To be honest, I’m not a big fan of Salamanca which I think is Madrid’s equivalent to somewhere like Kensington in London. The principal streets, Calle Serrano and Calle Goya, have some of the most expensive real estate in Spain and the side streets are crammed with pricey shops and boutiques. As you might expect, its toffee-nosed inhabitants aren’t generally known for their friendliness and the over-priced restaurants leave me cold (see my post on Posh Restaurants in Goya).
Much better I think to walk fifteen minutes or catch the metro to Chueca, in the old town, which is more down-to-earth, and being the LGBT area, a lot more fun, as well as having heaps of good restaurants and interesting shops.
On the more positive side, I have got to know Salamanca (and especially Goya ward, the forty blocks around the Hotel Catalonia Goya) quite well over the years and will concede that there are some okay places, and every year I go there’s always somewhere new to check out.
So with my colleagues in mind, my post on eating cheaply in Salamanca is here, the one on tapas bars is here and posh restaurants are here. The general Barrio Salamanca link is here.
My Google map for the whole of Madrid is here.
Here are some more redeeming features…
Hotel Centro Catalonia, 49 Calle Goya, Tel. 917 814 949, www.hoteles-catalonia.com
The Centro is one of my favourite work hotels, although it is starting to become a bit faded and worn. The front desk staff are friendly and efficient (Miguel is the man) although the restaurant workers can be overstretched at times. It has stylish suites (except for some dated modernist artwork), comfortable beds, great walk-in showers (only in the rooms at the front) and free wi-fi (much improved in strength as of 2014 due to a feedback campaign by my colleagues).
The breakfast buffet is fairly comprehensive; cereals, fresh bread, lots of ham and cheese choices, fresh pineapple, kiwi, melon etc and the chefs will cook you a fresh omelette if you ask. The coffee situation has gone downhill however. Once you could get a proper cup made for you but now it’s a choice of the filter stuff or queuing at the machine which is often on the blink.
Minibar prices on water, beer, snacks etc are extortionate just as they are in all hotels, but there’s a Carrefour around the corner (turn left out of the hotel and left again and it’s on the right) which is open till 10pm, although don’t forget to support the small grocers shop over the road on the corner if it’s open.
Transport connections are great with a taxi rank and the entrance to Velasquez metro station right outside the hotel’s front door, so you can hightail it into town for some better action in next to no time.
When you’re arriving at the hotel by taxi, the landmark to watch out for is the white church, La Basilica de la Concepcion de Nuestra Senora, immediately opposite.
If hotel room picnics are your thing, or you just like walking around markets, you should definitely check out the Mercado de La Paz, only about four blocks away from the Hotel Centro at 28 Calle Ayala. Read more about it and other food shops in my Barrio Salamanca – Food Shopping post here.