Welcome to Madrid!! Hello travel companions, we arrived in Madrid, In this video guide of Spain the itinerary for Madrid was missing, we will make a tour divided into three days but you can easily adapt it to two. shall we start? Welcome to Madrid! Day 1 Free walking tour. If you have never been to the city, we recommend taking a free tour of it. Actually, at the time we did it, it was not our first visit, but we enjoyed it a lot since it added a lot of information. Tour the most central and emblematic area of the city, thus giving you the initial kick so that you can then deepen your visit to Madrid. You also have a tour at night to see the city illuminated, I think both are good options. Remember to leave a tip according to the tour. You can make the reservation for free from their website, on the blog I leave all the links. Whether you have chosen not to do the walking tour, or if you want to return to take a closer look, the Plaza Mayor will be waiting for you to start your first day in Madrid. Look at it in detail. With the statue of Felipe III in the middle, the galleries with bars and shops around, the Plaza Mayor unfolds all its charm to receive the tourists who arrive. This is undoubtedly one of the most emblematic places to see in the city of Madrid. For centuries it has hosted popular festivities, beatifications, coronations and many other acts, today it welcomes all visitors to this city, offering them the majestic view of its buildings. An important piece of information for travelers, there is a tourist office there which provides very good information about the city. If it's not too hot, a good plan is to go to the San Ginés chocolate shop, it's just a few steps away. Open for very long hours, it will delight you with some churros with chocolate apart from enjoying the charm of the place. Next stop: San Miguel Market. Just a few steps from the Plaza Mayor we find the Mercado de San Miguel, a place you will want to return to every time you set foot in Madrid. Inaugurated as a food market more than 100 years ago, today it is one of the most outstanding gastronomic markets in the world. In it you will find all kinds of snacks, from Iberian ham, seafood or fruit that you will surely want to try. The prices are perhaps somewhat higher than elsewhere, but it is a typical walk, a must if you are in the Spanish city. We did not eat at the market this time but at the Mesón de la Tortilla. I recommend them, it's worth it, ask for it in a good tortilla and it's very tasty. It is located almost in front of Mercado San Miguel. Our steps will take us to the Almudena Cathedral. Almudena Cathedral and Royal Palace. It was built from the end of the 19th century to the 20th century, being consecrated in 1993 by Pope John Paul II. Entrance to the cathedral is free and access to the museum and the dome costs €7. Right in front we will find the Royal Palace of Madrid. Designed in the 18th century, it is the official residence of the kings of Spain, it is used only for receptions and official ceremonies and can be visited both on a guided tour and on a self-guided tour. It is a tour that I recommend you do, I liked it very much. The ticket price is €12 for a free visit, on the blog I leave the link to consult the guided tour. Another visit to do next to the Royal Palace is the Sabatini Gardens. The Sabatini Gardens are located in front of the north façade of the Royal Palace of Madrid, these gardens were built in the 1930s on the site of the royal stables built in the 18th century by the Italian architect Francesco Sabatini next to the palace. On our walk we will then pass by the Royal Theater of Madrid. The Teatro Real is the opera house of Madrid, it is located in the Plaza de Oriente in front of the Royal Palace. Its construction began in 1818 and it was inaugurated in 1850. If we continue walking and bordering the Sabatini Gardens, we will start our journey towards the Temple of Debod. Temple of Debod The Temple of Debod was a gift from Egypt to Spain in 1968 in compensation for the Spanish help to save the Nubian temples, mainly that of Abu Simbel in danger of disappearing due to the construction of the Aswan Dam. You can enter the visit is free. Today we finish the walk of this first day in the Plaza de España. The Plaza de España is a large landscaped space in the city of Madrid in the Argüelles neighborhood. In its center is a monumental fountain dedicated to Miguel de Cervantes. It acts as a continuing axis linking Gran Vía with Calle Princesa. We could have started the tour here and not finish it, but as we always say, this is one of the thousand ways that we will have to put together the itinerary through the city, and all of them will surely be good, taking into account that we will all be housed in different areas. Here is the map with the places visited on this first day. As you can see, they are very close to each other, so we cover it by walking. Day 2. Puerta del Sol This is our first point on the itinerary for the second day in Madrid. Although we chose to do it on the second day, it is also a very good option for the first, either because you got off the metro here, or because once you have dropped off your bags you want to start somewhere iconic in Madrid, your steps will take you to Puerta del Sol. We are at kilometer zero of all Spanish routes, and it is one of the most famous squares in that country, a meeting place for locals and tourists. In it we find the old building of the post office that today houses the headquarters of the presidency of the community of Madrid, the clock of the post office is the one