After having spent the whole month of June in Madrid, I am absolutely in love. This city is amazing and there is an endless list of things you can see and do; not to mention all of the splendid bars and restaurants.
At the end of June I had a friend fly into Madrid; we would be leaving the city in the afternoon that day. I was left with the difficult task of deciding, what should someone do if they only have one day in Madrid?
I made this short itinerary of what I believe to be the most essential stops in the city in order to give my friend a taste of it all before we left later that day.
After getting my friend a 10-ride public transport pass and taking the metro from the airport, we grabbed a coffee and headed to the Sol stop on line two. Here, we arrived at the dead center of Madrid and walked a short distance to the famous Plaza Mayor. This is one of the most important sights to see in the city as a tourist, not to mention that right around the corner is el Mercado de San Miguel. A super fun place worth visiting, el Mercado de San Miguel features many posts where visitors can buy small dishes and drinks, allowing them to try a little bit of everything Spanish-cuisine related. As our last stop in this part of the city, we went down the road to la Chocolatería de San Ginés which is one of the most well-known places to buy the absolutely delicious churros con chocolate caliente; this is definitely a must-try!
Chocolatería de San Gines
Plaza Mayor
Mercado de San Miguel
Palacio Cristal
Retiro gates
Back on the metro and full of churros, we next went to the metro on the two line headed to Retiro; this leads us to El Parque Retiro, the biggest and most historical park in Madrid. There, you can see beautiful greenery and the little man-made lake in the center of the park, right in front of the gorgeous Alfonso XII monument. In the park, you can walk around to see even more landmarks such as El Palacio Cristal, or rent an adorable row boat at the lake for only six euros!
Row boats at Retiro
Once again, we hopped back on the two line to the Ópera stop. There, you find El Palacio Real and La Catedral de la Almudena, two of the most well-known buildings in the city. The palace is a world heritage site and holds a rich history of Spain and its monarchy, and the cathedral, while less historic, is a beautiful site to see. In between the two structures, we stopped to take in the amazing hilltop view of a large portion of Madrid and the mountains in the distance. At this point in the day we were ready for lunch, so I brought my friend to the restaurant La Paradita which is right outside of the palace gardens. Here, you can find Spanish tapas and bebidas starting at only one euro each! I recommend ordering as many small plates as you can eat, giving you a great chance to try all of the famous dishes in one place and for a great price.
Palacio Real
Yummy tapas 🙂
Catedral de la Almudena
After hitting a few gift shops along the way, me and my friend had to head back to the train station to prepare for our departure to Barcelona. Our day in Madrid was more like a half day, but we still got to see many of the most integral locations within the city! However, I would recommend a few more things if you have more time than we did. Many of the museums are free or reduced price in the late afternoons/evenings, so head over the El Prado and La Reina Sofia if you get the chance; these art museums hold some of the most important works in history, painted by famous artists such as Goya, Dalí, Velazquéz and Picasso. Also, Madrid has an extremely rich nightlife, so I highly recommend looking for some fun bars and clubs to go to! In Chueca, the famously gay neighborhood of Madrid, you can find a super fun and dense array of place to go, as well as many delicious dessert stops around the area!
I hope you all get the chance to visit Madrid as it is truly an enchanting city. I loved my entire experience there and plan on going back as soon as I can. Enjoy all of these recommendations and have safe and fun travels!