First, let me talk about Ana. She's terrific! While she was out of town when I arrived, she made certain someone was there to greet me and open the apartment. And when when she returned, she immediately looked me to make sure I was comfortable and happy. And when I decided to shorten my stay in Madrid, she readily agreed to revise the AirBnb contract so I could get a refund. I also had two issues with the apartment, a problem with the fold-out couch, and a problem with street noise. Ana took steps immediately to fix both. She replaced the fold-out bed mechanism during my stay. And she tells me she is replacing the window to the street with Climalit thermal double-paned glass to address street noise.

Second, Ana's apartment: Location, location, location! If you are a tourist wanting to see key Madrid sites, or even a business traveler, I can't imagine finding a better-situated place in central Madrid. A brief walk to the Atocha train station, a metro stop just around the corner, a very easy walk to Plaza Mayor, Sol, and all major museums. And a density of bars and restaurants and small fruit markets and other shops like I've never seen, even after 18 months in France. You won't do better.

You need to realize the flat is very small, not untypical for a one-person studio in Europe, or even for a couple. The main issue I encountered was street noise, which regularly carried into the early morning hours. Another review commented on this, but said it was not an issue for him. It did bother me, but Ana was very understanding. She has informed me that she plans to install the above-mentioned insulated window to the street, which should readily solve the problem. I had the same problem in my long-term apartment in France, and thermal windows fixed it easily.

In short, once Ana has the new window installed, I think a single person or couple could not do better than her little studio for short to medium-term stays in Madrid.