As spring held on against the oncoming summer, a stiff wind was slicing through Madrid’s Plaza de Espana, sending a chill through the morning’s pedestrians on the Gran Via.
I had arrived early, just as the City’s hotels began to fill up before the weekend.
As I introduced myself at the front desk of the magnificent VP Plaza Espana Design, the clerk on duty was friendly, even ebullient, as she explained that my room was not quite ready, it being only 10:30 in the morning.
“You can wait in the dining room while we prepare your room, Mr. Rivera,” she offered. “Would you like some coffee? Some breakfast?”
I opted for a cafe con leche and a croissant, and just after it was served, an attendant arrived to take me to my room. I had been in the hotel for maybe 15 minutes.
I was escorted to one of the hotels’ deluxe rooms, maybe 15 floors up, easily larger than my apartment back home. The room overlooked the recently renovated Plaza de España and looking east, the Royal Palace of Madrid. To the south sat the dramatic Temple de Debod, a favorite sunset gathering spot, as the glowing walls reflect off the surrounding pools. The 2nd Century BCE temple was a gift from the government of Egypt, in exchange for Spain’s assistance with saving the ancient temples of Nubia in the early 60s. The stones were transported to Madrid and rebuilt over two years, opening in 1972.
Speaking of impressive works, the VP Plaza España Design also features a private art collection of its own, made up of more than 12 artists and 300 original works, including “The Waterfall”, a kinetic sculpture of more than 18 feet in the shape of a waterfall, created by the artist Pere Gifre.
The rooms are easily as luxurious as any in Paris, France or London, or anywhere else, with attention to detail, impeccable furnishings and soaring floor-to-ceiling windows which provide unmatched views across the Spanish landscape in all directions as far as the eye can see.
Despite its impressive size and physical footprint, the hotel was honored by the US Green Building Council as one of the first hotels in Spain to receive the prestigious LEED Gold Certificate for “Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design”.
According to the owners, VP Hoteles, its mission was “to design a five-star hotel that would become an icon of design, art and architecture in Madrid.”
The impressive art allows for a dramatic design, with a commitment to sustainability, in the hotel’s daily execution.
The Ginkgo Sky Bar is one of the City’s top nighttime gathering spots, owing to its prime location alongside the intersection of the Gran Via and Calle Princessa.
Like many hotels in Europe, a buffet breakfast is provided to guests, and the offerings at VP Plaza España Design are fresh, sumptuous and wide-ranging, from Spanish favorites like tortillas (Those are omelets in Spain) and Serrano ham, to a range of coffees served in the Spanish style (small cup, hot black coffee, and a pitcher of hot milk, on the side. That’s a treat by itself. )
American observation: For some strange reason, Spaniards love Cocoa Puffs. It’s in every restaurant and on every breakfast menu.
But back to the room: the room, in fact, the entire property from rooms to rooftop, was sparkling and spacious, and if we’d never walked the streets of Madrid in those 48 hours, we would have still felt like we’d seen the world.
