Florida Norte Hotel (in Madrid) and Expo Hotel (in barcelona). How good are they in terms of location?

Question

I will be in madrid and barcelona for a holiday

Answer 1

Florida Norte Hotel is on Paseo de la Florida, quite near the Palacio Real, and within walking distance of most of the interesting places and museums in Madrid.

The Expo Hotel in Barcelona is on c/ Mallorca, aprox. 50 mts. from Sants Train Station... It's about 12 blocks from Passeig de Gracia which is one of the main avenues of the city. (Walk along Carrer d'Aragó until you cross it)..

Both hotels are well situated.... and 4 star status, in other words fairly good quality level...

Enjoy your stay...both cities are fantastic! :-)

Answer 2

I'm not a big fan of the Hotel Florida Norte in Madrid (4-Stars, web: http://www.hotelfloridanorte.com/ ) only because of its location.

It is considered "downtown" although I consider it to be on the edge of downtown. It's near the river, near the Casa de Campo park, and near the Princípe Pío metro/train station - which is good, near many bus lines. But to get to, say, the historic center and the Royal Palace you have to walk UPHILL up the long Cuesta de San Vicente. This is not a walk you want to take everyday - particularly not in the summer when it's hot. Walking down is no problem. But if you want to be "in the heart of it all" other hotels should be considered first. It's much nicer to walk out your hotel's front door and "be in it" instead of having to walk 15 or 20 minutes to get there. There's a large "mall" next to the hotel and the famed "Casa Mingo" restaurant a few steps away too so there are things nearby but the museums, from this hotel, are a good 45 minute walk away (the first 15 minutes of that is uphill).

Barcelona's Expo Hotel (4-stars, web: http://www.expogrupo.com/hotel/expo-barc... ) is similar to the Hotel Florida in Madrid. This barcelona hotel is located near the Sants Train Station. It's a good long walk to, say, the Gothic Quarter from here but you can take the metro to get there.

These kinds of hotels are often selected by tour companies and travel agencies because they can get good deals from them - BECAUSE of their location being NOT in the heart of the old downtown.

Best of luck and enjoy these two wonderful cities!

Saludos, BarcelonaMan (@YouKnowWhere!)

Answer 3

Florida Norte is a little west of the center -- not a great location, not terrible.

The Expo is about 3 kilometers from the center again not great not too bad. Right next to the Train Station Not the best neighborhood but not too bad.