Madrid has my heart!! I am in love with the Spanish capital. I am already thinking about my next trip here in the summer because I had such a great time here. There’s just so much to do whether you’re a first time tourist or a repeat visitor. The whole vibe of the city is so electric with its beautiful architecture, iconic landmarks, magnificent museums and churches, delicious tapas and sangrias, lively party culture and an upscale fashion scene. Some of my friends asked me what I would recommend between Madrid and Barcelona and my answer was Madrid. While Barcelona is beautiful as well, it felt more touristy and commercial. Whereas, with Madrid you will have to put no effort to experience the true culture of Spain because it’s just everywhere. But, that’s just my personal opinion and you will see why as you read through this Madrid itinerary.
My husband and I visited Madrid during the Thanksgiving week in November and it was amazing. It was really cold on most days so we had to pack layers. But we enjoyed the whole festive vibe, and the fact that flights were cheaper as it was off-season. So my advice would be to go in the winter if you don’t mind the cold because that way you can save some money on flights and hotels and still get the same experience. However, if you’re planning to visit the islands like Ibiza and La Palma then summer would be a better time. As far as how much time is enough for Madrid, in 4-5 days you can explore all the important tourist spots and get the whole experience if you plan it right.
We planned for 4 days and that was a great amount of time to visit all the famous landmarks, eat lots of good food and shop around. This blog will cover a detailed 4-day Madrid itinerary that will help you plan your trip smoothly. So, here it goes!
DAY 1
9 AM – Check-in and Breakfast
We flew into Madrid from the US so we landed at around 8 AM local time in Madrid. We went straight to our hotel to check in and get some rest. Our hotel was in a very good location on Gran Via street, which is the main street in Madrid. And it was also quite affordable for us. Overall, it was a nice hotel. You can book directly through their website here.
After checking in, we headed out to grab a quick coffee and breakfast and we tried this really nice cafe called Mision Cafe which was at a walkable distance from our hotel. One thing that has really impressed me in Spain is their cafes. Their coffee is delicious and their bakery selection is extensive. Their croissants taste so fresh and are so soft. I would highly recommend this cafe if you’re in the area.
1:00 PM – Lunch
After getting some good rest, we got ready and headed out for lunch. We tried this really nice vegetarian restaurant in the area called Artemisa. It has an extensive and very unique menu. So, if you’re in the mood for some nice vegetarian or vegan food, you should give this place a try.
2:00 PM – Puerta del Sol and Plaza Mayor
Next, we wanted to explore some famous landmarks. Our first stop was Puerta del Sol. It is a historic semi-circular square that is famous for the bear statue and the strawberry tree (photo below), which is the official symbol of Madrid. We just strolled around and took some nice pictures. Interestingly, this square also has Kilometer 0 which is a stone slab that marks the geographical center of Spain. Because this square is one of the busiest in the city, it’s always very lively so it is a very good place to sit and spend time. There are also little shops all around this area so we spent some time checking them out as well.
We then walked up to the Plaza Mayor which is a 2 minute walk from the square. Plaza Mayor is another stunning historic square in the oldest part of the city and is one of the top places to see. It’s always lively and you can spot street performances, artists, locals and visitors enjoying the ambience. It’s a rectangular plaza that was first built in the 17th century by King Philip III. It has been destroyed three times by fires since then and was rebuilt each time, with the latest reconstruction completed in 1854. According to history, this plaza once hosted tournaments, bullfights, markets, symphonies and executions. You can see the statue of King Philip III in the center of this square. There are Christmas markets during the holidays so if you plan around then, make sure to stop by.
3:00 PM – Royal Palace of Madrid
If you are in Madrid, you cannot miss this palace. Not only because it’s one of the top tourist attractions but also because its architecture and grandeur will leave you speechless. With lots of art and fine furnishings, this palace has a lavish interior and impressive exterior. It is one of the largest palaces in Europe and one of Madrid’s most stunning attractions. It has been the official residence of the Royal family since it was founded in 1735. The family still comes here for state ceremonies and as per our tour guide, some of the important geopolitical meetings still take place here.
