Centrally located hostel with a good vibe, August 11, 2006
Reviewer:
Derek
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YO !!! Stayed here for one night in May while heading to Portugal. A well run hostel with very helpful and extremely friendly staff. They made you feel very welcome. The rooms were nice with huge lockers that could hold any backpack (except for one girl in the room that seemed to have packed half her house ! ) There was a really suave central area with a stained glass ceiling and a fountain. There was a nice sized bar and also a basement with free internet, and a dance floor that I passed the time on :) The location was great, very central to the main attractions. Was a little noisy in the afternoon as it's close to a busy street...but then again what was I doing trying to nap at 4 in the afternoon !Overall Cat's Hostel is a great place from which to enjoy Madrid's various activites.Munster this one !
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(Review ID: 5267)
All I hoped for, June 20, 2006
Reviewer:
shangrong
( shangrong@hotmail.com)
from Chicago, US
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good locationcleanbuilding with characterhelpful staffnice atmosphereI stayed in the hostel for the first two nights of my Spainish trip and choose to spend the last night there again after touring Spain before departure.
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(Review ID: 5268)
Staff maced and attacked guests, April 18, 2006
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Anonymous
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The hostel was run like a police state by the night time employees. They would listen outside doors at night - they were seriously looking for trouble. One night while standing outside with friends smoking we heard a scuffle and some guys pulled out two male guests who were involved. They said they were being attacked and walked away down the street without their belongings or anything. When they were almost around the corner, the hostel staff chased down the street and sucker punched one and maced the other. They proceeded to mace both of them again and kept punching them violently.Besides the violent staff the showers were so hot they actually burned me - a first in my life.
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(Review ID: 5269)
Yuck!, November 26, 2005
Reviewer:
Nicole
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One of the worst hostels I've stayed in! I was there in Feb 2005 so it was winter and it had freezing showers! Not nice at all... The rooms were overheated at night and as the dorms are arranged around a centre common area it was really noisy all the time even when u are trying to sleep at 2am! It seemed grubby as well, there was some rubbish in our dorm and it stayed there for 4 days! Also a few of us got itchy rashes there - not sure if it was the bedding or the gross couches in the common area. Aside from all that, it had cheap drinks in the stuffy, smokey basement bar/internet room. Breakfast was a lousy croissant and a cup of OJ or coffee. Good points - secure and friendly helpful staff.
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(Review ID: 5270)
good as any, November 3, 2005
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Anonymous
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(3)
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friendly staff, and a very aesthetically pleasing hostel. but the bathrooms really bought it down. what´s with the "please don´t flush toilet paper, use waste paper baskets instead". i live in spain, and have travelled all over the country and have never had a problem with flushing toilet paper down the toilet! and also there is some mysterious building next door (we decided it was a printing press) that makes a horrendous noise ALL night therefore making sure you cant sleep. and the rooms are too packed, if they took out one bunk from each room, it would be much more comfortable.but apart from those gripes, its not bad for a Spanish hostel and its nicely priced.. hope that helps
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(Review ID: 5271)
Social Hostel thats clean and safe, August 11, 2005
Reviewer:
Mel
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I stayed at Cat's in July 2005 and thought it was great. One of the cleanest and safest hostels I have stayed in. Its in a pretty good location although the directions on how to get there from the website aren't great (you need to head left out of antonio metro and about 250m down the road the hostel is in a street on the left). They give you a wrist watch/buzzer things which gets you into the main door, your room and your locker and is really safe. The room doors can be a little difficult to open and thus in the middme of the night you might wake up to some drunk person struggling to open the door to your room (try to get a bed away from the door). The hostel is a really good place to meet other people and the bar has cheap drinks (1L of beer for 2.5 euro) with free paella or pizza on most nights. Although the bar closes at 12am the guys who work there are good at taking you somewhere nearby to continue the night. There is a great courtyard place where you can sit and relax or meet other travellers plus free internet downstairs is a good bonus.The only downside to this hostel would be 1; the fact that there is no curfew could be good but if you want to sleep maybe not so good as people in your room will come in at all hours and 2; no place to hang you stuff in the box like showers...although its a hostel so what can you expect.Overall a great place to stay and the best hostel I stayed at in Spain!!
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(Review ID: 5272)
Great hostel, very safe and close to main attractions., June 8, 2005
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Anonymous
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(5)
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I was there on December 2004. I stayed for 4-5 days.The location is great, close to plaza mayor and plaza del Sol.It is also close to internet caffes, shopping centres, transport and the tourist office located in the plaza mayor.The location is great for a single female traveller. I was able to go out at night and walk around without any problems.It is great for meeting people, it is quiet compared to other hostels. I had previously stayed in other hostels.The lockers were inside the dorms and they were quite big, that was great for me because of all the things I was carrying with me.It was safe and the breakfast was alright though not the best.I was happy with the dorms, they didn't try to put me in a mixed one like they did in Italy even though I had requested a female dorm there!The showers were ok and they were clean with large mirrors a great bonus. heheI would definetely recommend it it is a clean and safe hostel.
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(Review ID: 5273)
My Favorite Hostel Ever, April 1, 2005
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It's not perfect, but it's a great hostel. It actually qualifies as "beautiful"! Rooms are PACKED, but that's actually great because it forces people to hang out elsewhere. Showers are a bit lame--lukewarm, buttons that need to be pressed, and nowhere to hang your stuff. Friendly and helpful employees and a decent breakfast. Free internet. Excellent courtyard for hanging out (until midnight). Mostly fairly quiet until free paella night kept the basement bar open until 4:00 a.m. Great location near Atocha, Santa Ana, Plaza Mayor, etc. I didn't get enough sleep, but I will certainly stay there every time I am in Madrid.
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(Review ID: 5274)
Heaven after the shithole we were in first, December 20, 2004
Reviewer:
noo222
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Unfortunately we stayed our first 2 nights in an appalling "hostel" in Madrid before finding Cats (hostel Amandes found on hostelworld - STAY AWAY - filth). Even without the comparisons though Cats Hostel is very nice. Great decoration, clean rooms with lockers. Bathrooms were a bit annoying as you had to leave your stuff outside the showers and they were those stupid timed button things. Breakfast was decent sized croissant and coffee. They let us put some yoghurt in the bar fridge even though there is no kitchen. Washing machine and dryer, underground bar with free paella on our first night. Also very close to excellent vegetarian restaurant (if you are sick of the jambon).
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(Review ID: 5275)
clean, secure, good atmosphere, September 29, 2004
Reviewer:
moonstorm
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After staying in 10 hostels in the last 2 months I can say this was definitely one of the best. It's in a beautiful old building (where else will you find a hostel with a marble courtyard, fountain and potted flowers??), right in the heart of downtown Madrid, a 10-15 minute walk from Atocha station. The security is very good - you need your magnetic keycard-thingy to get in past the reception, then the same card for your room and locker (admittedly figuring out how to open the room and locker can be a pain, though). A typically small Latin-Europe breakfast (croissant, juice and coffee - although I noticed someone ask for cereal too) is included in the price. The staff is friendly and helpful, there's a full bar, and even a club downstairs - great for solo female travellers who don't want to walk around at night looking for a place to hang out.Some of the downsides: the rooms are very small and they really pack in the beds; on the other hand, the lockers are large enough for most people's backpacks. (Not mine, but mine is enormous.) The shower I had was lukewarm, and there was nowhere to hang clothing or towel in the tiny stall. Free internet is advertised, but not yet available (they opened 2 months ago and don't have computers yet). Some people might find the breakfast pretty meagre. But overall, I'd say for the price of 15 euros, it's a great place to stay!
