New and forthcoming hotels in the Spanish capital are providing exciting options for your stay.
Welcoming a record 83.5 million visitors in 2019, Spain retained its place as the second most-popular destination in the world before the Covid-19 pandemic – beaten by France (90 million) but well ahead of the US (79.3 million).
Beachside Barcelona long reigned as the top choice for a city break in the country, with a selection of hotels, and pipeline of new properties, to match. But the last few years has seen a shift in focus to Madrid, with the Spanish capital experiencing a flood of development that has transformed what is on offer in the city.
As both domestic and international travel continue to recover, there is an impressive list of new hotels and exciting renovations to explore, including by major international brands such as Rosewood, Four Seasons, Mandarin Oriental and Edition Hotels. We take a look at a selection of noteworthy recent arrivals and upcoming openings.
NEW
Hotel Indigo Madrid Princesa
Just before lockdowns brought most travel to a halt in March 2020, IHG Hotels and Resorts opened its second Hotel Indigo in Madrid. Joining its sibling on Gran Via, Hotel Indigo Madrid Princesa has 101 rooms, which take inspiration from the nearby Parque del Oeste for their design, with gold and red hues for autumn, while green and blue signal spring. The open plan lobby includes farm-to-table restaurant Best Kitchen and Bar, serving ‘Spanish cuisine with a modern twist’ throughout the day.
Nearly two decades after the first Hotel Indigo opened in Atlanta, the brand now has more than 100 hotels worldwide, with another 100 in the pipeline – recent openings range from Milan and New York to Stratford-upon-Avon and Chester in England.
Room Mate Macarena Madrid
Virtually next door to Hotel Indigo Gran Via, the fifth property in Madrid from hotelier Kike Sarasola opened in July 2020: Room Mate Macarena. The 130-room hotel has been given bold interiors by designer Tomas Alia: walls painted rich blue, wooden lattice panels above the beds, and bathrooms with bright red and orange tiling.
Green is the colour of choice on the ninth floor, which houses both the lobby and breakfast restaurant, and has two outdoor terraces. There is a sun deck, swimming pool, and cocktail bar as well.
Four Seasons Madrid
It took eight years and more than €500 million to restore and redevelop the seven buildings that make up Centro Canalejas Madrid, a mixed-use complex combining the first Four Seasons hotel in Spain with serviced residences and high-end commercial space. Opened in September 2020, the hotel lobby is inside what once was the banking hall of the Banco Espanol de Credito. A number of the 200 rooms and suites feature private terraces, while the lavish 400 sqm one-bedroom Royal Suite incorporates the ‘Conversation Room’ of the late 19th century Madrid Casino.
Food and beverage options include chef Dani Garcia’s eponymous all-day restaurant Dani, located on the hotel’s top floor. Gastrobar Isa serves Asian-inspired tapas. There is also El Patio for lighter fare, including pastries and cakes combining Spanish flavours with a traditional British afternoon tea, served between 3pm and 6pm.
The spa features a range of therapy rooms providing skin, hair and wellness treatments, and an eighth-floor, glass-roofed indoor pool with outdoor terrace and bar.
A second Spanish hotel will follow next year in the Balearics: the 1929 Hotel Formentor Mallorca, in the far north-east of the popular island, is undergoing a renovation and will reopen in 2023 as Four Seasons Mallorca. The Canadian group is also developing a resort in the southern Italian region of Puglia.
Innside by Melia Madrid Gran Via
A conversion from an existing hotel in a building dating back to 1923, this 117-room hotel by the Spanish Melia group opened in early 2021. Rooms are dressed in neutral greys and whites, while work by local artists is displayed through a partnership with the Madrid Street Art Project. The lobby is on the seventh floor and there is a rooftop bar. Restaurant A’Ollo serves Galician food.
Melia is working on a second Innside hotel in the north of the city. Innside Madrid Valdebebas will be a short distance from Barajas airport and the IFEMA exhibition centre. Its 273 rooms and suites will form part of a new development including a private hospital, with among the planned facilities a bar and restaurant, gym, and rooftop pool.
Mandarin Oriental Ritz Madrid
Dating back to 1910, the city’s Ritz hotel – the first steel-framed building in Spain – reopened just over a year ago under the Mandarin Oriental flag. Spanish architect Rafael de La-Hoz oversaw a multi-year renovation; the 100 rooms and 53 suites are by Gilles and Boissier, and include a number of new suites located in the turrets of the Belle Epoque building.
The hotel’s Palm Court is set under a glass-domed ceiling, serving food throughout the day as well as afternoon tea. There is a signature restaurant – Deessa – by chef Quique Dacosta, bar Picture, a dedicated Champagne Bar, as well as a garden for alfresco drinks and dining. A spa comes with treatment rooms, indoor pool and gym.
