. Phone: 91 429 81 84. 16 Euros for a single room with a sink. There are clean, full bathrooms on the same floor down the hall. I had a double room with sink and shower for 20 Euros. Great area near some fun bars and nightlife, but C/ Zorrilla itself is a quiet street. You can make reservations by email from their website.

http://anas.worldonline.es/hmirentx/english/principal.htm

I vaguely remember some people talking about enjoying an Hostal Barbieri, at 14 euros north of Gran Via, but I can't vouch for it at all. Just check it out.

Some other suggestions........

Hostal Bao
Calle Espada, 6
Metro Tirso de Molina
Tel 91 369 18 96
Single room w/out bath 10 Euros

Hostal Conchita
Calle Preciados 33, (2nd floor)
Tel 91 522 49 23
Individual without bath 18 Euros
Individual with bath 24 Euros
Double with full bath 36 Euros
Metro Santo Domingo/ Callao

http://www.terra.es/personal7/hostalconchita/index.htm

Hostal Zabala
Calle Magdalena 21
Tel: 34 91 369 19 88
near Plaza Anton Martin (not very far from Plaza Mayor)
Single Room 18 Euros

Email: hostalzabala@wanadoo.es

Hostal La Bañezana
Calle La Cruz, 26
Tel: 91 521 75 95
Metro: Sol / Sevilla
Individual with bath 21 Euros.

I love Madrid and I´ve been there many times. Most of the times I was there I stayed in Barbieri Hostel. In fact I was one of the first travellers ever sleeping there. I´ve always had good experiences and I would recommend it to everybody. It´s cheap (€14), clean and 5 minutes from Gran Via. www.barbierihostel.com

One more thing to remember, Spain is in Europe so you can't compare South america to Europe as far as price. The economy in most of South America is "rocky" and that accounts for the stretch of your dollar.But Im staying at Los Amigos and Ive heard good things about it.www.losamigoshostel.com

thanks everyone!!
i booked into the los amigos place.