The flat was fine and as pictured, but there were a few things that weren't great about the space in general.
Firstly, when you walk in the door there's a laminated list of 'warnings' with amounts you'll be fined for various things, such as if you accidentally lock yourself out (100 euros) or if you get make-up on one of the towels etc. This didn't create a great feeling, especially considering we felt the price of this Airbnb was expensive as it was.
Secondly, though the photos are accurate, the description of the space where it says "this flat has an abundance of natural light" is inaccurate. It's a ground floor apartment with a front door opening directly onto the street and barred windows. The back apartment windows open onto an inner courtyard of other apartments. Being on the ground floor and between higher up apartments means there's not much light, and the situation means when you open the windows you don't have much privacy. However, the windows are frosted which is good for privacy but means less natural light.
Thirdly, there's a street light right outside the front door which lights up the whole apartment during the night. There's a curtain on the door, but the light easily seeps around the edges and you can clearly see the room at night as a result. If you can easily sleep with light, then it might not bother you but we found it made it difficult to get to sleep.
Lastly, we felt the value wasn't great. Madrid is an expensive place to stay but even so we felt the value wasn't good considering the apartment isn't in a particularly desirable area and given the points above. We paid £108/night in October. The apartment isn't really suitable for long stays (we stayed 12 nights) and for a weekend stay there are better value hotels in more desirable areas if you're just visiting Madrid for a few nights and don't need a kitchen/bigger space. The TV also didn't include Netflix which we felt was fairly ridiculous considering the nightly price. Netflix had been included in all other Airbnbs we stayed at in Spain during our 3 month trip.
Things that were good at about the apartment:
- The hosts were responsive and kindly brought us a stovetop coffee pot when we asked.
- The apartment is very close to Embajadores metro (about 20 metres away). This makes getting around Madrid quick and easy.
- The apartment was quiet at night. It's close to the big roundabout but it's on a side street and we rarely heard traffic noise with the exception of an off ambulance.
- The apartment had high ceilings which at least made it feel less claustrophobic.
- Though the apartment isn't in a particularly exciting area, it is within 10 mins walk of Lavapies.
- There's a good bakery next door (average branding but very good quality bread) and a nice and friendly cafe/wine/beer place just a few doors down. Dia and Lidl are within easy walking distance.
- The wifi speed was good and we had no problems with it.