900+ Madrid Travel Guide Ideas In 2021

The best time to travel to Madrid is in the fall or spring during the months of September to November or March to May. If you are looking for upscale apparel stores, check out the streets around Gran Via. The Calle de Preciados is probably the busiest street, hosting stores like H&M, Pimkie, and Zara.

The Sierra de Gredos continues the line of the Sierra de Guadarrama, enclosing Madrid to the north and west. A major mountain range, with peaks in excess of 2500m, Gredos offers the best trekking in central Spain, including high-level routes across the passes, as well as more casual walks around the villages. The early nineteenth century brought invasion and turmoil to Spain as Napoleon established his brother Joseph (or José to Spaniards) on the throne. Madrid, however, continued to flourish, gaining some very attractive buildings and squares, including the Plaza de Oriente and Plaza de Santa Ana. Aside from these heavyweight cultural attractions, there is a host of smaller museums and palaces which can be almost as rewarding. Today, Madrid is a vast, predominantly modern city, with a population of some four million and growing.

Puerto del Sol is also the official center of Spain's road network. This restaurant is off the typical tourist path and outside the city center, but if it's a traditional Cocido Madrileño you're after, it's worth the trek. This is the place to go for the city's famous chickpea and meat stew.

Other hot sounds come from the Latin American dub and reggae band GoLem System, and the fusion-freestyle merchants LA Kinky Beat. Plaza de la Paja One of the most pleasant terrazas in the heart of old Madrid in this former market square in La Latina. Quiet and low-key during the day, gradually livening up as the night goes on. It’s a popular meeting point for the gay community but the clientele is mixed.

It’s one of the hippest areas in Madrid with a great mix of restaurants, tapas bars, pubs, boutiques, street art, and museums. It’s within walking distance to Calle Gran Vía as well which is home to some of the best shopping in Madrid. Spain has an extensive rail network, at the very heart of which is Madrid.

If you’re traveling on a budget and not visiting any museums, then you can get by with half of that. San Lorenzo de El Escorial is located about an hour northwest of Madrid. Like Toledo, Segovia is easy to visit on your own but if you’d prefer to go on a guided tour from Madrid, then you can book one through Get Your Guide (Option 1

Its museums are second to none and like anywhere in Spain, the food is beyond incredible. Take a free walking tour – This is one of my favorite ways to get to know a new destination — and you can’t beat the price! New Europe Walking Tours and Cat’s Hostel Walking Tours are the two most popular free tours in the city. Embrace free museum days – Lots of museums in Madrid are free on certain days or at certain times throughout the day. Be sure to check before you go because it’s far better to see sights like the Prado for free! You can purchase a 24-hour fun card for 47 EUR, a 48-hour card for 60 EUR, a 72-hour card for 67 EUR, or a 120-hour card for 77 EUR.



For fashion , the smartest addresses are calles Serrano, Goya, Ortega y Gasset and Velázquez in the Salamanca barrio, while more alternative designers are in Malasaña and Chueca (c/Almirante, especially). The antiques trade is centred towards the Rastro, on and around c/Ribera de Curtidores, while for general weirdness, it’s hard to beat the shops just off Pl. Mayor, where luminous saints rub shoulders with surgical supports and Fascist memorabilia.