Living in Madrid: Which neighborhood ?

Welcome to Expat.com, Tom
I'm sure you'll soon get responses from other members on the forum!
Cheers

Hi Tom

I am a Spanish expat (in London) and I have lived in Madrid all my life... I would strongly recommend living in Barrio Salamanca, preferably in the north part (Lista). It´s a lovely neighbourhood, with local shops and luxury/big shops, with people from all ages, it´s a "barrio" with character, history, style...
It's really well connected with the airport and the city. You can easily travel by car or public transport.
I can give you more info if you want and even help you with finding a flat. I have some friends who currently have a lovely flat to rent in the area.
Regards

Laura

Sometimes it's not a question of simply choosing. Sometimes it's an economical question as some areas are much more expensive than others. In your case, it seems that price is no object. GOOD FOR YOU!!!

Do you want to live in OLD downtown? If so, the area around Opera/Palacio Real/Senado is quite nice, right on the fringe (as compared to Puerta del Sol/Plaza Mayor areas, that is). If you want more residential yet still very closed to Old downtown, consider the Argüelles area next to the Parque del Oeste. This is an upscale neighborhood, very safe, clean(er), and still within a reach to the Old downtown. Even more residential and more away from the Old downtown - but still within reach - is the Chamberí area around the Plaza de Olavide. LOTS of bars and terrazas and the area's nice but busy.

Saludos, MadridMan @ http://MadridMan.com!

When I first moved to Madrid I was living in a rented apartment paid for by my work. This was situated near to Lista metro and it was a very nice area, but quite expensive. I lived in an apartment that was about 70 squared metres and cost 2600 euros a month. But this was through an agency and therefore a serviced apartment. But you could easily find a descent place in lista for about half of that price.  So I would definitely have to agree with laurauc in this being an idea place to live.