Sandra's apartment is the perfect place to explore Madrid, especially if you enjoy art. It is an easy walk from Atocha station, and also the Reina Sofia museum. It's also close to the Prado and the Thyssen museums. Metro stations Lavapies and Embajadores are each just a couple blocks away, but the historic center is also close enough for a reasonable walk to Plaza Mayor, Mercado San Miguel, Puerto del Sol.
Sandra herself is extremely helpful, kind, and reliable, and did some research for us before we came to ensure we had suggestions on where to go for local art. She also arranged a cab that showed up exactly as promised to get us back to the airport. She is a gem.
The apartment is spacious, comfortably furnished, and the nice kitchen is well equipped with everything you need to prepare a meal or snacks, including pots and pans, dishes, utensils, knives, drinking glasses, tools like wine opener, knives, toaster, coffee maker with some coffee pods supplied. It contains a nice iron if you need it, and many other needs.
The bedroom is comfortable and the bathroom is just right. We loved the design and furniture. Heating units in each room are brand new and work well. The apartment was never too cold or too hot.
The area around offers many nice amenities. There are three full grocery stores including a new Carrefour that is open 24 hours 7 days a week, plus smaller locally-owned markets, and the Mercado San Francisco which has many local food stalls. Just a few doors up the street is the fantastic wine bar La Finsas, where friendly proprieter Inaky pours great wines and offers some good tapas and cheese plates for a snack. Also nearby are three great breakfast or lunch options, including Cafelito, Pum Pum, and Carmen. Around the corner is a bar with food and some great art, Juan Raro.
It is a very art friendly neighborhood. We found the atelier of a great young designer about four blocks up the street, called Wanderer, featuring the beautiful and ingenious bags designed by Daniel Chang who lives nearby and builds his creations in the workshop open to the shop full of his own and other beautiful designs. There are galleries nearby on all streets--definitely check out Swinton & Grant on Calle Miguel Servet, which is also a coffee house, bar, and bookstore with an extensive gallery downstairs plus local art on the first floor.
To me this was just about the most perfect AirBnB experience we've had, so I highly recommend it.