I had an amazing time in Madrid!. The apartment is small but very sweet and comfortable. Maria and Jose are very nice and even though they live next door, they don't bother you but are there and accommodating if you have a question. The apartment is bright and cheery and had some cooking items, although I didn't cook in the apartment and was gone most of the time except at night. The shower is fabulous in this apartment. My only concern is the narrow winding stairs leading up to the second floor apartment. The stairs are steep and concrete. Despite wearing flats I slipped twice at the bottom and had some pretty nasty bruises because I think one of the stairs may be lower than the others. So I would caution people to be very very careful on the stairs particularly at the bottom and certainly don't climb the stairs with heels. There is no lift so if your luggage is heavy you will have to take them up these stairs, so you must keep that in mind. The refrigerator can get very noisy at night so I had to unplug it. I noticed in Spain, and maybe throughout Europe that people don't use washcloths for the face and I couldn't find any during my entire trip. This was kind of a bummer as I had to do without or use towels which then got wet and nasty.
I would recommend this apartment. It is very close to Retiro park, which is breathtaking and a site you can not miss if you go to Madrid. The apartment is quiet as well and is also five minutes from the Atocha station which I had to take to go to Sevilla. It is very convenient. Jose and Maria are very nice people and very friendly. The apartment also has central heating which took a bit to figure out, but it really makes the apartment nice and cozy. All in all, this apartment is great and I had a lovely time in Madrid staying here.