I can well understand the original poster's distress over this situation. However, I also agree with InMiami that unless this is simply a vent or a rant it would be really helpful to know where the victim was at the time, what the circumstances were, etc. Otherwise it becomes something to feel sorry about but of little other use since most of us already know things like this happen all the time and not just in Spain.

I am sorry to hear that. I hope your son is feeling better.

I think muggings are commonplace in many areas....

Northshore---I don't think one would ignore an entire area because there is crime...

many could say the same thing about visiting NYC or any urban area...

Now traveling to a known warzone would be an entirely different topic altogether

In any city, there are places that are less safe than others. Messages in this thread have mentioned Puerta del Sol, Chueca and the Gran Via area as places that are best avoided.

On the other hand, one poster (who I think is Spanish) mentioned that tourists have left handbags and expensive cameras unattended on the Plaza Santa Ana and have not had them stolen. So evidently the Plaza Santa Ana is in a safe area in Madrid.

My guidebook to Spain pointed out these unsafe and safe areas in Madrid and similar areas in other Spanish cities. I've planned accordingly and have never had any difficulty.

This is not a new happening. We were mugged while en route from the Plaza del Sol to the Plaza Major (sp?) after dinner one evening about 11:30 PM.

Two young fellows snatched my purse and knocked my husband down. He bounced back up (he's a nidan in Aikido) and they ran like heck down the road.

This was more than twenty years ago.

I don't think Cova was saying that Plaza Santa Ana is safe or not, just that it is not advisable in any place to do what the people there was doing, leaving their belongings unattended. It can be the safest place in the world, and you can be left without your purse acting that way !

The OP's story reminds me of one of the more traumatic travel experiences I had as a child in Rome. While I was scampering ahead of my father and grandmother, they were crossing the street and thugs on motorcycles drove past and grabbed my grandmother's purse. (Sadly, my father had taken notice of the thugs before as they seemed to be circling the square looking for targets.) She refused to let go and was dragged a bit resulting in her fracturing her wrist. The Italian authorities were mostly useless. They provided little asisstance and my grandmother was not given medical aid. We wound up getting an emergency flight back home with my grandmother's arm in a sling with ice bags. Although this experience hasn't deterred me from wanting to go back to Italy (we missed Venice because of those SOBs!!), it has made me more aware of security and the need for good travel insurance, including medical evacuation services. I've also made sure over the years to be aware of the location of US embassies and consulates. I don't think my father knew who to turn to for help and the authorities, sadly, didn't provide any. The exact opposite occurred in London this past winter. My mother became very ill and had to receive emergency medical care. She received immediate attention and we walked out without paying a dime. I'm curious what the OP's son found in way of assistance from the police and/or medical staff in Spain.

Eloise, I mentioned the people leaving unattended handbags in Plaza Santa Ana not because it is an specially safe area, but because they were lucky that the waiters took care of their valuables.

Last December, sitting inside the cafe Miau in Plaza Santa Ana, a friend of mine grabbed a woman´s hand while she was trying to pickpocket an unsuspecting tourist handbag. She had left it hanging in the back of the chair, and my friend noticed something strange from the corner of his eye. The woman managed to run away, but empty-handed. The owner of the cafe explained us that she was part of a group of two women and a men, well-dressed, that used to "work" in the area. The only thing they can do is throwing them out as soon as they see them.

Bad areas ... I think someone mentioned the Ballesta and the Montera streets. I´d say some of the streets between Puerta del Sol and Gran Via are not really nice. Going out at night I, as a woman, feel safer in the Chueca and Malasaña area. Plenty of small bars and clubs and restaurants. On the other side, the discos and clubs in the Azca area are a no-no for me, mainly because many of the southamerican gangs ( maras and ñetas ) congregate there, and there are fights every weekend. Also, the area in the Castellana around Cuzco is not so nice late at night. A lot of night-ladies there ...

Regarding pickpockets, I´d say any place with lots of people, so right now ... the queues for the Picasso exhibition at the Prado and the Reina Sofia ;)

Rgds, Cova

I wrote about it as an example of carelessness, and I think that Btilke understood me pretty well.

Cova,

I did realize that you mentioned the Plaza Santa Ana in the context of a warning against carelessness, and you are, of course, perfectly right that no area is safe if one is careless.

But the Plaza Santa Ana is a much safer place than the Puerta del Sol. That is all I meant to point out.

Eloise, I don't agree with that. At night, Plaza Santa Ana surroundings are full of people going to pubs, bars..and where there are such amount of people ...there are muggers and pickpockets. I've been in a traffic jam there at 4 AM and I don't feel there safer (or unsafe) than in Gran Via or Puerta del Sol or Piccadilly Circus :)

Hi, All,

Does anyone know how safe the area between Jardines Lepanto and the Opera is? We rented an apartment on Calle de Santa Clara, for end of June, staying with two teenage daughters. How does it rate relative to the "less desirable" areas mentioned above?

Any info is greatly appreciated.


-e

After nearly 30 very interesting/diversed responses, wouldn't it be interesting to hear from sanderson1?

Kenderina,

I've stayed twice at the Reina Victoria (now a Hard Rock Hotel, I understand...) on Plaza Santa Ana and never felt unsafe. But I was not out there at 4:00 a.m. I'm not normally out at 4:00 a.m. in my own city, which is one of the safest in North America.

I can't help it, but I feel that any RESPONSIBLE government would post some undercover cops and some video cameras around public tourist areas or squares that are known to be unsafe. Just a few undercover police would soon spot the troublemakers and follow them to arrest them or encourage them to stop their game or go to less tourist inhabited areas. This applies for Rome, Paris and apparently Madrid. It seems to me that some European cities just don't care to protect the tourists.

As for the comment about NYC, the crime rate is now quite low and what crime does exist is generally not in tourist areas.

In all fairness, mikey, we do not all have the kinds of lives or jobs that allow us to check-in at various times during the day. He/she may only be able to access computer in evening....

I'm willing to wait.

gforaker, I suppose these governments had to care first for their own citizens..and security issues are not only a tourist thing.

I concur---all countries have issues with crime, be it against tourists or natives.

I concur---all countries have issues with crime, be it against tourists or natives

True, but Spain seems to have more than its share of crime issues.

My relative was also mugged in Madrid - near Atocha train station about 8am on a Sunday morning. She was knocked down and bruised as the thieve tried to get her day pack off her back and she was trying to get it off so he could take it - a very ugly scene that lasted about a minute and nearby shopkeepers opening up stood by and watched. I've heard many credible reports of muggings in Barcelona and Madrid - including now those in this post who have been mugged. Anyone who says it isn't a problem apparently isn't the average tourist. while i don't say avoid these cities i say be careful of anyone coming up to you and don't wear expensive jewelry, carry cameras around your neck, etc.
There is and has been for several years a serious problem in these two cities and why the local authorities don't do something about it is a mystery to me.