that emits the famous chimes of the Puerta del Sol every year end. And what we all hope to see is the Bear and the Madroño, the famous statue that is so typical in Madrid. Gran Vía. Although you may have chosen it for the first day, we are going to go through it second after leaving Puerta del Sol. This avenue extends from Calle Alcalá to Plaza España, which was built at the beginning of the twentieth century. We find in them cinemas, theaters, shops and stately buildings always having a lively movement. Doing it at the last minute is also a very good option after having visited squares, markets, a walk through this emblematic avenue and its surroundings is a very good plan to later look for a nice place to have dinner or a drink. I tell you that every time we have been in Madrid we have chosen to stay near Gran Vía, in the surroundings of Plaza del Callao. Although they have chosen to come at night, as I was saying, they are not going to miss seeing it during the day, mainly to admire the number of beautiful buildings it has. On this second day in Madrid we are going to see the city but from above. Roof of the Círculo de Bellas Artes. Madrid has several viewpoints that we will see later, such as the Cibeles Palace or the Moncloa viewpoint, but the roof terrace of the Círculo de Bellas Artes is the one chosen because of its proximity to all the places we are visiting, and the other reason why What I choose is that I particularly like the views that you get from there, apart from the fact that you can take a break upstairs with a drink. The cost of admission is €5, the schedules and the link to the Círculo de Bellas Artes website can be found on the Fuente y Palacio de Cibeles blog. The Cibeles fountain, better known as the Cibeles, is located in the square of the same name and dates from the 18th century. Traditions such as being the place where Real Madrid celebrates its triumphs has contributed to making it known worldwide. Right in front we find another beautiful construction, the Cibeles Palace, formerly called the Palace of Communications. The palace can be visited and even, as we said just a few minutes ago, go up to its viewpoint. Access to the viewpoint has a cost of three euros, the hours for those who are interested we leave them on the blog so as not to be so extensive the video, but this is without a doubt a characteristic postcard of Madrid. Neptune is one of the most beautiful and majestic fountains in Madrid, the Atlético de Madrid fans celebrate their victories in the Plaza del Dios del Mar, just as a few seconds ago we said that in Cibeles they celebrate Real Madrid. Plaza de Neptuno occupies a central place on the Paseo del Prado and is home to the Westin Palace hotel and the Mandarín Oriental Ritz, two of the most historic hotels in Madrid. Atocha Station The Atocha station is a railway complex located near Plaza del Emperador Carlos V. It acts as a railway junction and this makes it the station with the highest passenger traffic in the country. Its interior is beautiful with a large landscaped area, you may go there if you have to take a train to another part of Spain, but if not, try to walk around it and you will discover a very beautiful station. Prado Museum The almost essential visit in Madrid if you like art is the Prado Museum. Madrid has many museums that we will name later, but surely if you have thought of visiting Madrid you have thought of visiting the Prado National Museum. As you will see, we leave it for the last on this second day, why? Because the free schedule is from Monday to Saturday from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. and Sundays and holidays from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., access to the museum is up to 30 minutes before closing. Let's see, how they see the time margin is little, and the queue will take up your time, but if you want to take a look at the main works and for free, this is an opportunity. The cost of general admission during normal hours is 15 euros, but as we said if you want you can take advantage of the free hours, we did so. If you want to go with complete peace of mind, all the time, get your ticket and take advantage of the Prado Museum, which is a beautiful museum. As I always tell you, check the official page first because things change, I leave it on the blog. Here on the map we see again the places visited. I leave these maps on the blog. Day 3 Santiago Bernabeu Stadium. We start this third and last day visiting the Santiago Bernabéu. The Bernabéu offers, like other stadiums in the world, a tour of its facilities. Whether you are a fan or not, it can be an interesting visit. As you will see at the time of this visit it was under construction. The cost of the ticket is 15 euros, although, at least at this time, you can get it on the official page online for 12 euros. Las Ventas Bullring. Going to see this construction on this second day may be an option. It is the largest bullring in Spain, and the third in the world with more capacity behind Mexico, and Valencia in Venezuela. And now our steps will continue towards the famous Puerta de Alcalá The Puerta de Alcalá is one of the five old royal gates that gave access to the city built by order of Carlos III to replace another previous one that dated from the 16th century. This monumental gate, inaugurated in 1778, is located next to the Retiro Park and it is home to streets as prominent as Alcalá, Alfonso XII or Serrano and constitutes one of the most recognized tourist places in Madrid. Over time, the door and its size have acquired the category of a symbol