Madrid travel guide
Where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Things to do in Madrid, planned over three days
Best time to visit Madrid
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Spring, best overall joint with autumn, 10 to 22C, Retiro in bloom and terraces return.
Summer, hot at 35 to 38C, sightsee early, long lunch at midday and life after 9pm, some closures in August.
Autumn, best overall joint with spring, October ideal and Guadarrama hiking at its best.
Winter, cold bright and cheap at 2 to 12C, shortest lines and lowest hotel prices outside Christmas.
What's on
- Fiestas de San Isidro around 15 May
The city's biggest traditional festival, with concerts, street parties, chulapo costumes and picnics in the Pradera de San Isidro.
- Dos de Mayo 2 May
Madrid region holiday marking the 1808 uprising, with ceremonies in Malasaña's Plaza del Dos de Mayo and many shops shut.
- Madrid Pride (Orgullo) late June / early July
One of Europe's largest Prides, centred on Chueca, with huge crowds and higher hotel prices.
- Veranos de la Villa Jul-Aug
Summer evenings filled with outdoor concerts and culture.
- La Paloma festival mid-August
Great neighbourhood fiesta in La Latina.
- Three Kings parade 5 January
Winter parade alongside Christmas lights and the Plaza Mayor Christmas market.
Worth the trip for
Best things to do in Madrid
Museo del Prado
Velazquez, Goya and Bosch in one essential museum, best done as one focused wing over two to three hours.
Museo Reina Sofía
Picasso's Guernica is the main reason to come, with Dalí and Miró as the bonus, so head there first.
El Retiro Park
Madrid's green lung with the lake, Crystal Palace and rose garden, and the best free half day in the city.
Royal Palace of Madrid
Huge functioning royal palace with throne room and armoury, plus Almudena Cathedral and Sabatini Gardens nearby.
Templo de Debod
A real ancient Egyptian temple rebuilt in a park, with a free sunset view toward the palace and Casa de Campo.
Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum
The most digestible Golden Triangle museum, covering eight centuries with strength in Impressionists and modern art.
Corral de la Morería
Madrid's most famous flamenco tablao since 1956, a tiny room where singers and dancers perform a few feet away.
Santiago Bernabéu
Real Madrid stadium tour and museum whose scale lands even for non fans, though parts can close around matchdays.
Where to stay in Madrid
Barrio de las Letras
first trip, all-round base
Quiet historic streets between Sol, the Prado and Retiro, walkable to the museums and La Latina tapas.
Salamanca
luxury, quiet, safest feel
Wide avenues and designer shopping on Serrano with grand hotels, furthest walk to the old town but metro fixes it.
Chamberí
local feel, repeat visitors and longer stays
Residential cafe and market Madrid with Calle Ponzano for tapas and no tourist crush.
Malasaña + Chueca
nightlife, young and LGBTQ+
Vintage shops, bars and late nights in Malasana and the Pride epicentre in Chueca, loudest for noise at night.
Retiro / Ibiza
families, runners, calm
Leafy streets by the park near the Prado, early to bed and quiet.
La Latina
tapas and Sundays
Great by day and for eating, lively and noisy on Sunday Rastro and terrace nights.
Think twice about
- Immediate Sol / Gran Vía / Calle Montera frontage
Pickpocket central by day and noisy all night, with visible street prostitution and loitering off Sol making late returns unpleasant.
- Southern Lavapiés / Embajadores around Calle Miguel Servet
Great value food quarter by day, but the side streets see open drug dealing after dark, so stick to lit main streets late.
- Usera, Vallecas, Villaverde and Orcasur
Far southern districts, a long Metro ride from the sights. Come to Usera for its Chinese food, but base yourself central.
Best restaurants in Madrid
DiverXO
Dabiz Muñoz's three-star tasting menu of Spanish meets Asian theatre, booked the moment reservations open.
Coque
Two-star room to room journey through the bar, kitchen and cellar, ending with the signature suckling pig.
Sobrino de Botín
Roast suckling pig and lamb from the wood oven by Plaza Mayor, tourist famous and genuinely historic.
Casa Lucio
Huevos rotos over potatoes with jamon or chorizo in a 50 year La Latina institution.
Berlanga
The paella answer behind Retiro park, where locals route you when paella is the mission in Madrid.
Casa Dani
Tortilla many call the city's best, runny in the local style, plus a bargain menú del día inside a working market.
