Just returned this morning from a pleasant 4 night stay in Madrid.
Before going i researched the hostals on various sites and decided upon Hostal Rivera mainly because of its location and the fact you do not have to leave credit card details up front.
I had a bit of apprehension regarding one post on this site stating that reservations are not worth the paper they are written on when it comes to this establishment, and a couple of copies of the email notifcations confirming bookings should be taken along,this i did since i did not want to end up on one of the bussiest weekends of the year in madrid without a bed for the night.
I was told i must get to the hostal by 2pm for my room to be kept,after a mad rush across madrid by metro due to my plane being 1 1/2 hours late i managed this with 10 mins to spare.
I rang the bell and was let in after climbing the stairs i was greeted by the elderly lady and her son who spoke little english to who i passed the email print out,i could tell something was wrong when i was left in the reception room for the next 15 mins with out a word of explanation,her son returned saying problem we have no room for you.I asked "how come" and got the reply "other people want to stay longer"
I booked the room 8 weeks prior to going to madrid knowing it was busy at this time of year and would have expected the room to have been kept for me,i can not comment on the standard of room since i did not get to see them,however the attitude and or professionalism is disgusting.
Apart from this the rest of the trip was very enjoyable,and i will return in september avoiding hostal rivera at all costs.