We just returned from our 2.5 week trip to Spain last thursday. We had an amazing time and Spain is wonderful. I have to give a thousand thanks out to everyone on this message board for all of your great advice on hostals. We loved every place we stayed and could'nt believe how nice the people were at the hostals. Here is a quick rundown of where we stayed.

Madrid we stayed at Hostal Tijcal . Perfect location right off of the Plaza Mayor. Very cute and clean. People were extremely nice and helpful and spoke english. I would highly recommend it and would stay there again in a heart beat.

In Toledo we stayed at Hotel Santa Isabel . Location was perfect. It is tucked away in the old part of town only a few blocks from the big cathedral. The people were very nice and the hotel was beautiful. It is rated as a two star hotel but it has just been redone on the inside and should be at least a three star. We had a double room and it ended up only costing us 45 euros per night. Toledo is beautiful and should be seen. Highly recommended.

In Bilboa we stayed at Hostal Begoña . Also a very nice place. Very nicely decorated, looks brand new. People are very friendly and eager help you. It also nicely located near the train station and city center. Highly recommended.

In San Sabastian we stayed at Hotel Niza . This was a little bit pricier than the others (about 70 euros for a double) but the price includes breakfast and the beach is right out the back door of the hotel. It walks out to an unbelievably beautiful beach. The rooms were very nice and clean with big clean bathrooms. Also highly recommended. San Sabastian was one of our favorite places.

In Barcelona we stayed at Hostal Levante which also has a great location right off of La Rambla. The people there were also pretty friendly and spoke english. We opted to pay the cheaper price and have rooms without bathrooms which was no problem at all because there was a bathroom right outside our door which was cleaned probably two or three times a day. The rooms were pretty bare bones but clean. We only stayed there one night but I would recommend it if you are looking for a pretty cheap, clean place with good location.

I would say that every place we stayed was a positive experience. I really can't think of a bad thing to say about these places except that the rooms were usually pretty small. To us, that made no difference at all. We enjoyed the quant little rooms. They had character and left us with positive memories.

I'm so glad this thread was just begun, as I just returned from 2 weeks in Sapin and Portugal and wanted to review the hostals I stayed in too. This message board was so helpful and I wanted to share my experince in return.

Barcelona: Hostal Gat Raval . We flew in here and made reservations through hostelworld.com/ It was VERY clean and the staff was EXREMELY helpful. Great location too in the Raval district close to Plaza Catalunya and La Rambla. High recommendation. We did a private double with a shared bath here for about 45 Euros a night. The bathrooms re very clean and there are many of them. Great English spoken here too.

Pamplona-We went for running of the bulls and booked well in advance at Hostal Bearan. Pamplona doesn't sleep this week and neither did we. It is very centrally located and located on top of a disco. We were just glad to have a bed. Met great folks there but bring earplugs... actually earplugs are a MUST no matter where you travel in Spain to insure quiet sleep. TRULY!

San Sebaastian- We also stayed at Hotel Niza and it was well worth it. We actually paid more (about 110 Euros for a double with two beds) But we got a penthouse beach view and it was phenonmenal! Yummy breakfast included, maids, laundry service, very helpful and right on the beach. I give my strong recommendation to splurge here! (also, eat many tapas in San Sebastain and to really spoil yourself get a 45 euro hour massage at a place near Hotel Niza called La Perla.. worth it!)

Madrid- Hostal Martin was a good accomodation. Coming from plaza Mayor at night is a littel dark at night... but don't neglect the area nearby Huerta for nightlife. Hostal Martin had AC which was good b/c Madrid was 35 degrees C- around 95 ish F. The bathrooms were renovated and you could come and go as you please 24 hours. The staff was very helpful. Important... they only accept cash even though they accept Credit card to reserve the room.

Seville- Hostal Atenas : Actually this could have been nice, but MAjor construction goign on. Our AC (yikes July in Seville) and phone didn't wrok b/c the construction. They gave a us a discount b/c we pressed the issue. Also, it is in an area that is wuiet and cute, but windy roads that made it tricky to find our way back. I wouldn't recommend this if you are a woman alone or if you like to wander home late at night without your senses.

Lagos, Portugal- Residencial Solar- This was fine, b/c we weren't in our rooms too much. But it had no Ac and our private bathroom constantly had a funny smell. We got stuck in Lagos by choice... what a great laid back beach town.

Lisbon, Portugal- Hostal Florescente. Extremely helpful staff that responds quickly to email. (you can do a serach on the web.. sorry don't have the email or website handy) Our room was on the street and noisy, but ask for an inside room and you should be good.

Hope this was helpful! -LMK

I agree with the above posting on Hostal Atenas in Seville. Major construction....I can't believe they had the nerve to rent out rooms during this time and NOT inform the customer ahead of time. COnstruction workers were tromping through as early as 8am in the morning, leaving mud tracks everywhere and no A/C!! Nosiy as heck and the street leading to it was blocked off for other construction down the street!!! Despite the cheap price and the biggest bathroom in any hotel that I've been at in Europe, I still would not recommend it unless they can prove that the construction is OVER!