Travel Advice, tips, on Madrid, Spain

well besides shopping lol, there's a lot to do in Madrid. I am a football (soccer) fan so I suggest going to a Real Madrid game! They have a home game on Dec. 21 and the atmosphere is great as well as the experience as a whole. The Parque del Retiro is a nice place to spend some time if the weather is nice. You and your bf can go for a nice picnic, row a boat in the lake (boats are for rent), or just sit around in the grass. It is busy on weekends but that is a good time to go because there are street theatre shows, concerts and stuff. You are already going to all museums, etc. so I won't go into any info about them. You can go to Casa de Campo and get a cable car die to see city views and such. If your not afraid of heights you can take a hot air balloon ride above the city. I did this once and it was really amazing lol. I was kind of scared to be honest but the views were nice and I recommend it. There are a few companies that do this, I can't remember the one I used but I googled it and found one called Balloon Flights Spain. To see a Flamenco show, visit Corral de la Moreria. You can either just watch the show or have show and dinner. When I went, we were a group of 6 and we had dinner too, it was pretty good food. Just wanted to mention, a lot of the restaurants like La broche are very busy so it is best to make reservations. You may get tired of eating out so I included some of my local markets where I usually go for fresh veggies, cheese, etc. but I'm not sure if they will be close to wear you are staying. If not, there are a ton of other markets to go get fresh produce and stuff if you decide to do some cooking.


I'm not sure how close the places I mentioned are to wear you will be staying but Madrid is generally easy to get around. There are sooo many restaurants and shops I just can't think of so I couldn't add them. There are a bunch of nice home-cooking type of places to eat too but I can't think of the names and they aren't online since they are small and family owned. But I listed most of what I could remember. If you need the addresses for anything on the list, just let me know! You're going to have a great time and the time will go by way too fast. There is always a party in Madrid lol, so the day certainly does not end at like 10pm or something. Just remember, you don't have to see everything, just take it easy and make it relaxing. What I would do is get all of the tourist stuff out of the way first, maybe like the first week or so, then just use the rest of your time to be like a local. I'm not too big on museums and art (I do collect art though) so that is what I eneded up doing and it worked great. Locals are friendly so maybe you'll befriend one while you're there and they can also tell you where to go and what to do. I was just recently in Barcelona and after writing this list out, I regret not taking some time to go to Madrid too! I do plan on going some time before christmas though even if it is for a short few days. I hope you have a lot of fun and enjoy your time there, we might even end up bumping into each other!






























 
OH WOW!!! Thanks so much for all the recommendations. It shows how much you love Madrid. Seeing your list makes me super excited to go. I"m kind of nervous since I will be there a long time but it sounds like such fun I don't think I'll ever get bored. I will defintely try your resturants recommendations and take tons of pictures. If you do plan on being in the area please PM me and we can meet up. It would be great to see the city through someone who loves and knows it so well.
 
Going to Madrid 1st week of November. Have booked the Wellington Hotel. Want to stay in the city centre. Should I take a trench coat??What all places to see and places to eat??
 
The Wellington hotel is not that central; You might want to book a hotel near Puerta del Sol. eating and drinking: mercado de san miguel and mercado de san anton: a lot of locals and great tapas; shopping: calle de fuencarral and calle serano and claudio coellho; people watching: parque de retiro on a sunday
 
The Wellington hotel is not that central; You might want to book a hotel near Puerta del Sol.
I think the location is quite good due to it being a walking distance from several Metro stations, Retiro Park, Prado museum and the high-end designer stores.

Going to Madrid 1st week of November. Have booked the Wellington Hotel. Want to stay in the city centre. Should I take a trench coat??What all places to see and places to eat??
I'd probably pack a trench coat.

Places to see:
- museo del Prado (free admission in the evening!)
- Parque del Retiro
- shopping areas
- Plaza Mayor
- Royal Palace
- Catedral de la Almudena (nice view from the top)

If you're interested in buying some delicious chocolate and cakes:
- Oriol Balaguer: Calle de José Ortega y Gasset, 44
- Cacao Sampaka: Calle de Orellana, 4
- Moulin Chocolat: Calle de Alcalá, 77
for cheese:
- Poncelet: Calle de Argensola, 27 (they also offer wine and other stuff that goes well with cheese)
 
Hello there!

We are arriving in Madrid next Sat for two nights. A couple of questions where I hope Madrid-based advisors can help me with-

Is a there a Chinatown in Madrid?
Do the shops in Madrid observe the siesta hours?
Any feedback on the outlet villages? I read that there are two.

Thank you in advance!
 
Hello beautiful ladies,
I will be going to Madrid in a couple of months for a business trip and I was wondering if you have any suggestions for things to see, do, eat and, of course, shop, while there! Does Madrid have as many boutiques as Barcelona?
I have searched the forum up and down and I could not find any mentions worthwhile for Madrid.
Any help would be greatly appreciated :smile:

Thank you!
 
Hello beautiful ladies,
I will be going to Madrid in a couple of months for a business trip and I was wondering if you have any suggestions for things to see, do, eat and, of course, shop, while there! Does Madrid have as many boutiques as Barcelona?
I have searched the forum up and down and I could not find any mentions worthwhile for Madrid.
Any help would be greatly appreciated :smile:

Thank you!

I was in Madrid years ago and stayed for only a few days but it's one of my favourite cities because my hubby proposed to me there. One store that stands out in my mind is La Violeta, a quaint little candy shop specializing in sugared violet candies. They also sell chocolates and other types of candies. https://www.lavioletaonline.es/en/

The Prado and Reina Sofia museums were worth seeing. I shopped at Zara (before it went global) and the department store El Corte Ingles which carries mostly mid-range brands.

Sorry, I don't have much else to suggest since it's been too long ago. Hopefully, others will chime in. Enjoy your trip!
 
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I was in Madrid years ago and stayed for only a few days but it's one of my favourite cities because my hubby proposed to me there. One store that stands out in my mind is La Violeta, a quaint little candy shop specializing in sugared violet candies. They also sell chocolates and other types of candies. https://www.lavioletaonline.es/en/

The Prado and Reina Sofia museums were worth seeing. I shopped at Zara (before it went global) and the department store El Corte Ingles which carries mostly mid-range brands.

Sorry, I don't have much else to suggest since it's been too long ago. Hopefully, others will chime in. Enjoy your trip!
Thank you so much, Hiromi!!! I will definitely visit La Violeta as I enjoy some good chocolate myself!!

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