Abelay in Palma

Let's start with the positives: room service is prompt and efficient, the room and bathroom are spotlessly clean, the shower is super-powerful, and WiFi connection is good. The neighbourhood is quiet, and the hotel shares a street with a Mercadona supermarket. Now, the neutral: this is a budget hotel, so be under no illusions that your room will be a place to relax; it's a bed, a small desk, a wall-mounted TV, and literally nothing else, not even a bedside lamp. It is the epitome of basic. Finally, the negatives: if I'd known how far this hotel is from the historic centre, I'd have booked elsewhere- it really is 'up a side street'. The reception staff couldn't give me any information about bus numbers, and brushed off my question by saying 'It's not worth taking the bus.' They sell the location as 'a 30-minute walk from the cathedral' but I inevitably ended up getting lost and wandering for miles- so here's what reception won't tell you: - The EMT bus service is a tap-on system, and the 12, 20 and 24 run up the Carrer 31 Deciembre and Alfons Magnanim, where the nearest stop to the hotel is Creu Roja. In particular, the city-bound 20 stops closest to the cathedral, at Placa Joan Carles. As Palma has no tram or metro, this kind of indispensable information is what reception staff really need to be well-versed in, for travellers with limited mobility. Finally, because of the lack of carpeting (standard in Spain), there is no soundproofing in the hotel, meaning that you can clearly hear footsteps, conversations, bodily functions, and intimate moments in neighbouring rooms. Reading previous reviews, this has been an ongoing issue for years, which the hotel has yet to resolve. Purely because of its location, I wouldn't stay here again, but if you're on a serious budget, want to avoid the tourist masses, and are relatively fit, it's one option. However, I'm sure there are a few better ones.

Friendly staff and good cheap coffee at the bar. Nice location. However, the family room was tiny with very thin, paper-like walls. Extremely noisy—you can hear everyone around and the streetcars outside.

As a two star hotel, it kind of lives up to the expectations, but the bathroom had some rust here and there, the toilet seat was shaky, and the bed/mattress were horrible.

Plus sides: AC in the room, clean bedding, working blinds, soap/shampoo available, very centrally located and good staff.

Would come again only if nothing else is available, overall a good stay if you want to save up and have a good location.