Mandarin Oriental plans to add to its 11 European hotels over the coming years with openings in Zurich (the redevelopment of the Savoy Baur en Ville hotel, dating back to 1838), Lucerne (inside the 1906 Palace Hotel on the lake), Vienna (inside a former commercial law court) and a brand-new resort in Greece, part of the Costa Navarino master development.
Atocha Hotel Madrid, Tapestry Collection by Hilton
In June 2021, Madrid saw the European debut of Hilton’s Tapestry Collection of independent upscale hotels, in the form of the 46-room Atocha Hotel. Taking its inspiration from esparto – or atocha – grass weaving, a technique from southern Spain used for basketry, there is rattan furniture in the rooms. Its ‘five feet to fitness’ room includes an exercise bike, training bar with pull-up grips, yoga mat and medicine balls. Restaurant Atocha 107 offers breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Eight months earlier, in late 2020, Hilton introduced its Hampton by Hilton brand to the Alcobendas area in the north of Madrid, with a 138-room hotel in a business area near Barajas airport. Since its arrival in Spain, Tapestry has added two hotels in Paris and a hotel in Porto. An opening in Rome is planned for this summer.
Canopy by Hilton Madrid Castellana
Hilton has continued with cutting the ribbon on Canopy by Hilton Madrid Castellana, as the fourth European outpost of its lifestyle brand – following Reykjavik, Zagreb, and Paris (a fifth hotel in London has since opened). In the city’s financial district, red is the accent colour in the 314 rooms, the all-day restaurant and lobby, and more prominently outside on the mezzanine at Planta Z Food Truck and Terrace, where street food-style dishes are served. There is also an outdoor pool. Next up for Canopy is Venice, where it is working on a hotel in the city’s Cannaregio area, inside a series of buildings previously part of the Venetian Botanical Gardens.
Hard Rock Hotel Madrid
More than 70 pieces of music memorabilia – from jeans worn by Elvis Presley to a pair of David Bowie platform boots – can be found at the new Hard Rock Hotel Madrid, which opened last summer opposite the Reina Sofia Museum.
A ‘dramatic architectural hanging guitar sculpture’ soars over the lobby, there is a rooftop bar with city views, and a signature restaurant overlooking the garden. You can ask for a Fender electric guitar to be delivered to one of the 161 rooms and suites, or have a yoga session with a DJ-curated soundtrack via the in-room TV.
This summer, the group will convert a 384-room Costa del Sol property in Puerto Banus into its fourth Hard Rock Hotel in Spain. Existing hotels can be found on Ibiza and Tenerife.
Rosewood Villa Magna
Rosewood opened its fourth European property and first in Spain in October last year, following a complete redevelopment of the 1972 Villa Magna hotel, on Paseo de la Castellana in the Salamanca district.
Interiors are by Australian firm BAR Studio, with 154 rooms and suites ranging from entry-level Deluxe Rooms to the two-bedroom Anglada House, with private rooftop terrace. The contemporary design mixes light wood with bold black-and-white herringbone pattern floors; white walls are punctured by sections in warm green and deep orange.
There are multiple F&B outlets, including signature restaurant Amos by chef Jesus Sanchez. A Sense Spa features a fitness centre and hammam.
Over the next few years, another seven European Rosewood hotels are to come, with two in Italy (Rome and Porto Cervo, Sardinia), as well as properties in Amsterdam, Munich and Vienna. In 2024, the group will open The Chancery Rosewood, its second London hotel, inside the Eero Saarinen-designed former US Embassy in Mayfair.
Bless Hotel Madrid
Only a few blocks away, Bless Hotel Madrid emerged from a renovation in November with 111 fresh rooms by designer Lazaro Rosa-Violan. They range from Deluxe rooms to suites such as ‘Bless Your Instincts’ and ‘Bless Your Couture’. The latter suite comes with a whirlpool bath on its outdoor terrace.
Lounge bar and restaurant Versus features live music and serves food all day; there is also an outpost of Japanese fusion restaurant Salvaje. Other facilities include a spa, an outdoor rooftop pool with terrace, as well as a bowling alley. A second Bless hotel can be found on Ibiza.
Radisson Blu Prado Madrid
Another complete renovation wrapped up late 2021 at Radisson Blu Prado, in Barrio de Las Letras. Shades of blue and teal dominate inside the early 20th century building, which houses just under 60 rooms. There is all-day dining restaurant Lona, offering Spanish-Asian fusion cuisine; its terrace in the middle of the Plaza de la Plateria de Martinez has views of the Prado Museum across the boulevard.
The spa has a hydro-massage pool, rain-effect showers and a hammam.
Meanwhile, a European flagship for Radisson RED – its casual lifestyle offshoot – is in the works for Madrid. Details are to follow, but the current plan is that it will have 200 rooms.
Santo Mauro Madrid
Once the home of the Duke of Santo Mauro, this 18th century villa in Chamberi joined Marriott’s Luxury Collection following a revamp at the end of last year. There are 39 rooms and 10 suites by designer Lorenzo Castillo, each styled differently with intricate patterned wallpapers. In the hotel’s Royal Suite, which incorporates the Duke’s original bedroom, there is green velvet wallpaper instead.
