3 Days in Madrid: Travel Guide

A few weeks ago, Rick and I decided to do something a little crazy- we went to Madrid for a long weekend.  I had been wanting to go for awhile, the tickets were super affordable, and I had off of work for two days thanks to Mardi Gras, so I thought, “Why the heck not?!”  (I plan on writing a blog post detailing more about that decision, whether we thought it was worth it, and some tips in case you’re thinking of doing something similar, so more on that to come!!)

One of my favorite parts of Madrid is the ability to wander around and happen upon cute spots, restaurants, and bars.  Honestly, you don’t really need an itinerary!!  But, there are a few “must-do” things in the city, so here is a concise, MUST-DO itinerary for 3 days in MADRID: 

Day 1:

Plaza Mayor/ Puerta de Sol: 

When you think of Madrid, you may be thinking of Plaza Mayor (or at least that is what I always thought of)!  It is a beautiful town square surrounded by red buildings and a bunch of little cafes and restaurants.  Plaza Mayor used to be the center of Old Madrid back in the day!  

If possible, walk to Plaza Mayor from your hotel, and take your time!! If you see a cute cafe and want to grab a bite to eat, do it!  If you want to stray from the path that your Maps app tells you, do it!  Madrid is a beautiful city, and I think it’s best enjoyed on foot and without a rigid schedule. 

On the way to Plaza Mayor, pass by Puerta de Sol, another famous town square.  One thing you may notice is how crowded it is!  In Madrid, it seems like everyone is outside lol.  

Once you eventually get to Plaza Mayor, take it all in!!  Like I said before, there are a bunch of cute cafes in the square.  As these are super touristy, they are overpriced, but Rick and I enjoyed having a glass of wine and some olives at one of the cafes and then headed elsewhere (Taberna de los Castizos) for some light tapas and sangria before going to a late dinner at the oldest restaurant in the world, Restaurante Botín.   

Mercado de San Miguel: 

The Mercado de San Miguel is a big, covered food market filled with tapas of all types.  This is a can’t miss— go hungry!!  It is also very close to Plaza Mayor, so it’d be easy to head here before or after going to the Plaza.  

TIP:  Avoid Mercado de San Miguel on the weekend.  Rick and I went for the first time on the weekend, and ended up leaving without trying any food because it was too crowded.  We went again on a Monday, and it was much less crowded, and we were able to find seating, too!  If you do have to go on the weekend, try to go in the morning, as it’ll likely be less crowded.  

Chocolateria San Gines:

You can’t go to Madrid and not eat churros with hot chocolate!!  Chocolateria San Gines is Madrid’s most famous spot for this delicacy, and they DEFINITELY lived up to the hype!!  

Day 2:

Prado Museum: 

The Museo Nacional Del Prado is HUGE and contains one of the world’s finest collections of European art.  It houses many, many pieces by Francisco Goya and Diego Velázquez, both of whom were major Spanish artists!  The Prado’s art collection is massive, and it can take hours to look through it all, so make sure to allocate a few hours or an afternoon to getting lost in the Prado’s halls.  Make sure to eat beforehand, and order tickets beforehand, too!  The ticket line was sooo long, so we ordered tickets online and were able to bypass the line.  Access to the museum is free from 6pm-8pm every day except Sunday, when access is free from 5pm-7pm—definitely a good option if you don’t want to spend too much time there!   

Retiro Park: 

Retiro Park, or Parque del Buen Retiro, is a massive, beautiful, relaxing park in Madrid—think Madrid’s own version of Central Park.  It used to be a retreat for the royal family back in the day!!   The park has a beautiful lake with the option to rent a rowboat.  It also contains the Crystal Palace, which is STUNNING!!  Plus, Retiro has a bunch of little cafes sprinkled throughout it— and honestly, the food is super good for park food lol.  Rick and I loved, loved, loved walking through Retiro and could have spent all day here lol.  

Salamanca Area: 

The Salamanca area of Madrid, which borders Retiro Park, is a great place to walk around and get a bite to eat!! This area is full of fine-dining restaurants, designer luxury boutiques, and El Corte Ingles, a huge Spanish department store (we even stopped for a glass of wine and a snack here!).  This was my favorite area to explore! 

Day 3:

Gran Vía:  

The Gran Vía is known as “Madrid’s most famous street” lol.  Pretty much, it’s one, big street that is full of restaurants, cafes, shops, churches, and shows.  A whole day can be spent wandering down this street.  It is full of amazing architecture, including Edificio Metrópolis, an iconic building in Madrid.  We enjoyed walking around this street, window shopping, and popping into cafes for a coffee or a glass of wine.    

Royal Palace of Madrid:  

Madrid’s Palace is so beautiful, and you can tour it!! Sadly, we didn’t book our tickets ahead of time and were therefore unable to tour.  This is something I wish we had done and will definitely be doing next time we visit Madrid.  If you are interested in going, make sure to learn from our mistakes and book your ticket in advance!

Flamenco Show:

Madrid is the capital of Flamenco, so I couldn’t go to Madrid and not watch some!!  Walking around Madrid, there are tons of ads for Flamenco shows.  However, I personally preferred to watch Flamenco in a bar or something like that, and we ended up lucking out with The Jungle Jazz Club by Amazónico in the Salamanca area!!  The Jungle Jazz Club is a club with a speakeasy vibe. They have performances with all different types of music, but they do release a program ahead of time of what artists will be performing, so I definitely recommend checking it out— great vibes! 

Regarding Hotels:

Rick and I stayed in Hotel Palacio Del Retiro, which was right next to Retiro Park, and we loved it!!  The service was great, the hotel was super nice, and the area was amazing!!  Would I stay in this hotel again?  Definitely!  However, one thing to note is that this area is not the super touristy part of town.  It is still in the city, is super close to tons of cafes and restaurants, and is walking distance to the city center, but it’s not in the thick of it all and isn’t in as touristy of an area as Plaza Mayor or the Gran Vía.  Personally, I prefer to be a little outside of the hustle and bustle (but still close enough), so I loved it. 

Restaurants we went to and recommend:

Restaurante Botín– The oldest restaurant in the world in continuous operation! We went for dinner and loved it- make reservations in advance!

Restaurante Oter– This restaurant serves traditional Spanish food. We went for an early dinner when we first arrived in Madrid- delicious (get the artichokes)!

El Paraguas– This is a fine dining restaurant and probably the “fanciest” meal we had in Madrid- SO good!!

El Rincón de Esteban– Serves traditional Spanish food and tapas!

Taberna de los Castizos– We came here for sangria and tapas before a later dinner one night.

Mercado de San Miguel– This market has pretty much every kind of tapas you can think of! Very popular and touristy, but worth it!

Cappuccino– We came here for breakfast. Great vibes and right next to Retiro Park! Delicious, too!

Mallorca– Another breakfast spot. Cute and good!

Chocolateria San Gines– THE spot for churros. A must-do and so good!!!

Ritz Champagne Bar– We only went here for a glass of champagne, which was pricey, but it was worth it for the vibes! Such a peaceful and beautiful atmosphere- we sat on the outdoor terrace.

All in all, I DEFINITELY recommend visiting Madrid. It is vibrant, it is beautiful, and it’s really just a joy to visit. I can’t wait to go back!

XX, Danielle