CoolRooms Atocha

Worth getting out of bed for

Aside from lazing in the lounge or by the pool – and practising floating down the staircase, of course – there’s little to do at the hotel. But, luckily, it’s in a buzzy corner of Madrid, the Las Letras neighbourhood, where all the main players of Spain’s Golden Age of literature (over the 15th and 16th centuries) lived: playwright and poet Lope de Vega; rhyme-master Calderón de la Barca; sonnet-scribbler Góngora, post-romanticist wordsmith Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer, dramatist José Echegaray and Don Quixote don, Miguel de Cervantes… Las Letras (AKA ‘the letters’) is well-read and has a lively gastronomic and nightlife scene. Start the story in Plaza de Santa Ana, paying homage to the statues of Federico Garcia Lorca and Calderón de la Barca. This spirited meeting and mingling spot sets the tone for the rest of the quarter. Along Calle de Atocha, step into the 16th-century the Church of San Sebastian, site of many famed funeral services. For live music and livelier conversation, hit the iconic Café Central on Plaza del Ángel and pick up a posy in fully blossomed flower shop El Jardín del Ángel. Cervantes is buried in the suitably flamboyantly named church Convent of the Barefoot Trinitarians, and along the street named in his honour, you’ll find the Lope de Vega House museum.

Many of Madrid’s must-sees are within a 10-minute walk of the hotel’s super central location: the Puerta del Sol and Plaza Mayor; Gran Vía’s shops; El Rastro Market; and the Prado Museum, and the Royal Palace is just a little further at 15 minutes’ walk, placing you at the centre of the action. And, if you want something a little different, try wild swimming in the rocky pools at Río Manzanares en La Pedriza, an hour’s drive away at the Cuenca Alta Manzanares Regional Park.

Local restaurants

Madrid’s gastronomy dazzles with its Michelin-starred restaurants and local eateries that shine just as brightly. Take breakfast by Retiro Park at Magasand, on Calle Columela, with its healthful spread of croissants, crêpes, muesli and smoothies. Stop to try Madrid’s best tortilla (allegedly) at Sylkar on Calle Espronceda, or charcuterie and cava at BDJ. Put pedal to the metal for the mod menu at Triciclo – the work of three passionate chefs – with its tandoori lamb cheeks and spiced deer shank; Lobo 8 (the restaurant at fellow Las Letras stay, Gran Hotel Inglés) is a relaxed spot for dinner, too. For date-night dining, try the conversation-starting, experimental tapas at Sala De Despiece: artichoke with eel and pomegranate, razor clams with yuzu and shiso, oysters with peach, mustard and basil. And, of Madrid’s Michelin-starred picks, we like Ramón Freixa’s restaurant, which evokes the old-school glamour of CoolRooms and has dramatically named dishes, such as ‘Mexican homage’ and, ahem, ‘zucchini surprise’.

Local bars

Drinking in Madrid is as diverse as its culinary offerings, but it has an incredibly chic crowd of cocktail bars. You’ll need some stamina to match the Madrileños, who start drinking late and rarely go home before 2am. A few venues to hit along the way include historic beer hall Cerveceria Alemana and a couple other bars around pretty Plaza Santa Ana: La Vinoteca, Lateral Santa Ana… Sip suave cocktails at Del Diego on Calle Reina, and head on up to the roof terrace at the Principal Madrid for Gran Vía views and a lengthy list of G&Ts.