There is an all-day Spanish restaurant in what was the home’s library, a wine bar, and extensive gardens. A second phase of renovations, starting this summer, will add a new spa, fitness centre, and event space.
The Madrid Edition
Just over three years after its debut in Spain with The Barcelona Edition, the collaboration between Marriott International and Ian Schrager continues with this 200-room hotel on Plaza de la Descalzas. Opened ‘in preview’ at the end of February, there are 167 rooms and 23 suites. Two duplex penthouses are on the fourth and top floor of the hotel, with the Madrid Penthouse offering a private outdoor pool.
Their design takes the brand’s restrained colour palette and leans even further to monochrome with pale floors and a mix of whites and creams. Headboards draw on the 18th century Baroque portal – salvaged from an adjacent building – that is part of the entrance to Jeronimo, one of two signature restaurants. Its four distinct areas include a lounge area with a green marble bar and a casual space where white marble tables contrast with hot pink, magenta, orange and greenery.
The fourth-floor rooftop has a large outdoor pool and restaurant Oroya, with a tapas menu by Peruvian chef Diego Munoz – available both indoors in a greenhouse-type structure and outside on the terrace. As in other Edition hotels, there is a Punch Room, which serves cocktails along with a menu of ‘contemporary Asian bites’.
The opening in Madrid comes on the back of the long-awaited completion of The Reykjavik Edition. Another hotel will open in Rome later this year. Expansion elsewhere includes Tampa in the US, Riviera Maya in Mexico, Tokyo, and Doha.
Pestana CR7 Gran Vía Madrid
The fifth hotel from Portuguese group Pestana and footballer Cristiano Ronaldo opened last June.
There is a total of 168 rooms in very different categories. Entry-level ‘cabins’ draw on the tiny living trend, at just 9 sqm. Standard rooms double that footprint, while The Fantastic 7 Room comprises three connected rooms and sleeps up to seven people. On the ninth floor there is a sports bar, pizzeria and rooftop with pool and 360-degree views.
The Madrid hotel further builds the brand’s presence outside Portugal, which includes Pestana CR7 Times Square and Pestana CR7 Marrakech.
COMING SOON
Thompson Madrid
A first for Europe this summer will be the arrival in the Spanish capital of Thompson Hotels, part of Hyatt’s portfolio of brands with 14 properties in the US and three in Mexico. On Plaza del Carmen, its 175 rooms and suites will feature mid-century design.
Food and drink venues will be managed by Grupo La Ancha and will include a speakeasy bar as well as a rooftop terrace and pool ‘styled as a hilltop residential inspired cantina and destination day club’. Thompson Madrid joins the existing Hyatt Centric Gran Via and Hyatt Regency Hesperia.
Zleep Madrid Airport
In early August, Zleep Hotels – part of Deutsche Hospitality – will open its first property outside of Denmark and Germany at Madrid’s Barajas airport. It will be the limited-service brand’s largest hotel to date with 281 rooms and eight long-stay apartments (dubbed ‘Zleep Living Rooms’), as well as a lounge and breakfast area. The focus is on high-quality beds and simple, Scandinavian design at affordable prices.
Other brands by Deutsche Hospitality, which operates over 130 hotels, include Steigenberger Hotels and the music-inspired Jaz in the City. Additional Zleep hotels are coming to a number of destinations in Denmark and Germany, as well as Zurich, Lausanne, and Prague.
JW Marriott Madrid
In addition to Santo Mauro under its Luxury Collection brand, Marriott International will open a JW Marriott hotel on Plaza de Canalejas, across the street from Four Seasons. The first JW Marriott in Spain – and fifth in Europe – it will have 139 rooms and suites with interiors by the Rockwell Group, mixing contemporary design and muted colours with historic features of the building. Two floors of the hotel will offer suites with outdoor terraces; there will be a restaurant, bar, and ‘wellbeing spaces’. Opening is tentative for this year.
Brach Madrid
Evok Collection, a small French group with four hotels in Paris and three luxurious private chalets in Courchevel 1850, is branching out to Italy and Spain with a number of new openings. Having worked with Philippe Starck on Brach Paris – inside a former postal sorting centre in the 16th arrondissement – it will work with the designer on Brach properties in both Madrid and Rome.
Details of the Madrid property, inside a former office building on Gran Via, are still to be released, but like its Paris and Rome counterparts it will have a fitness club with pool. Opening is next year.
El Metropol Madrid, Curio Collection by Hilton
Another addition in the Hilton portfolio in Madrid will be El Metropol, a 93-room hotel on Gran Via that will join Curio Collection when it opens. Details are scarce and an opening date is yet to be announced, but facilities will include a rooftop bar. Existing Curio hotels are in Barcelona, Alicante, and Malaga.
Words: Paul J Devries