These days, it’s open to the public and only a few of the rooms are accessible. You can book your tickets through their official website and here’s the link. Be sure to check the last entry time and their operating hours. I would highly recommend getting a guided tour which is only 7 euros more than the basic ticket but provides you with a lot of rich history of the palace. It can take you easily 2-3 hours to finish touring the whole palace so take your time to absorb all the beautiful details and marvel at the stunning architecture. There are many beautiful rooms to visit but my two favorites are – the Throne Room and the Royal Chapel. So make sure to not miss these. The main staircase in the center with 70 steps is also very impressive.
Lastly, I would highly recommend booking your tickets in advance because the daily visits are limited and you will need to pick a time slot.
5:30 PM – Catedral de la Almudena
The Almudena cathedral is right across the palace and is just a 1-minute walk. It is built in a Gothic style and was completed in 1993. That is probably why it has a modern feel. Interestingly, it has the largest crypt in Spain. After touring the church, we then visited the museum and went up to the dome. From here, we got some amazing views of the Royal Palace, its gardens and the city. There is a fee to access the museum and the dome. Also, they operate for limited hours only so make sure to plan accordingly.
6:00 PM – Sabatini Gardens
Depending on your energy levels, you can walk up to the Sabatini Gardens which are an 11-minute walk from the cathedral. These gardens are in front of the north facade of the palace and are a great place to catch the sunset. Adorned with a large pool, fountains and statues, these gardens aren’t very large so they make for a nice stroll.
7:00 PM – Chocolateria San Gines
After all the walking, we decided to take a pit stop and try some local churros. Churros and hot chocolate is a very local thing in Spain and you can find it almost anywhere as you walk through the streets. However, Chocolateria San Gines is the place to try the best churros. It’s a historic cafe that has been running since 1894 and almost every blog that I read mentioned this place.
You can get a plate of 3 or 6 churros with hot chocolate. These were the best churros I have ever had in my life! I don’t have a sweet tooth so I really loved that the churros were not too sweet, even though they were lightly coated with sugar. The hot chocolate was also just the right amount of sweetness and they together made a perfect pair. This cafe is open 24 hours from Thursday to Sunday and from 8 AM until 11:59 PM other days.
8:00 PM – Dinner and Drinks
Our final stop for the day was the rooftop at the Circulo de Bellas Artes for dinner and drinks. They say that it’s one of the best rooftops in Madrid to get a 360 degree panoramic view of the city while sipping on delicious cocktails. Their drinks were really good and it was a perfect way to end our first day in Madrid.
DAY 2
9:00 AM – Breakfast
On our second day, we decided to try the Hanso cafe for breakfast. I would definitely recommend this cafe because they have such nice ambience and their coffee tastes delicious. Their bakery is loaded with a variety of options to choose from but my usual favorite to go with my coffee is a nicely toasted butter croissant so that’s what I ordered and I was just so happy. A perfect way to start my day!
10:00 AM – The Prado Art Museum
If you’re an art lover then you’re in for a retreat! Even if you’re not an ardent art follower, this museum should still be on your bucket list. It is one of the most visited sites in the world. And the reason it is so famous is because it houses famous works from some of Spain’s best artists like Goya and Velázquez. This museum was established in the early 19th century to display a variety of art forms such as paintings, sculptures, drawings, prints and documents. Among some of the most famous pieces in this museum are Goya’s black paintings, which I thought were quite unique and interesting.
The museum opens at 10 AM every day and here’s the link to buy the tickets. We also bought an audio guide because we really wanted to learn more about the history behind these famous artworks so I would highly recommend getting an audio guide. Since it’s a huge museum, if you don’t want to cover everything, an audio guide will help guide you to the most important pieces of work and will also give you a lot of context on them.
12:30 PM – EL Retiro Park
Beautiful and lush green public parks is one of the things that Madrid is best known for. So once you’re done with the museum, you can take a nice stroll through this huge park. It is spread across 300 acres and has a very similar vibe as the Central Park in New York City. There are monuments, fountains and themed gardens that you can explore and there’s also a beautiful artificial lake in the center that you can row a boat in if you’d like. We just strolled through the park and admired its beauty.