of Madrid, appearing in postcard albums and in logos representing the city. Without a doubt, when we see it, the song popularized by Ana Belén and Víctor Manuel comes to mind. Although on the route of day 2 we were very close to visiting this gate, we have left it for today because we wanted to have plenty of time to also make our next visit... the Retiro Park. We arrived at the Retiro Park. If there is something that we always think of visiting in Madrid, it is this park. Disconnect for a while from the hustle and bustle of the city and enjoy this quiet walk. The Parque del Retiro or Parque del Buen Retiro is popularly known as El Retiro. It is a historic garden and public park. Considered one of the main tourist attractions, it has architectural and landscape figures, among which the monument to Alfonso XII, the Crystal Palace, the large pond, the parterre, the gate of Philip IV, the royal astronomical observatory and the fountain of Artichoke. It was built in the first half of the 17th century within the landscape project developed for the Palacio del Buen Retiro for the enjoyment of King Felipe IV, and was inaugurated as a public park in 1868. El Retiro is one of the main parks in Madrid, and the preferred by locals and tourists. Since July 2021, the Buen Retiro Park has been recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Cultural Landscape along with the Paseo del Prado. It has many points of interest to visit in it, as we said we can highlight the pond, the monument to Alfonso XII, the crystal palace or the walk of the statues. It is an ideal place to take some nice walks and relax in the Spanish city. The schedule from October to March from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., from April to September from 6 a.m. to 12 p.m. Puerta de Toledo. We were talking about Madrid having five access gates to the city, we will now pass through the Puerta de Toledo, which is one of them. It was the last monumental gate erected in the old Madrid enclosure, it was built in the period between 1813 and 1827 and was restored by the Madrid City Council in 1995. A tour of some Madrid neighborhoods can be a great option to complement this or any other day. If you don't want to do it on your own, you have free tours of Chueca and Malasaña, Lavapiés and La Latina, or the neighborhood of letters, for example. One option that we are always asked about is the well-known tourist buses. The first time we visited Madrid we chose to take a tourist bus to be able to explore it and get our bearings, if you want to do it the first time it is a good idea you are going to sit down, you are going to see everything and then you are going to choose what to visit, we following times we realized that it is a city that is easy to get around on foot, that at some point you might take a subway, but that you get around it very easily on foot, so we have not used it anymore But it is a good option if you still do not know it, If you go without putting together much of the itinerary, if you haven't looked at a map of where each place is, it's a good option. We now go to our last point in the city, Faro de Moncloa. The Moncloa Lighthouse is a 110-meter-high lighting tower built in 1992, the year in which the city was designated European Capital of Culture. The panoramic elevator that takes us to the great viewpoint of the Moncloa lighthouse travels 92 meters . This is perhaps a visit not so common for tourists, but it is another option to see Madrid from above. The general ticket is four euros and the schedule is from Tuesday to Sunday from 9:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., with the last upload at 7:30 p.m. with the places visited. To all this we could add a series of museums. Madrid has a significant number of museums, it is highly recommended to visit them. We had only highlighted the Prado National Museum, but you can also visit the Reina Sofía National Art Center Museum, which is highly recommended, the Thyssen Bornemisza National Museum, the Sorolla Museum, the Madrid History Museum, the Cerralbo Museum, the Museum of Romanticism, but many more that they have to explore in this city of Madrid. In the blog I leave a section for you to find there the variety of museums that they have with the prices of the tickets, the hours and their location. Madrid is a city to walk, you will not get tired doing it, or at least not much for some points a little further away like those on the third day it will be convenient to travel by metro or bus. As for accommodation on the blog I leave you some of the options that we have used in our visits but they have a lot of offer of both hostels and hotels to do a search and be able to get a good price. Travel Companions This has been a tourist tour of the city of Madrid, which is generally going to be seen by people who go from outside Spain- and who want to know about this Spanish capital. Also from the blog if you have any questions, you can send me an email, there you will find this a section where you can do it and I will answer, yes I know the information but refer you to a page or somewhere where you can get it. I also put together a pdf with the main places that we have named here so that they have the information saved or some other data, if they want it, please request it by mail from the same from the blog. Travel companions here today's video if you liked the video and it has helped you do not forget to subscribe, like and share it with other travelers who like to put together their own itineraries Until our next video when we ask them... Are you planning a trip to...?
