We enjoyed every minute of our stay! The house was immaculate, and there was plenty of room for our family to enjoy at the end of each long day of being tourists. We were welcomed by Javier, and found in the spacious kitchen a number of very kind welcoming foods--coffee, milk, sugar, and beer and wine in the fridge. That kind of thoughtfulness was amazing! There were generous supplies in all bathrooms, from fluffy white towels to shampoo. The apartment, apart from it being in a wonderful, central area, was very spacious. A huge living room had hardwood flooring and 3 sets of french doors to balconies. There was a formal dining room plus an informal eating area in the large kitchen. The kitchen was great, with ample counter tops and tons of glassware, plates, bowls, cups, wine glasses. There was also a laundry room and half bath downstairs. The bedrooms-a huge one has a double bed and 2 twins--were all of good size, and the bathrooms were very nice. As I said, everything was so clean and well thought out. Our apartment was near the Prado, Reina Sofia and several parks, all an easy walk. We loved walking to Plaza Santa Ana for lunch, dinner and drinks. There are many restaurants there from which to choose and the people watching is great. We liked the restaurant Lateral. Another fantastic restaurant down the street from the apartment was Vinoteca Moratin. My spelling may be off, but this is a great restaurant! The food was splendid-the best tomatoes I've ever had and I'm from the biggest ag producing land in the USA. The staff was super nice and friendly, too. I highly recommend this place-it's a bit small but if you go at 1:00 for lunch they'll have a table for you. There are many shops, galleries and stores in the area. I bought some fantastic custom jewelry in one place and some artwork right next door to the apartment.
I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Javier's wonderful apartment--several of our group plan to go again soon with some other friends. It's ideal for a couple of families to share. Five stars!!!!!