Madrid hotel location?

[orval]

We are going to Madrid for 3- 4 days next summer, then taking the train to Malaga. Trying to pick our hotel location - looking to hit the major sites like Prado, tour of Real Madrid stadium, etc. We will have my mom who uses a cane and can't walk super far.

We can get rooms at a hotel right near the Atocha train station with points.  Would this be a good central location?  It looks to be close to the subway lines and the main train to Malaga.  Any advice is welcome!

Also anyone done one of those hop on/hop off tours?  Think that might be good for us with my mom and a group of 6 people.

[alleinesein]

Thats a good location. My parents stayed at The Ritz and its in the same area. Walking distance to a few museums, the metro and the train station.

[chicago]

My preferred location is anything on Gran Via, in/near Puerta del Sol area, or near the Prado. Atocha is a little farther away but not bad.

[dulcemariamar]

I would rather do the Puerta del Sol area but you can get a direct bus to the Atocha area from the airport. I think the area by the train station can be a bit seedy.

[anna7602]

Oct 19, 2014 6:31:56 GMT -5 dulcemariamar said:

I would rather do the Puerta del Sol area but you can get a direct bus to the Atocha area from the airport. I think the area by the train station can be a bit seedy.

This is my thought, too (that the area is a little seedy).

ETA: my mother also has issues walking very much. In Paris, Madrid and Lisbon, we have just ended up taking lots of buses and cabs. We would have to be staying maximum 3-4 blocks from every single site of interest for everything to be walkable for her. And subways pose a problem because of all the stairs. Although, if I remember correctly, Madrid's stations have more escalators available than Paris's stations do.

[frlcb]

Oct 19, 2014 6:31:56 GMT -5 dulcemariamar said:

I would rather do the Puerta del Sol area but you can get a direct bus to the Atocha area from the airport. I think the area by the train station can be a bit seedy.

I also think the area can be sketchy. We usually stay nearish the Real Madrid stadium and never have issues, take the train and cabs places (or walk)

[orval]

Thanks for the input everyone!

[dulcemariamar]

Oct 20, 2014 6:57:52 GMT -5 frlcb said:

Oct 19, 2014 6:31:56 GMT -5 dulcemariamar said:

I would rather do the Puerta del Sol area but you can get a direct bus to the Atocha area from the airport. I think the area by the train station can be a bit seedy.

I also think the area can be sketchy. We usually stay nearish the Real Madrid stadium and never have issues, take the train and cabs places (or walk)

There are some shady streets in the center but the overall feel of the Atocha area feels a bit seedy. Puerta del Sol is not my first choice but since the OP's mom has difficulty walking it might be easier to stay in the center. The area around Real Madrid stadium is nice but it is like the business district. There are probably several metro stops near the stadium with lifts so it is also a good option. It is close to the airport but will require a least metro line change or a cab ride to the train station.