UMusic Hotel Madrid — Hotel in Madrid

This is a good hotel, in a great location, with friendly staff, but marred by the worst smallest room I have ever stayed in in 50 years of 5 star hotels.

The hotel is owned/branded by Universal music. It is all a bit half hearted with a few posters on the walls but neither adds nor distracts from the experience.

Location is great - you can easily walk to most places.

Staff were helpful and friendly.

Our room, 222, was terrible. It contained a comfortable double bed and - that's it. There was a meter of space either side and at the base, so I would say the room was maybe 3.5m by 3m. I suspect that some prison cells are larger ( though, for the record, I have never stayed in a prison cell so could be wrong ). There was no chair or table or anything else really. They had tried to extend the window sill to make it into a sort of table but then filled this area with overflow spirits ( unwanted ) from the mini bar. There was a stool to perch on. Furthermore, the window was small, high up and recessed ( this was to avoid other rooms being able to peer in I think ). It is advertised as a "courtyard room". Do not think this means you are overlooking a courtyard. All you can see is a white wall, about 2 meters away. Nothing else. As a result, you could not actually see the sky. I have never stayed in a room which literally had no view. It was so dark that on a clear blue sky day ( allegedly ) you had to turn the lights on !

There was one small cupboard, which was half filled by more unwanted mini bar and a safe. There was no place to put any luggage, not even under the bed. We were only staying for a few nights so just had carry on luggage but if you were staying any longer, you would have no place to put your clothes or luggage. And don't even think of ironing anything as you can't hang things up, as there is no space anywhere to open up ironing board. There are no bathrobes ( probably as nowhere to put them ) so going to the pool is a little challenging ( and the only time we went there there was no space on any loungers on a not particularly busy Sunday afternoon ). The only surprise and delight feature was when I hit my head in the middle of the night on the protruding TV trying to get to the bathroom as there is not enough room to walk normally between the bed and the TV ( this was more surprise then delight... ). The bathroom is OK, containing a small ( of course ) bath and separate shower. The only mirror is in the bathroom ( no space in the bed room ) so you have to use a hair dryer in the bathroom. In some countries this is not allowed but I think it is in Spain. You get a free bottle of water, though this looks like type which is refilled on site.

There is no way this is a 5 Star hotel room. Not even close. On rechecking, the website actually says that the size is UP TO 18m2, so I guess their clever wording is accurate but not exactly helpful. And looking thru other reviews, I notice that others have complained and been moved to different rooms, but that is not the way I generally am, as it just means someone else gets the joy of staying in this room.

Elsewhere, there's a gym which can hold precisely 3 people. There's a running machine, a cross trainer and a small free weights area. No cold drinking water. Just ambient cartons.

Breakfast is the minimum a 5 star hotel could reasonably offer. No hot buffet ( though you get a choice of a hot breakfast dish ) and a small cold buffet ( no smoked salmon, fruit salad or berries, a choice of 3 cold cuts, no smoothies or healthy options other than bought in pots of yoghurt ). There is no coffee machine so one has to order a coffee. Of the 6 I ordered over the holiday, 3 came luke-warm.

So that's it. I suspect other rooms are larger and the lesson is that if you get room 222 ( and I suspect 333 or 444 ) you simply have to raise a fuss so that they move you. But the staff are nice, so I can understand why many won't want to. How the hotel justifies selling these rooms at the same tariff as the others is something others...

Utterly disappointing from the first moment we arrived. We booked for 3 nights. The bell service was understaffed and we had to help them empty our bags. Then, upon checking in late at night, the receptionist mentioned our room (Premium Room, queen bed) is small and we could pay extra (~300€) for a suite room. When we were shown to our “room”, it was actually a lower category room with a small double bed and not the Premium Room. Upon raising this issue with the receptionist, he suggested that the pictures and descriptions on Booking.com werent accurately representative of the room. So, we asked him to open the hotel’s own website and the room’s description matched that of Booking.com to the tee. We then made it clear we feel that our room was given to someone else because of our late check-in time (which, makes utterly no sense as we paid in full for the room already). Then, the receptionist suggested we stay in the smaller room for the night and an upgrade will be considered the next day; we have a fair amount of luggage (we’re on our honeymoon) and don’t want to move around, nor do we want the suggested suite— we hadn’t booked it in the first place because it has claustrophobic spiral stairs and we don’t prefer that. After an unnecesary back and forth, we were brought to a Premium Room (the room we had actually booked!) and were told we will be moved the next 2 days as the hotel is “fully booked”. Seeing that the receptionist mentioned he hasn’t the power to do anything further, we agreed to pursue the matter further the next day.

Our honeymoon has been quite dampened by this frankly surprising unprofessionalism for a 5 star hotel.

We take specific exception to: The lack of transparency of the receptionist, who attempted to make us pay for an “upgrade”; we had to continuously disprove his claims to reach a quasi acknowledgement of the issue. The unavailability of a supervisor to solve the problem. The lack of satisfying solutions and the suggestion that it’s on us to come up with solutions: we are guests and it isn’t our job description to do this.

This is 5 star hotel in Madrid, a capital city; but, the hotel has thus far not nearly acted the part. And, has really ruined our honeymoon visit to this city.

Will never recommend this hotel to anyone: unprofessional and...

Disappointing Stay – Not Worth the 5-Star Price

I had high hopes for this hotel, choosing it for my husband’s birthday trip. While the location in the Centro District is unbeatable and the breakfast experience—complete with live music—was truly five-star, the rest of our stay was frustratingly below standard.

Our first room (308) was unbearably noisy due to poor soundproofing. It felt like a street party was happening inside our room. While city noise is expected, a luxury hotel should have better window insulation or at least offer quiet-room options at check-in or earplugs.

To make matters worse, our shower fluctuated between scalding hot and freezing cold, and the room’s climate control was locked at 23°C—too warm, even for someone who is usually cold. The space was also uncomfortably small, barely accommodating two carry-ons.

Despite reporting the shower issue, it was never properly fixed. After three sleepless nights, we were finally moved to a quieter room (511), which was a relief, though still uncomfortably warm. However, we had to repack and move at 10 p.m. after a long day trip to Segovia—an inconvenience that could have been avoided with better service recovery.

I requested either a partial refund or dinner at the hotel restaurant as compensation, but neither was granted. Instead, we received brownie bites, 2 cocktail vouchers, and later, a bottle of cava and a pastry for my husband’s birthday—well-intentioned but inconsiderate, as we don’t drink much and my husband has dietary restrictions. A more personalised approach would have been appreciated.

I understand that issues arise, even in top-tier hotels, but it’s how they are resolved that defines the experience. Aside from the fantastic breakfast, the service and comfort did not match the hotel’s five-star rating or glowing reviews. Given the price paid and the issues endured, I believe a partial refund would be a fair resolution. @UMusic, I would appreciate being contacted to discuss...