Casa Toni
No frills old tavern for gambas al ajillo, grilled pig ear, sweetbreads and huge anchovies, cheap and beloved.
Bodega de la Ardosa
Founded in 1892 for vermouth on tap, tortilla and salmorejo, with a back room reached by ducking under the bar.
Outdoor things to do in Madrid
Toledo
Essential day trip by fast train for a hilltop old town of three cultures, cathedral, Alcazar and Tagus views.
Segovia
Roman aqueduct and fairytale Alcazar in one day trip, with roast suckling pig for lunch.
La Pedriza
Granite labyrinth above Manzanares el Real with a green pool, El Yelmo peak and a 12km loop for hiking and scrambling.
Club de Campo Villa de Madrid
Accessible championship golf inside Casa de Campo, a Spanish Open host with public roots so visitors can play.
San Lorenzo de El Escorial
Vast royal monastery palace by train, then a walk in the pine foothills to the Silla de Felipe II viewpoint.
Casa de Campo
Madrid's biggest park for cycling, the lake and the Teleférico cable car, five times the size of Retiro.
Somosierra Canyoning
Guided canyoning at Somosierra, the community only open canyon, with via ferrata and climbing also offered nearby.
Aranjuez
Cheap gentle half day by train to royal palace gardens on the Tagus, flat and shady with an island garden.
Best hotels in Madrid
Four Seasons Hotel Madrid
Grand central splurge stitched from seven historic buildings by Sol and Las Letras, with rooftop Dani Brasserie.
Rosewood Villa Magna
Residential feel Salamanca palace hotel with a spa and Amos Cantabrian fine dining on the Castellana.
Mandarin Oriental Ritz, Madrid
Classic belle epoque hotel facing the Prado, the museum first luxury base with Retiro at the door.
VP Jardín de Recoletos
Small quiet garden terrace hotel between Salamanca and Retiro, the smart mid range pick in an expensive quarter.
Catalonia Las Cortes
Converted palace in Las Letras putting you in the literary quarter at four star rather than five star pricing.
URSO Hotel & Spa
Boutique spa hotel on the Chamberí side of Malasaña, a couples favourite at four star pricing.
Generator Madrid
Design hostel with private rooms and dorms plus a rooftop in the nightlife quarter, cheap but still central.
OK Hostel Madrid
Social hostel a short walk from Sol and La Latina tapas, with dorms and private rooms that sell out early.
Is Madrid expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | €75 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | €160 a person |
| Splurge | €450 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Museo del Prado: weeks ahead
- Museo Reina Sofía: weeks ahead
- Royal Palace of Madrid: weeks ahead
- Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum: weeks ahead
- Corral de la Morería: weeks ahead
- Santiago Bernabéu: a few days ahead
- Toledo: a few days ahead
- Segovia: a few days ahead
- Prado, Reina Sofia, Thyssen and Royal Palace timed tickets in high season, arriving early for Prado free hours.
- DiverXO months ahead, other fine-dining rooms weeks ahead, and Botín days to weeks for the cellar and weekends.
- Bernabeu tours, Real Madrid matches, Corral de la Moreria and San Isidro or Pride hotels need weeks to months.
Is Madrid safe?
- Madrid is one of Europe's safest capitals and violent crime is rare. The real risk is pickpocketing.
- Watch Sol, Gran Via, the Metro, El Rastro and crowded queues, keep phones off cafe tables and bags zipped.
- Check your government's current travel advice before you go.
Madrid travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Mercado de San Miguel is a beautiful glass market but not a working market and prices show it, have one vermouth then crawl elsewhere.
- Plaza Mayor terrace restaurants where you pay for the view not the food.
- Paella for one ready in five minutes on picture menus, and flamenco dinner packages sold by street touts.
Getting around Madrid: public transport and more
- Walk the centre and use the Metro and Cercanias for the rest, with Atocha, Sol and Nuevos Ministerios as main hubs.
- Airport by Metro Line 8 to Nuevos Ministerios or the 24h airport bus to Atocha and Cibeles.
- Do not rent a car in the city due to the low emission zone and scarce parking, rent only for driving day trips.
Who Madrid suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Great |
| Couples | Great |
| Bachelor parties | Great |
| Families | Good |
| Bachelorette parties | Great |
Make Madrid your trip
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