AC Hotel by Marriott Madrid Airport

"Over the last month, I have stayed at this property on two separate occasions, and regrettably, I must state that the condition of this hotel is catastrophic and far below the standards I have come to expect from Marriott and the AC Hotels brand. I am a Marriott Gold member familiar with AC brand all over the world. From the moment of arrival, the deterioration of the property is evident. The driveway and entrance area were filled with trash and hundreds of cigarette butts, creating a highly neglected and unpleasant first impression. The exterior façade appears severely worn, aged, and poorly maintained, with visibly deteriorated walls and old paint. Unfortunately, the situation inside the hotel was equally concerning. There were visible cobwebs throughout the premises, including underneath the reception desk furniture — something completely unacceptable for a Marriott-branded property and indicative of a serious lack of housekeeping and maintenance standards. The restaurant and dining facilities were also disappointing. The furniture arrangement is impractical, with lounge-style chairs that are excessively low and uncomfortable for dining. More concerning, after arriving from a 10-hour international journey, we discovered that the kitchen was closed at 7 pm, leaving us with no possibility of having a hot meal at the hotel. At no point was this limitation clearly disclosed in the Marriott App or in the hotel information provided prior to arrival. It is simply unacceptable for an airport hotel to leave guests without access to dinner service after long-haul travel, forcing them to travel approximately 6 kilometers to a shopping mall in search of food and incur an additional €30 transportation expense. To make matters worse, during our stay both elevators became inoperative, leaving guests with no practical way to transport luggage to their rooms. Additionally, the soundproofing of the guest room windows appears to be severely deteriorated. The seals no longer function properly, resulting in excessive noise intrusion from neighboring rooms and the nearby highway, significantly affecting sleep quality and guest comfort. In summary, this property appears to be in a state of severe deterioration and is dramatically below the standards associated with Marriott and AC Hotels. I have stayed at multiple AC Hotels in different locations, and this property falls substantially below any reasonable brand expectation."

"I wish I had seen some of these reviews before booking. I would have looked elsewhere. Our experience was consistent with several of the negative observations made by others. 1. Poor location - surrounded by abandoned buildings with squatters and heaps (Truckloads) of garbage everywhere. Had to walk past to get to nearby hotel restaurant for dinner. 2. Restaurant only open for limited dinner after 8pm because "Spaniards eat late" quoted by the not so friendly customer service person at check in. Well, we stayed in the city in Madrid 2 weeks prior and had no problem eating before 8pm. And, the vast majority of the guests we saw at night while having a drink (server unfriendly) and in the morning were Americans, with a few Germans mixed in. Not a single Spaniard. The hotel does not care about or cater to its audience. 3. Most lights in the room did not work. Upon troubleshooting the lights by the bed, I noted that both light bulbs had been unscrewed. The only other lamp in the room on the desk was unplugged. Definitely seemed to be a "cost control measure". 4. Aircon was binary - either on and very cold or we had to turn it off. changing the temperature on the thermostat did nothing. 5. I have status, although not as much as I used to, but regardless, they put us in a room at the end of the hall, the emergency exit door was open with the housekeeping staff room right on the other side of the wall from our room (We could hear the person banging around in there). What was worse was that the hallway there had not been maintained in decades - beaten up, filthy, rusted metal..."

"I generally like AC Hotels as they are practical, clean and no nonsense business style hotels across Spain (and now beyond in other countries) and I have stayed in many and enjoy them. The AC Hotel at the Madrid Airport however harmed the brand and Marriott (in my view). Forget the rather grotty industrial location about 8 KM from Madrid Airport and overlook the rather gruff, approach to service by the front desk (all older male) and look at the offering and service. There is a shuttle bus but confusing if you are arriving at the airport but OK if you are heading to the airport. The restaurant was basic and lacked any style or service and what totally let them down was the Euro 4 per day to store luggage until the next stay. The hotel was booked because we wanted to leave luggage. There was a lack of service even to someone up in the higher levels of the Bonvoy tier. Marriott seem to be losing control of their franchises and this one did not help their image. The baggage storage charge (not stated anywhere on their web site} caused us to change the return booking in Madrid avoiding the AC Airport Hotel and cancelling the reservation. I doubt they really cared."