Madrid, the capital of Spain is the second-largest city in the European Union. It is a refreshing green city because of its elegant boulevards and expansive manicured parks. Furthermore the relaxing plazas, the beautiful monuments and a great nightlife. But there is also a lot more for you in this pretty city. Come let’s look at how to spend 3 days in Madrid having lots of fun.

The First Day

We had booked our hotel in Gran Via, the most happening street of Madrid. And as always through my favorite hotel booking site, Booking.com. Because it’s here that you get the best hotels at the best price with free cancellation options. And our choice was Hospedaje Romero Gran Via, Gran Via 64.

Most hotels in Madrid have a check-in time between 2 pm-3 pm. Therefore most travelers prefer to reach here possibly around that time, so that they can check-in, freshen up and get going. But we reached a little later. However there was still more than eight hours that we had with us, before we finally retired for the night.

And that was enough time to have a relaxed evening walking and exploring Gran Via and around. Plazas, landmarks, tapas market, art museum, exciting nightlife, wonderful cocktails and moreover some great food. Check out the best way you could have your first evening enjoying life in Madrid. An evening exploring Gran Via in Madrid. And PIN it for later to plan, whenever we can travel again.

Day 2

A nice different breakfast

After a late night and having traveled earlier, we took our time getting up from bed. It was a little later than the normal days on a holiday. But we freshened up early and were soon down for our breakfast. Both me & my wife prefer an English breakfast, but with no such option available very close by, we decided for something different. Salty & Sweet for a change. Manchego Cheese & Iberian Loin Sandwich, Red Berry Muffin & Carrot Muffin Cakes, 3 Chocolates Cake, Fanta & Coke at Bocadillos, Gran Via 22 just a small walk away from our hotel.

Walking to visit Landmarks

If you are staying in Central Madrid around Gran Via, all landmarks are close by and within 3 kms. Therefore the best way to explore is to walk around. Just like we had done the previous afternoon visiting Lope Felix de Vega Carpio, Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum, Plaza Mayor, Puerta del Sol, San Miguel Market and enjoying Gran Via by night. We also had similar plans for the second day too.

Plaza de España

Plaza de España or ‘Spain Square’ is a large square and popular tourist destination located in central Madrid, Spain at the western end of the Gran Vía. It features a monument to Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra and is also adjacent to two of Madrid’s most prominent skyscrapers, It was a just a 10 minutes walk from our place.

Temple of Debod

Inside Plaza de España, you would also see the Temple of Debod which is an ancient Egyptian temple. This is probably one of the more unique sights you’ll see during your 2 days in Madrid. The story is one of generosity going back to the 1960’s. Some temples in Egypt were under threat because of the Aswan Dam construction.  When UNESCO asked for help to save many archaeological monuments, Spain responded. Therefore in a friendly gesture, Egypt gave this temple to Spain. Have a look.

Royal Palace

A short walk away from the Plaza is the Royal Palace of Madrid. It is the official home of the Spanish royal family and has an extensive history to it. With the title of the biggest royal palace in Europe and boasting of a whopping 2,800 rooms, it is definitely a beautiful building. Visitors are able to go inside certain parts of the palace as well as wander around the extensive gardens. Come let’s get a good view.

Almudena Cathedral

Just 2 mins away from the Palace is the Almudena Cathedral. It’s a Catholic church and the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Madrid. When in Madrid you must visit this church. The cathedral was consecrated by Pope John Paul II in 1993. It seems to have been built on the site of a medieval mosque that was destroyed in 1083 when Alfonso VI re-conquered Madrid. Therefore the cathedral will impress you with its modern Neo-Gothic interior and Baroque exterior.

Puente de Segovia

A short walk from the Cathedral you can find the Bridge of Segovia crossing the river Manzanares. The bridge is composed of bricks of granite and provides great views of Madrid in both directions.

It was time for Lunch

Sobrino de Botín

The entire center in and around Gran Via has restaurants to match you preference for the day. We decided on ‘Sobrino de Botín‘ which is a Spanish restaurant just off Plaza Mayor. Founded in 1725, it is the oldest restaurant in the world in continuous operation. The restaurant truly feels as though you are stepping back in time with its tavern-style and authentic-looking interiors. Its most famous dish is the suckling pig, which, like many other of the restaurant’s dishes, is cooked in the original wood-fired ovens. Therefore we decided to try it out.

Buen Retiro Park

We took a leisurely walk after lunch to this very popular attraction of Madrid where you can spend hours enjoying nature and some lovely landmarks. Also known as El Retiro or El Parque de Retiro, it was once a place of retreat for the Spanish royal family who had a palace in its grounds. It certainly is a remarkable place to visit as a sightseer as well as a nice, quiet spot to relax in. There is plenty that you’ll find here to keep you occupied over its 140 hectares a full afternoon.

We walked back to our hotel to freshen up, relax a bit and prepare for our evening ahead. And it definitely turned out to be an exciting evening.

Spending the second evening

Then it was time for a drink

Followed by Dinner

The third day

Madrid Hop-on-hop-off

As we normally do during every holiday of ours, this time too we opted for a city tour of Madrid atop the hop-on-hop-off buses. Although there are two lines included with your ticket, Grey & Blue, we had just enough time to use the Blue line. Moreover this line is also the one with the most prominent attractions on its route, which we wished to visit. And of course also get a glimpse of the city while zipping past. Come let’s take the tour as we board from the Gran Via stop.

First we zip through town

Landmarks you must visit

Madrid Atocha Railway Station

‘Puerta de Alcalá’

Museo Reina Sofía

Madrid is considered as one of the top European destinations concerning art museums. Reina Sofía National Art Museum (Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía) is certainly one of them. It is Madrid’s national museum of 20th-century art and houses Pablo Picasso’s 1937 anti-war masterpiece, Guernica. Furthermore it houses excellent collections of Spain’s greatest artists, including Salvador Dalí, Joan Miró, Picasso, Juan Gris, and Julio González.

Prado Museum

The Prado Museum (Museo del Prado) is a museum and art gallery that features one of the world’s finest collections of European art, from the 12th century to the early 19th century, based on the former Spanish Royal Collection. It has the best collection of artworks by Goya, Velázquez, El Greco, Rubens, Titian, Hieronymus Bosch, José de Ribera & Patinir among others.

Hard Rock Cafe

Estadio Santiago Bernabeu

Plaza de Cibeles

It was time for a quick lunch

Before heading for a Bull Fight show

Madrid hosts the largest Plaza de Toros (bullring) in Spain, Las Ventas which was established in 1929. Moreover, Las Ventas is considered by many to be the world center of bullfighting and has a seating capacity of almost 25,000. Madrid’s bullfighting season begins in March and ends in October. Las Ventas also hosts music concerts and other events outside of the bullfighting season. But how was our experience. The story possibly some other time soon.

After the show we headed towards Plaza Mayor very close to our accommodation for a specialty of Madrid. Chocolate with Churros in definitely the best cafeteria in town..

Chocolatería San Gines

It had been an eventful day for us as we headed to our room to relax a bit. But there was more excitement waiting for us as we walked out again for a colorful evening and an even more colorful dinner.

Dinner at Rosi La Loca

3 Days in Madrid. A perfect way to enjoy a well deserved holiday. You’ll love it too, whenever you get the opportunity to visit. That day hopefully wouldn’t be too far away in case you haven’t seen it all before. But the ancient port city of Cadiz is one you must include in your plans apart from Barcelona of course. However we were eagerly looking forward to our next day. A day trip to a historical city not too far away from Madrid.

If you loved this Madrid experience, PIN it to plan for later!