Can anybody comment on this hotel - Tryp Atocha ? I haven't been able to find any reviews of it.

You can probably find info about it on the Sol Melia site,

Sol Melia Web Site

The Tryp Hotels brand is part of the Sol Melia group. The hotel will probably be OK; Tryp is their in-city/business line of properties. Atocha however can be a little unsavory depending on what part of Atocha the hotel is located.

It's located right by the Anton Martin Metro station at Atocha, 83. Is this a safe area?

Atocha 83 is just fine. I used to live a few blocks away at the intersection of Calle Huertas and Calle Jesus. I must have walked by there a thousand times. Atocha is a busy street, but after all Madrid IS a city. There is a great bakery near-by, and the Mercado where you can see how Spaniards really shop for meat, fish, and produce is also near, and if you really get disparate, there is a Pizza Hut. A few blocks down Atocha toward the Paseo del Prado is one of our favorite hole-in-wall places, The Restaurante Turco. Really cheap and good, but you better like lamb. More questions, just ask. It is certainly safe, and near a metro stop is a plus. You are just one stop from Sol.

Buena suerte.

Lee

Lee,

Thank you so much for your reply. I feel much better. This is a new hotel (in an old building) so I haven't been able to find any reviews about it.

I'll try to avoid the Pizza Hut while in Spain Also I'm not a huge fan of lamb, but if you could suggest a nearby tapas place...

The other question: how do I go about getting tickets to see a bullfight at Las Ventas? Is there any problem getting tickets the day of the event?

Thanks in advance.

If you walk down Atocha toward the Paseo del Prado and turn left on Calle Fucar, and keep walking you will intersect with Calle Huertas. If you turn left on Huertas, or keep walking straight down the street which has changed to Calle Jesus from Fucar, there are zillions of places. At the intersection of Calle Jesus and Calle Lope de Vega is La Taberna Dolores. A beautiful place, but I don't really care for their tapas that much. When I have time tomorrow, I will look up a couple of places near Plaza Santa Ana that are great, and there are a number of places at Plaza Santa Ana. Just wander around, go into a place, see what they have, order a caña, which is a small glass of beer, or if you are really thirsty, a jarra...which is bigger. Oh, a place on Huertas...near the intersection with Calle Jesus that I like very much is named La Colonial. It is a Cuban place, so we just called it "The Cuban". They have intersting tapas, and the caipirinhas and mojitos are the best in Madrid. I prefer the former myself. They also sell Cuban cigars at incredibly low prices. Try a Cohiba Espendido...

If you have more questions, ask away. It helps me to relive my experiences of Madrid.

I am sorry, I forgot about your lust for blood and gore.

The Plaza de Toros de las Ventas has a website .. www.las-ventas.com/index.htm . But it seems to be in Spanish only. If you are a speaker of Spanish check it out. If not, perhaps others can give you advice, but I can assure you that if you wait until you arrive in Madrid, you will still be able to see a bullfight. Watching them on TV was enough for me.

I know this is a shocker, but the bull always loses.

Buena suerte

Lee

OK, my favorite tapas place is on Calle Nuñez de Arce. It is a street that leads North off of Plaza Santa. Of course I can't remember the name, but it is on the right-hand side. It is named Casa de Abuelo II or something like that. They have everything. Grilled shrimp, (gambas a la plancha) fried peppers (pimientos fritos) patatas bravas, and patatas al alioli (garlic mayonnaise). As MadridMan would say, yum,yum.

A buen provecho

Lee

Just a trip update...

My two days in Madrid were great! The Tryp Atocha is a newly renovated 4* hotel right on Calle Atocha very close to the Plaza Santa Ana. Well worth the 80 Euros per night!

We did find the tapas place that was recommended by GoMadrid... thanks! It was great. We also ate at Botin (roast suckling pig - their house specialty) and had blackened sausage (which only later did I find out was made from pork's blood - blech)! We also went to Casa Patas but missed the Flamenco show.

The one thing that bothered me was the cigarette smoking. There was no escaping it. Coming from a place where smoking is not allowed in any public area, this was really awful. The Madrid Iberia terminal was really smokey as well, and my eyes were watering and nose was really stuffed up.

We did not get pickpocketed but there were some very suspicious characters roaming around the International terminal at Barajas airport right in front of the Aerocity desk (two thumbs up for Aerocity BTW). One guy was coming awfully close to us and seemed to be lingering a bit too much. We had everything tucked away anyway, but I'd imagine preying on travellers who are just arriving it like taking candy from a baby...

We did make it to Las Ventas using the very convenient and easy to use metro system. Of course, there were no tickets the days we were there, especially since "El Juli" was the only fighter on one night. We watched instead on TV and were actually glad to have missed it live.

Thanks for the update...

Lee

Definitely enjoyed the stay at the Tryp Atocha.

The location: near Plaza Santa Ana, steps away from subway stop, several blocks away from Atocha train station, near Paseo del Prado can't be beat. Did reservas through Sol Melia chain though check around various internet travel services for deals. Airconditioning fine and crucial in August. Hotel maid service had a habit of shutting it off while we were out and about but room cooled down quickly. Breakfast buffet good and quite varied, set in a room with 19th century high, high ceilings. We had to share a table one morning. Room quiet and on the 4th floor, which is a no-smoking floor. They have 7 diff kinds of pillows you can order as extras or substitutes. Desk has English speakers. Bathtub is high sided and quite slippery, our big complaint. One of us took a bad tumble.