Indagare Destination: Madrid
July 28, 2009 - Although standard rates on deluxe rooms at the ME Madrid start at €230 a night, frequent package deals make this hip hotel overlooking the historic Plaza de Santa Ana a downright steal. But just because it is inexpensive doesn’t make it cheap. The 192 rooms have quality finishes and decor that feels vaguely Scandinavian. Space is at a premium in the city center, so the ME has kept furnishings simple and sleek. Plasma televisions are built into the wall, and the simple platform beds, framed in pale wood, are dressed in crisp white linens. Bathrooms contain hydromassage showers and Aveda products, a rarity in Spain. Perhaps the coolest features are built-in surround sound and an iPod in every room, preloaded with 900 songs. This added touch is fabulous for single travelers who want a soundtrack while walking the city streets or exercising in the hotel’s small but functional fitness facilities—a good idea given the Plaza de Santa Ana’s many tempting tapas bars.
The hotel’s common areas are equally appealing. Nightlife impresarios Rande and Scott Gerber designed the ground-floor Midnight Rose lounge and the
Penthouse rooftop bar – a trendy nightspot popular with celebrities and athletes – and Jaime Renedo, star chef behind the gourmet speakeasy Asiana, created the menu. Despite the late crowd drawn to both the hotel and the neighborhood, ME’s management has done its best to keep the peace. Special soundproof windows provide a good, if not 100 percent effective, barrier between sleepy travelers and the crowds outside at nearby bars or queuing to enter the Penthouse. Plus, you can use your savings on the room rate to buy some earplugs. Rooms from €230.
Who Should Stay: Guests at ME tend to be younger couples or groups of friends. The location, about halfway between the museums and the Royal Palace and close to some of the less expensive tapas bars and cafés, is ideal for travelers on a budget that doesn’t accommodate Salamanca’s shopping and dining. There are connecting rooms for families, but it may be too much of a party scene for those with young children.
Room to Get: For the biggest wow factor, book the duplex tower suite on the sixth floor, but keep in mind that patrons of the Penthouse bar will be able to see into your living room. Stoke their envy by listening in surround sound to one of the more than 400 CDs and DVDs included while scoring with gusto on the Nintendo Wii.
with gusto on the Nintendo Wii.
Henley Vazquez 07/28/2009
