Eurostars Tower, Madrid

Last week I was in Madrid and stayed at an excellent new hotel named The Eurostars Tower on Paseo de la Castelllana. This is one of four new skyscrapers that have recently been finished and are a dramatic change to the Madrid skyline.

The hotel is set back from the main dual carriageway that is Paseo de la Castelllana and nearby are modern fountains and sculptures. The hotel has only one restaurant but this is at the top and has fantastic views over Madrid and the surrounding area and this probably explains why one needs to book to ensure a table.

The rooms were modern and the bathroom appeared to be constructed of opaque brown glass which, while attractive, had the most vicious metal door handles I’ve ever seen. However, the shower was excellent and sported multiple horizontal water jets.

My room had a very large and comfortable bed plus mod-cons such as kettle, iron and an ironing board. The flat screen TV at the end of the bed was remarkable for the brilliance of a tiny blue LED light which, when the TV was switched to standby, shone a beam of apparently perfect laser light directly into my eyes as I lay in bed.

While I was there the International Fire Safety Conference were having some kind of shindig and this appeared fairly jovial showing that at least one industry does not seem to be suffering from the economic downturn.

For fast food one can head south to Plaza de Castilla where there is also a metro station or cross the Paseo de la Castelllana and walk to Calle de Maruriceo Legendre where there are a number of restaurants which serve food in an open area. Alternatively head south past Plaza de Castilla and slightly west to Calle de la Infanta Mercedes where there are many restaurants and bars.