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Review 2673: Spain Select, Plaza Mayor

Recommended. Review by DebraG from CA

2bed/2bath apartment in Plaza Mayor, Madrid

When

April 1, 2007, One week

Location

The apartment was in a building overlooking the historic Plaza Mayor, built in the early 17th Century. Walking distance to absolutely everything -- Teatro Real, Palacio Real, the Prado, the Sofia Reina, Salamanca, Puerto del Sol and great shopping at Zara, H&M, Corte Ingles (with its huge supermarket in the basement).

Nearby Amenities

Within walking distance of several grocery stores and literally hundreds of restaurants, including the tapas-bar studded Cava Baja.

The House/Apartment

The apartment, up one flight of stairs, was absolutely stunning. The high-ceiling living room/dining room/study looked out onto the plaza from three french-door balconies. From that vantage point we watched the city come to life, the outdoor cafes filled with people drinking coffee, musicians, etc. It was lively, but quiet with the windows closed. The bedrooms overlooked a less noisy side street. While the apartment has lovely period details, such as high ceilings, wood floors and heavy wooden doors, all the furnishings and artwork were extremely modern and very tasteful. Walls were glazed a warm terracotta.

You can view the apartment directly: Plaza Mayor.

Note from SlowTrav: It cannot be determined if this is the same apartment as the other review we have for Plaza Mayor from Spain select, as this is two bedroom and the other is one bedroom. It is possible apartment names have changed since that earlier review.

Garden

While you could stand on the narrow balconies to take pictures, they weren't large enough for lounging.

Furnishings/Cleanliness/Living Areas

All the furniture was in excellent condition. Two white slip-covered sofas in the living room were extremely comfortable for reading or watching the plasma TV. A round marble dining table was surrounded by six modern chairs.

Bedrooms/Bathrooms

The beds were made up with brand new crisp linens and duvets. The master had a queen-size bed with modern lamps on either side and a state-of-the-art outfitted walk-in closet. The second bedroom had a single bed with a single pop-up bed that rolled out and suited our two teenage daughters perfectly. Full-length shutters closed out light and noise from windows.

Both bathrooms were spotless, with glass enclosed rain-spout type showers, designer toilets, heated towel bars and pedestal sinks. Mirrored medicine cablinets had plenty of room for toiletries.

Kitchen

Absolutely pristine kitchen, beautifully lit and outfitted with dishes and appliances. Dishwasher, washing machine and dryer. Excellent stove. Extra china and crystal in small utility room that contained iron, extra linens and towels.

Problems or Bonuses

My husband was thrilled to have wireless Internet connection, my teenage daughters loved the cable TV which allowed them to switch shows to English from Spanish. We all loved watching Semana Santa unfold in the Plaza below us as it was Easter week. On Saturday night before Easter, the plaza filled with thousands of people holding lighted candles and we could hear a service in Latin. Thrilling!

Agency and Representatives (and price)

Ben, from Spain Select, was fantastic. Spoke perfect English. Very thorough. The place was even better than the pictures showed. We paid €1610 for the week, during the month of April.

Do you recommend this vacation rental to others?

I'd absolutely recommend this to anyone who was thinking of booking a comparably priced hotel room. If you're traveling with a family and need two rooms in a nice hotel, this is a much better value.

Things to do in this area

We loved a tapas place called Kaixo Taberna, Calle Barcelona 12, . Also, Los Galoyos, Calle Botoneras 5, where we had delicious tapas one night, then a more formal lunch in the restaurant part the next day. Kids loved Emma y Julia, Cava Baja 19, for pizza. Fun disco in Puerto del Sol called Joy Eslava, Calle Arnal 11. But only for under-30s (we stood at a safe distance from our daughters.)

This review is the opinion of a Slow Travel member and not of slowtrav.com.

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