There is a Glass Palace in the park that should be on your list. It was built to be a greenhouse but now is also an exhibition space. We got lucky in that we were able to see the beautiful fall colors near the lake. If you go in the evenings, this place can get a bit chilly and windy during the winter months so plan to layer up.
1:30 PM – Calle de Alcalá and lunch
Calle de Alcalá is one of the longest and busiest streets in Madrid. If you truly want to soak in the vibe of this city, then you should walk around this street and just enjoy the surroundings. It’s mostly lined with banks, government offices, shops and restaurants so you can just walk around and admire the beautiful architecture of the buildings lined on this street. We stopped by for lunch here at Bumpgreen, which is another great plant-based restaurant.
3:00 PM – Plaza de España
After lunch, we made our way to the very famous Plaza de España which is another must-do in Madrid. This is another beautiful square in Madrid where you can walk around and admire the fountains. There is a huge monument in honor of Miguel de Cervantes in the center. During summers, it’s an even more lively place with pop-up food stalls. We hung out here and grabbed coffee before making our way to the next stop for sunset.
5:00 PM – Temple of Debod
Temple of Debod is an ancient Egyptian temple that was gifted to Spain by the government of Egypt and it goes back to the 2nd century B.C. It’s adorned with beautiful gardens that you can walk around but most importantly, it’s one of the best sunset spots. When we went there, it was bustling with crowds. There were street performers and musicians playing around the crowd. It was a very lively atmosphere and everyone had gathered to watch the beautiful sunset. You can also get nice views of the city from the garden here. It’s free to access so make sure to add this to your list.
7:30 PM – Flamenco Show
When in Spain, you cannot miss watching a Flamenco show because it’s such a great way to witness the culture of this beautiful country. The colorful costumes, the tap dance, the rhythmic clapping and singing, and the music will surely captivate you. We booked our tickets through Get Your Guide and here’s the link. There are a few options to choose from for seating and we went for the General seating. There’s a bar inside the theater so you can buy drinks while enjoying the performance. The show usually lasts for an hour and I would highly recommend it.
9:00 PM – Dinner
After the amazing show, we went for dinner at this restaurant called Sanissimo which was a 10-minute walk from the theater. This is also a vegan place and their burrito wraps were delicious.
DAY 3
Our third day in Madrid was all about exploring the town of Toledo. Toledo is a small town about an hour drive from Madrid and is very well known for its rich history. So we decided to visit and explore more of its history and culture.
Train to Toledo
You can either drive to Toledo if you have a car or can hire a taxi and it should take about an hour to reach. But an easier option is to just take the train which will take about 45 minutes. We took the train and here’s the link to book. The station at Madrid that you will need to take the train from is Puerta de Atocha. We grabbed a quick coffee in the morning and took a taxi to our station. The train station also has some nice cafes so if you want to get to the station early, you can just grab breakfast here. Our train was booked for 10 AM and we reached Toledo at 10:45 AM.
Mirador del Valle view point
From the Toledo train station, we took a taxi to go straight to our walking tour location. We had booked a free walking tour of about 2 hours that would take us to all the important points in Toledo and also give us more background and context of its history. Here’s the link to our walking tour. On our way to the tour location, our taxi driver stopped at a very famous view point called Mirador del Valle which gave us the most amazing views of the entire city nestled in the bend of the Tagus river. This viewpoint is a must so make sure to tell your taxi driver to stop here.
Walking Tour
We then made our way to the walking tour location and met our guide there. Our walking tour was really insightful as our tour guide Carmen was a local so she knew a lot about the history of some of the most important landmarks in Toledo such as the Toledo Cathedral, the Alcazar, the Magdalena square and much more. A fun fact – Toledo is nicknamed City of Three Cultures because the three cultures i.e. Muslims, Jews and Christians coexisted and their influence has been seen on the monuments here. This city is also famous for making bladed weapons. Our guide showed us some of the swords that have been used in the famous series Game of Thrones and also in movies like Lord of the Rings.
There are also Hop on hop off bus tours that can take you around the city but in my opinion, the walking tour is the best way to explore the city from up close and at your pace. One of the best parts for me of this tour was walking through the narrow winding alleys that gave a very Arabic feel because of the Muslim influence and history. Once you’re done with the tour, you can also visit some of these monuments from inside if you have the time. The walking tour is free but it’s a good idea to tip your guide once the tour is over and the optimum amount is between $10 – $15.
Lunch and Shopping
After our tour ended, we headed for lunch and our tour guide had suggested a nice vegetarian place called Madre Tierra. This place has a great selection of food and drinks and is a good try if you want vegetarian food. Another thing that you should try when in Toledo is their local sweet called Marzipan. Our guide told us about it and it’s a Spanish sweet dish but was invented by the Muslims so it looks and tastes very similar to Muslim sweet delicacies. This is only found in Toledo so make sure you try some before leaving the city.
After lunch, we just walked around the streets and explored some local shops before making our way back to the train station. If you’re interested in shopping here or just checking out the local boutiques, I would recommend checking out this very nice boutique called Koker. They have a very trendy and unique collection of clothes and I bought a few things from them.
Cocktails and Tapas in Madrid
We took a 4 PM train back to Madrid as we wanted to get back before sunset. We reached Madrid around 5 PM and made our way to the cocktail bar Salmon Guru. This is another famous cocktail bar which has a nicely curated menu of cocktails. They have a very intricate and extensive menu so I would highly recommend this if you enjoy cocktails.
And if you’re in the mood for some nice Tapas, you can check out the local fresh food market called Mercado San Miguel. There are a lot of local Spanish delicacies you can try here but if you’re a vegetarian your options will be limited. Nonetheless, this place is worth a visit.
DAY 4
10:00 AM – Gran Via street
On our last day in Madrid, we decided to explore the beautiful street of Gran Via. This is one of the most bustling streets of Madrid and is lined with boutiques, retail shops, restaurants and cafes. You can easily spend 1-2 hours just walking around leisurely and soaking in the vibe of this city. We grabbed coffee here in the morning and then just walked around and stopped at some famous buildings like the Cervantes Institute building and the CentroCentro building. There were many tourists like us that were stopping and taking pictures of these beautiful buildings.
We also walked up to the Plaza de Cibeles which is a famous square with huge statues and fountains. You may have driven past it when going around the city because it is in the center of the city but you really need to stop and admire it up close. The fountain of Cibeles is an iconic symbol of Madrid.
12:00 PM – Reina Sofia Museum
This is another very famous museum in Madrid known for its contemporary art collection. Most of the art pieces here are from famous Spanish artists. This museum is famous mainly for housing Picasso’s famous work Guernica. If you have the time and are interested in art then this might be a good place. It’s free admission and here’s more details on hours of admission.
1:30 PM – Royal Botanic Gardens
These gardens are a very short walk from the Reina Sofia museum so once we were done with the museum, we decided to take a stroll through these gardens. These gardens are spread over 20 acres and were built in the 18th century. There are many outdoor sections and a few greenhouses. The lush green gardens are home to a variety of plants and trees that you can stop and admire. We loved strolling through the pathways and just admiring the different species. It’s a great way to spend some time in nature if you need a break.
2:30 PM – Lunch
We then made our way to lunch at a nice Indian restaurant called Curry Masala. If you like Indian food then this place is a good option for their choice of dishes, service and ambience. It was a good way for us to end our trip in Madrid.
6:00 PM – Train to Seville
After spending the most amazing 4 days in Madrid, it was now time to head to our next stop, Seville.
I really enjoyed my time in Madrid and it was such a fulfilling experience for me. As I mentioned, Madrid is a perfect blend of culture, architecture and food. So if you’re thinking of visiting Spain, I would highly recommend adding Madrid to your list. Hope you enjoyed this Madrid itinerary!
Leaving you with some more pictures from our last evening in Madrid.
1 Comment
Thank you Palak!! These are super useful!!!